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By the end of this topic, you should be able to answer these questions: 1 What are the urination options for tec divers? 2 What is an inflation system and why are inflation systems frequently used when diving trimix? 3 What is a Jon line and when and how do you use it? 4 What are the benefits of team equipment and what three items are commonly team equipment? Relief In technical diving, long dives and the inability to surface makes having to urinate a real issue, especially when wearing a dry suit. There are several options available to handle urination: Dive in a wet suit and wash the suit thoroughly after each dive. This is not an option in many environments due to water temperature or duration. Urinating in a wetsuit feels warm, but actually speeds heat loss by dilating skin capillaries. Adult diapers in dry suits Do not require any suit modification. Have limited capacity -- they only hold so much. Require that you relieve yourself slowly or it will leak into your suit. P-Valves Systems route waste outside the suit through a valve. Valves may be balanced or unbalanced. Unbalanced system may cause a squeeze if not used correctly. May not be suitable for pristine environments that would be sensitive to contamination. There are two versions depending on the diver’s physical characteristics: Disposable condom catheters with adhesive sections to aid attachment Reusable silicone cup with separate adhesive applied each time. The adhesive must be removed between uses. Inflation System Technical divers sometimes use a separate inflation system, usually to inflate their dry suits. This is especially important when using gas blends with helium. Helium should never been used to inflate your dry suit because it is not a good insulator and will significantly speed up heat loss. For this reason, trimix divers frequently use inflation systems. An inflation system is a small cylinder, first stage with an over pressure valve and low pressure inflator hose. There is no second stage. It is usual for the cylinder to be marked “DO NOT BREATHE” even if the cylinder only ever contains air. This is because the equipment is not maintained or set up for breathing, for example, the first stages may have a lower intermediate pressure than when used for breathing. Most divers use air in an inflation system, but some divers prefer argon because it insulates better than air. Some divers prefer to have an inflator hose from an EANx (not trimix) deco cylinder to inflate their dry suit or as a back up in addition to the one from their bottom gas or inflation system. Jon Line Decompressing in a current on an anchor/mooring line can be tiring and crowded if several divers reach the same deco stop at the same time. A jon line is a short line about a metre/three feet to 3 metres/10 feet long that snugs (via a loop or special hook) around the mooring/anchor line and clips to your harness. The jon line lets you decompress effortlessly, opens up space at the stop depth and helps you control your depth because you are not pulled up and down with the main line. It also reduces the likelihood of getting blown off the line in a very strong current. Team Equipment If you regularly dive with the same team, you might share team equipment. This is equipment you want or need as a group, but don't necessarily need each diver to have personally. Having team equipment allows you share the cost of acquiring and maintaining these items. Examples of team equipment include: Gas analyzers, especially more expensive trimix/helium analyzers First aid and oxygen kits Spare parts kit, which is usually more extensive than for recreational diving and includes larger items such as spare regulators and location specific equipment.