Buoyancy Control Device (BCD) for Scuba Divers: If you don't have the right one you can spend your dives constantly fighting your BCD. You want to float and it's dragging you down, you want to dive and it's keeping you up. For the most part, this is fixed by actually knowing how to use your BCD properly. But choosing the right BCD for your diving, needs and diving ability, make learning how to use it a lot easier.
There five basic types of Scuba Buoyancy Compensators.
Only the first four of these are really used in scuba diving today.
We prefer back/rear inflation and wing style BCDs. Experienced divers have learned the rear inflation bladder BCDs are better than a wrap-around bladder jacket/vest BCDs. Rear wings offer very precise control of buoyancy and trim as well as offering a more streamlined profile. A properly fitting back/rear inflation BCD, worn with a crotch strap, will allow you to assume and hold any position under the water, or on the surface.
Buoyancy compensators can have a ton of features, or very few. Options are almost limitless.
The more features it has usually the more expensive it is. But what do you need, and what is just fluff is what you have to think about.
Scuba BCDs are expensive. Practicing good post-dive care and general maintenance will give your equipment a long life and save you from having to spend money on a new one.
There is a lot to consider before buying a BCD.
On the surface a scuba BCD should fit like a snug jacket. Not too tight under the arms, or across the torso. Women should choose a model designed for them.
But like everything else when it comes to diving, it's about more than just fit and style
You need to consider what type of diving you are doing, and what gear you'll need to carry with you to do it. A BCD is not just an airbag. A good one is like Batman's utility belt.
Consider what features are essential to you, and find the one that most closely fits that profile.
Start reading reviews and manufacturers materials, read forums and ask other divers for their opinions. Or just call and ask us.
Be honest with yourself about the type of diving you'll be doing. Make a checklist of everything you need in a scuba BCD,do your homework, and you should end up with the right scuba BCD for you.
For more information about BCD features please read our advice on choosing the right BCD for you in our Trusted Advice section.
Reef Dive | Shore access
Depth: 3 m (9.84 ft) to 5 m (16 ft)
The Point Lonsdale Kelp Forest grows along the edge of Shark Gutter and extends around towards the Lonsdale Jetty on the Bellarine Peninsula.. You need calm conditions, and even then you need to be looking out for currents that can eddy through and around the area at peak tide flows.
Location: Point Lonsdale, Victoria 3225
MELWAY Ref: Page 499 J6
Beach Marker: 1B
See WillyWeather (Port Phillip Heads) as a guide for the tide times and the height of the tide.
The Rip & Tides Warning: Always keep an eye on sea conditions throughout any shore or boat dive within "The Rip" (aka "The Heads"). This is a dangerous stretch of water, where Bass Straight meets Port Phillip, which has claimed many ships and lives. Please read the warnings on the web page diving-the-rip before diving or snorkelling this site.
This site lies in the Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park. The park is made up of six separate marine areas around the southern end of Port Phillip: Swan Bay, Mud Islands, Point Lonsdale, Point Nepean, Popes Eye, and Portsea Hole.
Thirty-one of the 120 shipwrecks known to have occurred within a 10 nautical mile radius of Port Phillip Heads are thought to be within the Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park in Point Lonsdale and Point Nepean.
Aboriginal tradition indicates that the Bellarine Peninsula side of the Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park is part of Country of the Wathaurung people, and the Mornington Peninsula side, including Mud Islands, is part of Country of the Boon Wurrung people.
See also, Parks Victoria: Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park,
Park Note: Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park,
Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park - Map,
Divers Guide - Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park,
Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park Identification Booklet, and
Taxonomic Toolkit for the Marine Life of Port Phillip Bay.
You are not permitted to carry a spear gun while snorkelling or scuba diving in Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park.
Traditional Owners — This dive site is in the traditional Country of the Wathaurong (Wadda-Warrung) people of the Kulin Nation. This truly ancient Country includes the coastline of Port Phillip, from the Werribee River in the north-east, the Bellarine Peninsula, and down to Cape Otway in the south-west. We wish to acknowledge the Wathaurong as Traditional Owners. We pay respect to their Ancestors and their Elders, past, present and emerging. We acknowledge Bunjil the Creator Spirit of this beautiful land, who travels as an eagle, and Waarn, who protects the waterways and travels as a crow, and thank them for continuing to watch over this Country today and beyond.
Point Lonsdale Kelp Forest Location Map
Latitude: 38° 17.578′ S (38.292968° S / 38° 17′ 34.68″ S)
Longitude: 144° 36.973′ E (144.616213° E / 144° 36′ 58.37″ E)
Datum: WGS84 |
Google Map
| Get directions
Added: 2012-07-22 09:00:00 GMT, Last updated: 2022-04-06 19:33:54 GMT
Source: Google Earth
Nearest Neighbour: Point Lonsdale Light, 135 m, bearing 343°, NNW
Point Lonsdale, Bellarine Peninsula.
Depth: 3 to 5 m.
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DISCLAIMER: No claim is made by The Scuba Doctor as to the accuracy of the dive site coordinates listed here. Should anyone decide to use these GPS marks to locate and dive on a site, they do so entirely at their own risk. Always verify against other sources.
The marks come from numerous sources including commercial operators, independent dive clubs, reference works, and active divers. Some are known to be accurate, while others may not be. Some GPS marks may even have come from maps using the AGD66 datum, and thus may need be converted to the WGS84 datum. To distinguish between the possible accuracy of the dive site marks, we've tried to give each mark a source of GPS, Google Earth, or unknown.
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