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Being able to let the surface know where you are during a dive is critical in some situations, and highly recommended in most others. The main ways divers use to achieve this are: a Surface Marker Buoy (SMB) which stays on the surface, with or without a dive flag; a Delayed Surface Marker Buoy (DSMB) which can be deployed by the diver from underwater; or a Safety Sausage which can only be deployed on the surface.
We consider the Safety Sausage to be unsafe and don't sell them. After all, how do you safely get to the surface in areas where there is boat traffic in order to deploy your safety sausage. They are usually much smaller than DSMBs, and thus don't do nearly as good a job as a signalling/location device.
Most people refer to a DSMB as just a SMB, which is why this category is called Surface Marker Buoys (SMBs), but technically they're very different.
SMB vs DSMB
A Surface Marker Buoy (SMB) is floated on the surface during a dive to mark the diver's position during drift dives, night dives, mist or disturbed sea conditions. A SMB is absolutely essential kit for diving anywhere you may have surface boat traffic. It allows your position to be known by people watching from shore and watercraft, whether they be the boat you are diving from, or other water users. Typically a SMB will have a dive flag on it as well. See Surface Markers for our range of SMBs.
A Delayed Surface Marker Buoy (DSMB), decompression buoy or deco buoy, is deployed whilst the diver is submerged and generally only towards the end of the dive. The DSMB marks the diver's position underwater so the boat safety cover can locate the diver even though the diver may have drifted some distance from the dive site while doing safety or decompression stops. A reel or finger spool and line connect the buoy on the surface to the diver beneath the surface.
Our recommendation is that all divers should carry a DSMB and reel on every dive. In many boat diving situations it's also good practice to also have a Surface Marker with dive flag up on the surface to tell your surface support where you are for the whole of the dive.
SMBs and DSMBs are not intended to be used to lift heavy weights. That's what a Lift Bag is for.
Where to Deploy Your DSMB
Delayed SMBs, such as the AP Diving Buddy DSMB, are designed to be deployed from depth near the end of, or at any critical point during, a dive. Some divers, like us, prefer to shoot their Delayed SMBs from the bottom and thus let the surface support know they're begining their ascent. Other divers shoot from mid-water when they start their safety stop, or decompression stops. We strongly recommend you have a Delayed SMB and reel/spool with you on every dive. On open water dives, waiting until you surface to deploy a surface only safety sausage is dangerous in high boat traffic areas.
Which Colour Delayed SMB Should you Use
There are essentially three choices for DSMB colouring — all Red, all Yellow, or Red and Yellow on contrasting sides.
Studies have shown that Red and Yellow are the two most visible colours at sea. But each colour works better than the other in different conditions. Thus if you look around a dive shop, you will see up to three SMB colours: all Red; all Yellow; and one side Red, one side Yellow.
Recreational Diving
An all Red SMB is far and away the most common SMB colour. This leads some new divers to buy an all Yellow SMB so theirs will stand out more when at a busy dive site. We don't recommend this.
Other divers buy the two-colour SMBs (Red on one side, Yellow on the other side) because these must surely be the ideal for high-visibility over the widest range of conditions. For recreational diving, especially when ocean diving, this is what we recommend. However, it is essential that you let your surface cover know that your combined Red and Yellow SMB is not being used as an emergency signal unless an emergency signal or message is attached to it.
Advanced/Technical Diving
In Australia, and many other parts of the world, there is a convention used by more advanced and technical divers that an all Yellow SMB is an emergency signal, to be responded to by sending down a cylinder of gas, or a rescue diver, or both.
Whilst for the most part recreational divers do not have or need such a signal, it is possible for both types of diver to be on the same dive site. If one group of divers is using Yellow as an emergency signal and the other group uses Yellow as standard, this could lead to confusion and even to a genuine emergency signal being ignored.
For this reason, unless you have a very strong reason for wanting an all Yellow SMB as standard, please don't buy one.
If you decide that you would like to use a Yellow SMB as an emergency signal yourself, two precautions to take are:
- Make sure your surface cover knows this convention
- Mark the SMB with "EMERGENCY", "HELP", "SOS" or some other such message in large, clear black letters to ensure there is no doubt that you are a diver in distress and not just a diver who thought a Yellow SMB looked nicer than a Red one.
Diving in Southern Ocean
If you intend to go diving, snorkelling or boating in the Southern Ocean on Victoria's west coast you must be appropriately trained and qualified. Always analyse the weather forecasts and make your own mind up about what you consider to be safe conditions.
Note: The Victorian coastline to the west of Cape Otway faces into the Southern Ocean.
Southern Ocean Warning
We recommend you don't go diving in the Southern Ocean if any of the following conditions are likely to occur within a 24 hour period:
- A Strong Wind Warning (or above - Gale, Storm, Hurricane) has been issued by the Bureau of Meteorology for West Victoria Coastal Waters;
- Wind strength exceeding 20 kn (37 kpm) from the direction: NW, NNW, N, W, NE, NNE;
- Wind strength exceeding 15 kn (28 kpm) from the direction: SW, SSW, S;
- Wind strength exceeding 10 kn (19 kpm) from the direction: SE, SSE, E;
- Swell Height exceeding 2 metres (6.56 feet);
- Any swell exceeding 1 metre (3.28 feet) with a period less than 5 seconds;
- A weather change is due which may cause any of the above conditions to occur.
For the lastest forecast from the Bureau of Meteorology, see West Victoria Coastal Waters Forecast: SA-Vic Border to Cape Otway.
At some shore dive sites on the Victorian coast even the above conditions could be too extreme. Weak or average swimmers should not consider diving at most Southern Ocean shore dive sites. Keep a watch out for swells and bad weather coming in. At some shore dive sites this may require surfacing periodically throughout your dive. When doing a shore dive in the Southern Ocean you are diving on the Great Southern Reef.
Scuba diving is an inherently dangerous activity and appropriate training and experience in scuba equipment, decompression diving, deep diving, mixed gas diving and wreck penetration diving are all mandatory skills for safely diving the shipwrecks of the Southern Ocean.
Stay Safe
If you are not experienced with diving in the Southern Ocean, make sure you go with an experienced local dive guide or dive buddy who can read the conditions and advise you accordingly. Most of all, stay safe and enjoy your Southern Ocean diving.
We accept no responsibility or liability for the accidental or intentional misuse of information portrayed on this website, or misadventure resulting from its use.
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