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Shopping for Underwater Lights? |
| Here is what you need to know. There are hundreds of companies
marketing water proof flash lights. Many of these are imported and the
quality control and the reliability is extremely poor. We have been
testing dive lights for over 33 years and we have found that many of
them including some brand names are NOT suitable for Scuba diving
applications. We have our own 220 FTSW wet hyperbaric chamber, and a
host of technical, cave, Police divers, and commercial divers who
perform our deep water and long term abuse testing. |
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Problems: It is less expensive for a diving product
distributor to change the defective products name or model designation
than to re-tool their flawed design. Because of the way the legal system
is set up, we are prevented from telling customers what products have
quality control issues, or those that are failure prone. However, we can
tell you which products that usually do work reliably. |
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Competitors: We know that many of the big internet dealers
carry about 50 different models of “dive Lights” the part they don’t
tell you is many of these models will flood, or leave you in the dark
within 10 dives. After your adventure vacation is ruined, or night dives
cancelled, most of those internet dealers will only exchange the product
with another defective replacement. This is why we do not carry some
brands and models. |
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Rating: There
is a big difference between a water proof light and a pressure proof
Scuba rated light. We have discovered that in many cases the
manufacturers theoretical depth rating is often an exaggeration of the
actual production units. Many companies produce water resistant and
water proof lights for the sporting goods industry. While these are fine
for camping, fishing, many will fail when under pressure. Different beam
spread, and usable light output can be defined by different methods.
This factor will make a big difference in performance. |
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Power: Be aware that powerful primary dive lights obtain
their high output by providing over voltage to the bulbs. This is why
the bulb life span is typically only 12 – 14 hours. Primary light should
not be used above water due to the heat produced and short life span of
the bulb. We suggest only the secondary light be used above water to
retain the divers night vision ability and to extend the primary light
bulb life. |
| Type:
There are 3 types of diving lights used for night diving.
Primary, Secondary, and Marker lights. The HID type is the most
powerful, measured in watts, it is also extremely expensive and usually
only used by cave divers. The Halogen primary type is by far the most
cost effective, and popular for primary sport diving use. The newer duel
power multi LED versions are available, but the power and range is
typically 1/2 that of a bulb type. The big advantage is the life span of
the LED is 500 times longer, more reliable and requires less battery
drain providing double the running time. We recommend the LED versions
like the TUL-300 or the Tech-40 for secondary lights, and the GLO-TOOB
for marker light use. |
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Satisfaction: The most important factor is reliability,
this is why we don’t sell the many of the Scuba lights that the others
do. We know our products work! |
