I bob like a cork

[Mermaid Kristy]

Are there any techniques I can practice to keep myself from popping right back up every time I go underwater?


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[AniaR]

me too. lol

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Same. The moment I stop swimming, I float straight to the surface!:lol:

[ChelseaSelkie]

Have any of you tried weighted belts or bracelets?

[Mermaid Kristy]

Have any of you tried weighted belts or bracelets?

Not with my tail. I have a super utilitarian weight belt for scuba diving. Hadn’t thought of using it for mermaiding.


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[ChelseaSelkie]

I'd test it and see if it works, then maybe get one you can decorate if it does? I have heard other mers use them.

[Kwilena]

I too am positively bouyant to the extent that it can be a real struggle to keep underwater at times. I find exhaling as I dive helps, and head straight for the bottom. I like the idea of bracelets though, I wonder if they'd feel better than a weight belt would.
Never really enjoy weight belts when I snorkel.

[Mermaid Kristy]

I love the bracelet idea. I wonder where one would purchase such a thing.


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[Merman Storm]

I have 5 pounds of net buoyancy when under water. I made a set of heavy bracelets and upper arm bands out of stainless steel. Together, they make me a little negatively buoyant.
Also, by where I hold my arms, I can adjust my balance point.

[ChelseaSelkie]

I have 5 pounds of net buoyancy when under water. I made a set of heavy bracelets and upper arm bands out of stainless steel. Together, they make me a little negatively buoyant.
Also, by where I hold my arms, I can adjust my balance point.

That is really awesome, Storm! It is super neat to be able to adjust balance, too.

[Ara Mermaid]

Oh my gosh! I got on mernetwork today for this very reason! I was watching a video of a mermaid friend laying at the bottom of the pool and that's not an option for me at all!

[Merman Storm]

One thing about using bracelets: There are many stainless steel ones on Amazon. But I recommend staying away from open ended cuff bracelets. When you swim, the water gets under them and can strip them off your wrist. Get bangle bracelets, or something with a clasp. Mine are hinged cuff bracelets with a pin closure.

[Echidna]

there are only 3 things one can do:
weights, exhaling, and deeper water.

Shallow pools (meaning pretty much all of them bar diving wells) are a floater's nightmare.
Starting with weights until one is familiar with how to move and pose underwater (and also building muscle mass) helps.
But ultimately, it's never going away as it's determined by personal bone density and such.

While I can never stay down in a pool until actively swimming or sculling downward, diving in a deep lake or the ocean is completely different.
I went down around 6 meters and was then neutrally buoyant (meaning, weightless like in space).
Keep in mind that this is the natural state of things, though.
Normal people float up until deeper than 5 metres or so and go into fall mode when deeper than 10m.
Those who sink to the bottom of a shallow pool and stay there unless actively swimming up are NOT the norm and have a hard time when surface swimming.

[Mermaid Velos]

I never knew that people would sink under 10 meters.... that is slightly scary

[Mermaid Kristy]

I would hope that if you’re going deeper than 10 meters that you would have had proper freediving training or have scuba gear on.


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[fabianfrz]

I never knew that people would sink under 10 meters.... that is slightly scary

Let me explain it. On the surface, there is a pressure of ~ 1 Bar (should be 1 at sea level). Every 10m, the pressure increases by 1 bar, which means, you will have 2 Bar pressure. The result is that you now do have the double pressue (2 Bar) which results into pressing the air in you for example to the half volume. The result is what you expect.

The other direction is more scary - if something exceeds the amount of pressure that something is containing while going to the surface.

[MermaidKalypsa]

Between my positive buoyancy and neoprene, I need about 6-8 pounds of weights. Which will change between fresh and salt water.

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[Mermaid Jaffa]

You can use your buoyancy to your advantage...

When I tread water, I don't have to do much hand movement and kicking like you would do. I can undulate every now and then, and not sink.

Coming up for air is also much easier, as the floaty propulsion brings you up naturally after a kick or two.

[Mermaid Kristy]

When I tread water it’s like zero effort. Just kinda move my arms.


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[Kwilena]

It is kind of nice to just be able to drift up and breathe when you need too.

[Neerai]

It's funny because I'm buoyant too, and I was thinking the weight of the Mahina helped with that... Until I added the neoprene socks, that are buoyant too!

[Mermaid Kristy]

I find that my monofin is WAY less buoyant than my scuba fins. Everything is floaty. Fins are floaty, neoprene is floaty, salt water is super floaty.


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[Kwilena]

So to revisit this, I went looking for stainless steel bracelets like Storm described. I didn't really have much luck, but then, because apparently people are obsessed with getting into venues and drinking their own booze, I came across the booze bangle/bracelet. I've got no use for one of these, I don't drink such things, but if you fill them up with aquarium gravel or ball bearings or something, seal up with Loctite, one on each wrist, with maybe some padding if you're skinny in the wrist, it works a treat! They come in lots of colours too. Here's a link to mine. https://photos.app.goo.gl/3Piq6rKfSZwm6VP46

[SirenGita]

Loool that's a hilarious idea. Good cross use :)

[Gail]

So to revisit this, I went looking for stainless steel bracelets like Storm described. I didn't really have much luck, but then, because apparently people are obsessed with getting into venues and drinking their own booze, I came across the booze bangle/bracelet. I've got no use for one of these, I don't drink such things, but if you fill them up with aquarium gravel or ball bearings or something, seal up with Loctite, one on each wrist, with maybe some padding if you're skinny in the wrist, it works a treat! They come in lots of colours too. Here's a link to mine. https://photos.app.goo.gl/3Piq6rKfSZwm6VP46

Awesome!

[Kwilena]

Thanks! I was very pleased that they worked so well.

[MermaidLiara]

Awesome idea!

[redlefgnid]

I wish someone would make a decorative quick release weight belt & sell it. I am not very crafty. However what I did do is I sewed a Velcro strap onto a bean bag style scuba diving weight and I thread it through my bathing suit bottom's crotchal region. It looks like I'm pooping if it slides out of place but it's otherwise kinda nifty.

[MermaidKalypsa]

I wish someone would make a decorative quick release weight belt & sell it. I am not very crafty. However what I did do is I sewed a Velcro strap onto a bean bag style scuba diving weight and I thread it through my bathing suit bottom's crotchal region. It looks like I'm pooping if it slides out of place but it's otherwise kinda nifty.

I've considered making them, but I also don't want to be liable for people who aren't trained with weights drowning.

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[the.tattooed.mermaid78]

I'm a plus sized mermaid and I'm so buoyant I bloody hate it. Diving under the water isn't a problem but I cant stay at the bottom. Its fruatrati g the crap out of me. I'll try bracelets thanks

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[Slim]

I'm just here in envy. I'm one of those rare sinkers burning off too much energy to remain at the surface.

[Kwilena]

I'm just here in envy. I'm one of those rare sinkers burning off too much energy to remain at the surface.
So clearly we have to swim together and achieve neutral buoyancy.

[Slim]

You may be right. I have to wear a long sleeve wetsuit just to get any buoyancy at all. I want to even learn scuba and reading about the 10 meter free fall earlier in the thread concerns me.


So clearly we have to swim together and achieve neutral buoyancy.

[the.tattooed.mermaid78]

Wish I wasnt so buoyant lol

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[Mermoviemedic]

Same here, I float like a battleship. In my cloth tails (depending on the fin), getting down may not be so bad, but the second I stop moving I'm headed to the surface like a shot. In my silicone tail I have to treat it like a 5mil neoprene wet suit. If I'm not weighted I am going I have to really work to get under. For safety I use the quick release belt. and about 8 lbs weight. The last set of weights I had (have to redo them) I made them to look like little treasure chests (like you see in fish tanks) and hung some netting off the back off the belt to kind of skirt off. That way it did not block the release if I needed to use it and fit in with the look. Was looking for something on the market pre-made that did not look like a weight belt but that's not working out too well.

[Echidna]

You may be right. I have to wear a long sleeve wetsuit just to get any buoyancy at all. I want to even learn scuba and reading about the 10 meter free fall earlier in the thread concerns me.

scuba is completely different, so don't be too concerned.
You control your buoyancy with your jacket and your air tank, so at most you will need less weight than the average diver.

But I can relate insofar as I've been doing a lot of deeper water performances lately while heavily weighted, and trying to surface with all that weight while on your last bit of air is not the nicest feeling xD

[Ilyena]

I make 500g scallop shell and starfish weights (bringing out a 1kg one soon) that slide onto standard quick release weight belts so depending on the water and tail the weight can be adjusted.

[Dolphin Man]

I've recently started swimming again. I tried holding my breath to swim forward underwater. The problem is that I kept surfacing. If I were wearing my silicone tail, would that help? I don't know how much it weighs. It's scaleless, but it's probably the same in every other way. A Merrowfins tail.

[Merman Storm]

In terms of weight, silicone is virtually weightless underwater. It will not act at ballast. (Actually, it weighs about 5% of what it does out of the water. For example, my 30 lb Spellbound weighs 1.5 pounds under water.)
In terms of propulsion, it will help simply because faster you are swimming easier it is to stay under. Dive 2 or 3 feet under the surface and swim with your body angled down.