: The visual on using scuba gear for diving right into boat building has me
: laughing.

Several years ago I had to do some very messy overhead sanding of drywall, and after getting a mouthfull, and filling both eyes, I decided that there had to be some way to get the job done without ending up looking like a snowman.

I had previously adapted my scuba tank to provide a cheap, steady air supply for airbrush work. I bought an inexpensive regulator from Sears and connected it to the 1st stage of a 2 stage SCUBA regulator. The scuba regulator lowered teh air pressure from the 3000 psi in the scuba tank to about 105 psi, and the Sears regulator lowered the 105 psi to 20 or 25 for my airbrush, or 55 for my bike tires.

I unscrewed the airbrush from its hose, put a clear plastic bag over my head and stuck the hose into the bag. With the regulator set at about 5 psi the bag inflated like a balloon. I needed to put a couple of rubber bands around the bag to hold the hose next to my neck, and keep the bag from blowing off, but I had a constantly renewed air supply which I felt farily comfortable with. The amount of air leaking out at the bottom of the bag was so great that I flushed out the CO2 constantly, and since the air was put in the tank by the scuba store, I had no qualms about breathing it.

So I went back to work. The drywall dust fell from above, powdering me greatly, but it did not stick to the plastic bag, so I could just shake my head occasionally to see clearly.

I was working merrily when my assistant came in. Over the noise of the belt sander I was using I did not hear her enter -- but when she saw me with a plastic bag on my head, covered in white dust she shrieked.

And that I heard.

I must have looked like some alien space creature from a 1950's B scifi movie.

By the way, I no longer recommend people using plastic bags over their heads, even if the do have a good supply of fresh air.

PGJ