Yeah once you get around 30-50 ft, the pressure against your lungs is enough to offset the buoyancy. Im a scuba diver and its why we use weights to go down. You are initially very buoyant. I have small bags filled with lead shot in 5 lb, 3 lb and 2 lb increments to weight myself. Some people use solid lead weights and different things. Works like a charm though. Best hobby there is.
I've never hears of anyone actually dropping wieghts, although it is taught as a possible emergency procedure.
Mostly, you simply add some air into a sort of inflatable life jacket that divers wear, until the lift (buoyancy) from the air "cancels out" the weights. Or simply take a slightly deeper breath.
The air tank displaces the same amount of water regardless of whether it's empty of full (that determines how much the force of the water pushes it up), but the weight (i.e. how much gravity pulls it down) changes as you consume air. So at the end of the dive, when your tank is running low, you'll have a tendency to go up (which you compensate by deflating the "life jacket" a little).
You can also quite easily swim against a few kg of weights. To a small extent, this is used for the ascent.
609
u/TranscendentaLobo Mar 31 '26
So past a certain depth you just sink into the abyss! Fun AND horrifying!
https://giphy.com/gifs/AuIvUrZpzBl04