Small Oxygen Cylinder? - Avy Survival

[Jeff C]

I think you are way over stating how dangerous oxygen is. There are millions of people on oxygen and I have never heard of an accident that hurt anyone. Cancer patients, emphysema and asthma sufferers etc all use oxygen. You see people smoking on oxygen(not smart but cancer doesn't cure smoking). Also, oxygen is not flammable itself, it just helps everything else burn better faster stronger.
The benefit of using oxygen is that a small cylinder would last you way longer. You aren't going to get much time if you are just breathing air from a reasonably small cylinder. You also would NOT have to have the hose in your mouth, just bleeding a small amount of oxygen into your helmet near your mouth would be good enough. The valve thing would have to be sorted out. Maybe some kind of rip cord like the one that triggers you avy bag. I don't have the answer for that...

Here is the problem. Imagine yourself suddenly being hit blindsided by an avalanche. Suddenly you are tumbling down a hill, tossing end over end, dont know which way is up, snow packing into your helmet, cannot see........During all of this you have to have the presence of mind to get the air/oxygen flowing somehow,,,,,,,,,,,,, and all before you come to a rest.

I have read stories where guys have snow packed so hard in their helmets, that they cannot hardly breathe and they are choking on the snow.

I think I would rather have a airbag that would keep you on top of the snow in the first place.......... And I even have my doubts that most people would have the presence of mind to pull the airbag cord as they are experiencing what I described above......

This device would need to trigger as easy or easier than the air bag does for it to be of real world benefit......

I hope someone can work it out, it might save some lives.....

 

[madmax]

Interesting topic, I like discussions where people think outside the box. It seems to me that the avalung approaches this problem from another angle. I've been told that there is plenty of oxygen in the snow to sustain life, the problem is that as you exhale you melt the snow in the immediate area of your mouth. Eventually creating an ice layer which of course prevents you from getting any more O2 from the snow and then the end is very near. The avalung prevents or at least delays this ice layer from forming allowing you access to more O2. Carrying bottled O2 would in theory get the same results provided you have a way to access the O2 and that you have enough of it. Those small bottles don't provide a lot of O2 especially if you have it on all the time. If there were a way to activate it, like attached to the rip cord on your avy bag, now you have something that may be useful. Still some delivery and weight issues to solve but maybe you're on to something.

The main concept the developers of the Avalung found was you don't usually run out of oxygen when buried. What happens is you suffocate from exhaled CO2. As you exhale and melt the snow around your face, you create the ice pocket mentioned in the above quote. When the ice pocket forms it doesn't let O2 in from the surrounding snow and it creates a CO2 pocket around your face that you inhale. An O2 source as discussed here would help delay this.

O2 is a real fire hazard. There are hundreds of documented cases of patients on O2 catching on fire. Usually it's when they try smoking while wearing their oxygen. About as smart as smoking while pumping gas.

 

[newmy1]

I've thought about these for purposes of recovery after a big dig out etc. Not sure how you would have this mask mounted in a helmet for purposes of sustaining an avy.

http://classic.mountainzone.com/everest/98/climb5-21oxygen.html