Bonnie J. Cardone

Sooner or later an adventurous diver will see an intriguing blip on the depth finder that begs checking out. Is it a rock formation, a treasure wreck or pile of junk? If it's in deep water, sending a diver down to find out could be risky or even impossible. That's when J.W. Fishers' TOV-1 comes in handy.

Although it looks like a miniature ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle), the TOV-1 is really a video housing with its own lights. It can be towed from a boat or simply lowered beneath the sea by hand. This little yellow housing is intended to be used to see what's underwater at depths beyond sport diving limits. To that end, it can be ordered with depth capabilities of 150, 250 or 500 feet. It can also be ordered with the plug of your choice: 120 volt AC, 220 volt AC or 12 volt DC.

Made of high impact PVC, the housing is 24 inches long and seven inches in diameter. The dome port is one-quarter inch thick clear acrylic. On either side of it is a single 100 watt tungsten halogen light. Ballast is contained in the two black tubular "runners" attached to the bottom of the housing.

With the camera installed the TOV-1 weighs 35 pounds. The 150 foot cable weighs 45 pounds; obviously the 250 and 500 foot cables will weigh even more.

The housing comes with the camcorder installed and its focus preset. There are several camcorder options, including a black and white, high resolution .5 lux camera with 50 degree lens; a commercial grade .07 lux black and white camera with a 70 degree lens; and three different colour cameras.

Access to the camcorder is via the dome port, which is secured to the housing with six stainless steel Allen head screws. A major concern of all housing users is water. For peace of mind, the TOV-1 has leak detector circuitry at its lowest point, under the camera. Should water come in contact with two wires from the leak detector board, the picture on the monitor will become scrambled.

In order to see what the camcorder is seeing underwater you will need a monitor. J.W. Fishers offers both a black and white and a colour monitor. A VCR can be used to record what the camera sees.

The TOV-1 may sound complicated, but it's really simple to operate. One end of the cable connects to the housing, the other end splits into four parts: a large loop for securing on a deck cleat and three cables. One cable has a monitor/VCR connector, one has a grounded male plug (plugging it in turns on the two lights); one is a ground fault interrupt (GFI). The GFI has a two prong plug and acts as a circuit breaker, automatically shutting off the unit if voltage comes in contact with the water, making it safe for divers and the TOV-1 to be in the water at the same time.

The GFI has a switch on one side that turns the lights on. Once the monitor/VCR is connected and the GFI is plugged in, lower the housing into water before turning the lights on. The tungsten halogen lights are so strong they can damage their housings if left on out of the water for more than a few seconds.

The TOV-1 needs very little maintenance. A good rinse in freshwater when the diving day is over will do the trick.

There are two other TOV-1 options serious treasure or wreck hunters should consider: an altimeter, which indicates how far the camera is from its target and the ability to show the time, date and GPS on the screen.

For more information, contact Ocean Scan Systems (613) 968-3231, fax (613) 968-7190, e-mail JWFishers@aol.com