Parts of a Scuba Diving Regulator

Definition of a Regulator

A scuba diving regulator is the piece of equipment that enables a diver to breathe from a scuba tank. A regulator is so named because it regulates the pressure of the air a diver breathes. The compressed air inside a scuba tank is at an extremely high pressure, which could injure a diver who tries to breathe directly from the tank. A regulator reduces the pressure of the compressed air a diver breathes. To accomplish this, a regulator reduces air pressure in two steps, or stages -- first from the pressure in the tank to an intermediate pressure, and second from the intermediate pressure to a pressure that the divers can safely breathe. In is most basic form, a scuba regulator consists of two parts, a mechanism that accomplishes the first stage of pressure reduction (called a first stage) and a mechanism that accomplishes the second stage of pressure reduction (called a second stage). However, contemporary scuba diving regulators usually incorporate a variety of additional accessories.