How to Prevent Health Risks While Scuba Diving?

Being submerged underwater for longer periods of time at depths of increasing pressure conveys potential risks to the health of the diver. These risks can be mitigated though by pursuing relevant training and certification, apart from the proper handling of scuba diving equipment that can be mastered following the conduct of a few open water dives. Here are some preventive measures that any diver should carefully take into mind so as to avert scuba diving accidents.

1. Running out of oxygen. If a closed-circuit system of breathing is used, a defective rebreather could increase partial pressure to toxic levels. Meanwhile, proper maintenance of the rebreather sustains partial pressure at around 1.6 ATA (considered as standard) and avoids a significant drop in partial pressure that will likewise be dangerous for breathing. Rebreathers may be lighter to carry than the tank and diving regulator combination, but it is also more intricate to use. Thus, a diver should undergo extensive training before deciding to use a rebreather. Know that the basic type of rebreather can only be used at a depth of 20 fsw. For open-circuit scuba diving, the cylinder tank used should be regularly inspected. If a tank is rusting, it is better to replace the same since rusted parts could easily deplete oxygen volume in your tank. When deep diving or cave diving below recreational depths, divers are advised to use 2 oxygen tanks, aside from bringing along an extra air source and pony bottle.
2. Regulator Free-flows. As much as possible, endeavor the use of a diving regulator set you are most comfortable with and that has been further tested of its reliability in a few open water dives. In this case, the use of rented regulators or the purchase of a second-hand unit is discouraged. If you're not using your own regulator set, discomforts can be expected and the possibility of a free flow (caused by a significant drop in pressure conveyed by the cylinder) is highly likely, particularly in cold water environments. Apart from ensuring proper regulator maintenance, use of a cylinder outfitted with a Y pillar valve can mitigate the incidence of free flow. A cylinder of this type allows for the attachment of 2 regulator sets with the valves of the tank. So in case one regulator free flows, the valve connecting the device is closed and the second valve can then be used.
3. Getting a bend. By undergoing a basic Open Water course, the diver will be able to determine his diving limits, such as how deep he can go below the surface and for how long his body can sustain the underwater environment, following a series of open water dives. Dive tables have long been used by divers for the reckoning of no decompression zones as well as to plan the ascent, decompression stops and the final safety stop. These days, the use of a dive computer such as the Aeris XR-2 Wrist Dive Computer along with the monitoring and observance of its readings and set warnings is seen to more efficiently prevent decompression sickness or the bend, given its high-performance features that provide a more accurate reading of pressure and time spent underwater.

Important Guidelines to Wreck Diving

A shipwreck is a haven of wonderful discoveries for the scuba diver. It is a historical relic filled with secrets carefully concealed by the ocean. Over the years, it has also been the home of various sea creatures and plants. Wreck diving is a rare opportunity for scuba divers to hone their diving skills, discover a significant heritage in history and be a part of an important archaeological find. This great opportunity however entails responsibility on the part of the diver. So here are a few guidelines to take note of before pursuing the dive:

Precautionary Measures while Diving

• Remember that a shipwreck has been underwater for quite some time and the superior find have been submerged for decades, or even centuries. Many sections of a sunken ship may be fragile and would disintegrate without notice, so bear in mind to keep those fin movements steady and slow. The possibility of encountering marine animal and plant species inhabiting the wreckage is highly likely, so exercise extra care so as not to disrupt their habitat.
• There is also the risk of entanglement with fishing nets or ropes, so bring along an emergency tool such as a Tech Dive Knife in hand.
• Keep extra lights handy just in case primary sources of light run out.
• A guideline may also be utilized to ensure the exit route of the wreck diver.
• Never overestimate the capacity of your cylinder tank. It is best to be safe than sorry. The rule of the thumb is to allocate 2/3 of the air reserve for use upon exit. As much as possible, carry a second tank or bring along a pony bottle.

A Different Type of Training Required

There are wreck program organizations that require scuba divers to take a PADI specialty course in wreck diving before they can join excursions. The course will orient the scuba diver on the advanced skills and scuba equipment necessary to maneuver in and out of wrecks. More importantly, the scuba diver will be able to learn the proper management of air reserves in the course of diving. Deep diving is a specialization required in the conduct of wreck diving trips; thus the wreck diver must be knowledgeable on the use of dive tables as well. Dive tables reveal what depths (at certain times) are safe to cruise without decompression. An Aeris XR-2 Wrist Dive Computer is a convenient gadget that will come in handy to alert the diver of safety parameters.

How to Get the Most From Your 'Learn to Dive' Holiday?

As part of my business, I get a lot of people looking to book up a diving holiday so they can learn to dive in the sunshine (usually Egypt). I've personally been diving in Egypt for years and consider it to be one of the best places in the world and as a PADI Divemaster, it's a subject I'm always happy to talk about.

For the novice, Egypt is an excellent place to learn to dive. The weather is always great, the water is always warm, the visibility is always good and the sea is generally quite calm. However, the problem is that when you go off to nice warm destinations such as Egypt, your time there is limited. If you are learning to dive, you want as much time as possible in the water not spending time with your head stuck in a book.

So how do you get round this problem? The answer is actually quite simple. When learning to dive, the initial course is essentially split into 3 parts; theory, confined water dives and open water dives. The theory part of the course involves reading a manual and understanding some basic concepts of the sport. The confined water dives are performed in a swimming pool where you learn a number of skills such as clearing your mask underwater (don't worry, it's not as bad as it sounds). These skills are completed over the course of a couple of dives and once they are to a sufficient standard, they are repeated in the open water (ie - the ocean).

Many people don't realise that you don't need to complete the whole course in a consecutive days and those wanting to learn to dive can use this to their advantage. I generally advise people that their best option is to complete the theory and confined water dives at a local dive centre. This means that once they arrive at their holiday destination, all that remains is to complete their open water dives and they are certified. In turn, this means they have an extra 3 days of their holiday left to enjoy their new found status as certified scuba divers which would otherwise be spent studying or in the swimming pool.

The way to do this is quite simple. The most popular entry level diving certification is the PADI Open Water Course so what you need to complete prior to travel is the Open Water Referral. This covers the 3 days of theory and confined water elements of the Open Water course. Once completed, all that remains is to complete the final 4 open water dives which is usually done over 2 days whilst you are in your holiday resort.

The way to do this is quite simple.

1. Find your local dive centre which will be listed in the Yellow Pages and give them a call to tell them your situation. Explain that you want them to take the Open Water Referral (theory and confined water dives). This shouldn't be a problem for any dive centre and they will discuss when you can complete this.

2. Contact the dive centre in your holiday resort to book the final part of your Open Water course which may also be called Open Water Referral. They will advise you what you need to bring along and the final 4 dives normally have to be completed no later than 12 months after the theory and confined water modules.

3. Complete the theory and confined water dives before heading off to your holiday resort.

4. At your resort, spend just 2 days instead of 5 completing the final 4 open water dives and congratulations, you are now a certified scuba diver with most of your holiday ahead of you.

What Ever Happened to Scuba Diving As a Sport?

I have been diving since 1993 and professionally since 1995. In theses years I have seen a change in the Scuba industry and particularly the learn to dive concept. Once upon a time the adventure sports people enjoyed would be skiing, scuba or sailing. They were often considered extreme sports requiring experience and training that would be in some cases vigorous. With 'Sea Hunt' on television and Jacques Cousteau exploring the deep blue, many baby boomers grew up with the idea that breathing under water was an adventure with many vowing to do it before they die.

With the introduction of other extreme sports from abseiling to white water rafting there was a bit of competition for the adventure dollar. Introduce the next generation Y or X with the need for instant gratification and the idea of completing a 4 day course just to go under the water suddenly lost its appeal. You could get more bang for your buck doing a tandem skydive in a couple of hours albeit for the same cost of doing a dive course. This had an effect on the number of people learning to dive. The YEAR when "JAWS" hit the big screen was met with the single biggest drop in dive certifications. Since then we have had tsunamis, global warming, 9/11, and any other number of incidents that have all reduced the uptake of diving or the decline in certifications worldwide.

Let's look at what happened to the PADI Open water course - where the learner diver typically begins.

In the 80s, the course in Sydney, Australia was around AUD $495 for 4 days + the cost of the gear you needed to get going. The schedule would have you spend a day in the classroom and sometimes additional nights, a day in the pool, and 2 days in the ocean to complete 4 dives.

After awhile dive centres started condensing the course down to a shorter period. In 1996, I had the first 3 day scheduled course theory - Thursday night theory, Saturday in the pool for skills, a bit more theory Saturday afternoon followed by 2 days in the ocean. Did this help with certifications? Well yes it did but in an effort to increase value we would take the clients away on a dive trip for the final 2 dives followed by 2 fun dives off a boat. However even though the schedule was now longer then 4 days it gave greater value to the client in the eyes of the dive operator. But certifications on weekends away still dropped as people did not want to spend two weekends diving or spend a weekend in a bunkhouse. In 2001 the option of completing the course in Sydney without the weekend away was standard.

Now if you do not offer something different how do you distinguish yourself from your competition? Well advertising and price. So this begins the price decline in learn to dive courses, which led to dive courses selling for $199 & $149 or bring a friend and get 2 for the price of one. This led to the major players such as Pro Dive delivering more certifications but not making any money on the course, and having to use gear sales and dive trips to maintain profits. Followed was a spiralling price war, starving the smaller players. As a result the ability to retain customers was lost due to the focus on Learn to Dive courses.

In 2006, with the introduction of the PADI DVD, prescriptive teaching gave the option of running a competitively priced course on a schedule that would suit more people. The 2 day learn to dive course was born. This schedule has proved to be a winner for both the client and dive operator. It does require more administration and a stricter booking policy but with the bugs ironed out this schedule has improved certifications from learn to dive courses through to continued education courses. It has a competitive advantage for the dive operator that fulfills all the necessary requirements.

Last year 2007 Pro Dive Drummoyne had significant increases in certifications and has gone against the trend of the dive industry by being one of the only dive centres in Sydney to do so. This has been made possible through fine tuning the tools from PADI and putting a system that leads to a safe fun and timely certification course. As the first dive operator to offer the program I am now convinced that this is the way forward to compete with adventure sports and the changing nature of the customer where time is money.

Brad Greentree has been a working in the dive industry full time since 1995.

PADI Master Instructor 107539, with over 12 years experience in the diving industry. He is known for his incredible patience. Along with his expertise in NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) Hypnotherapy and Time Line Therapy® , Brad will make make sure you have a safe and enjoyable time as well as help you overcome any fears you may have of the ocean. Brad has certified 1000's of students and completed over 3500 dives and travelled extensively though out the Pacific. His passion is underwater photography and has had success in a number of underwater competitions. When he is not diving he is coaching or training people using his experience in life changing techniques.

SCUBA Diving in Layang-Layang Island - The Hammerhead's Territory

Layang-Layang is an atoll of about 13 linked coral reefs which is located in waters 2,000 meters deep. This island is part of the Spratly's, which has 600 islands, reefs and shoals in the South China Sea. This atoll is a tiny gem surrounded by clear water which is teeming with rich biodiversity of marine life.

Due to its location by deep water, Layang-Layang give rise to some stunning wall diving and encounters with pelagic species such as hammerhead sharks, which can go into hundreds at certain time of the year, gathering here to perform their mating ritual. The spectacular coral gardens of virgin atolls surrounding Layang-Layang Island has never been exposed to any kind of fishing or man-made pollution. Hence, they are undeniably the healthiest reef in Malaysia and with exceptionally high diversity of coral and fish species.

Layang-Layang Island has some of the most pristine reefs which drop down as sheer walls into the abyss and covered with staggering species of healthy hard corals like the staghorn, tables and acropora being the most in numbers. These reefs makes great home to a myriad of sea life for the triggerfish, manta rays, and turtles. However, they're still outnumbered by the mighty presence of the scalloped hammerhead sharks.

Often spotted cruising here in this magnificent dive site are the schools of large dog-tooth tuna. These awesome creatures often cruise around the drop-off, in groups which range over a meter long and a large set of pointed gnashers to match. You might also bump into the elusive sunfish and pelagic like whale shark if you're lucky enough.

The visibility in the waters surrounding Layang-Layang Island is ranked extraordinary and often exceeds 40 meters. The out-of-this-world visibility could be misleading and dangerous to divers. Divers should always watch their diving depth and no-decompression time as they may be at deeper than they thought.

The only way to access Layang-Layang Island is through plane and there's only one resort on the island. The Layang-Layang Island Resort operates from March to August and closes outside that period. Big pelagic and the hammerheads are present around these time and peak sightings is around March to May period.

Depth at the Layang-Layang dive sites is from 5 to more than 40 meters. The currents are gentle with a calm surface condition. As there are dive walls which can go into endless depth, only certified divers with minimum intermediate experience level are encouraged to dive here. The recommended length of stay here is from 5 to 8 days. Divers take note, this is one of the few great dive sites that you should visit before you regret it.

Dive Computers and Other Gadgets For the Scuba Diving Techie

Technology has always been on the forefront of making human lives much easier. And when it comes to scuba diving, technology has made the experience even more fulfilling than ever. This article presents an overview of the common gadgets used underwater for purposes ranging from a simple check of pressure levels with the cylinder tank to alerting the diver of decompression stops and even for the conduct of underwater research.

1. Buzzer or Sub Duck is a device connected to your buoyancy compensator that is intended to effectively signal your diving buddies about circumstances of emergency underwater.
2. Underwater Cameras range from disposable types to really expensive SLR cameras, all dependent on your requirements or preference for use.
3. Diving Watches are probably one of the more informative gadgets on the planet with this piece of scuba equipment being designed to advise the diver of the time, date, temperature, altitude and nitrox levels, among other useful info.
4. Dive Computers may seem like a specialized pressure gauge to non-divers. But more than displaying pertinent dive information, this gadget generally serves as a decompression meter. A programmable device, the dive computer allows the diver to program a safe ascent based on the measures of depth and time spent underwater.

More specialized dive computers likewise check the nitrogen levels present in the diver's body which is essential in preventing decompression sickness. Likewise, this would be a critical factor in determining the decompression requirements upon ascent and is more reliable than dive tables in the context of calculations. Consequently, it would benefit a diver to select a user-friendly dive computer that features conveniently spaced keys and one that allows the upload of diving data to a personal computer. If you're looking for a high-performance dive computer that will prove to be an efficient decompression tool, here are some features that would be of interest to you.

• Visibility is a critical factor in every scuba diving activity. That's why getting a dive computer with over-sized digits is a foremost criteria. As you plan your ascent and configure decompression stops, you will need a good read of the vital numbers.
• A dive computer is a useful device indeed, but it could spell out a lot of trouble if the diver forgets to turn it on as soon as he hits the water. An automatic activation feature will prove to be a very important feature that will save the diver a lot of decompression hassles.
• Missing decompression stops could risk the life of the diver to the symptoms and ill effects of decompression sickness. Nonetheless, the diver might get hooked with the beauty of underwater life to forget even the conduct of a safety stop at a depth of 20 feet. An automatic alert for a safety stop outfitted into a dive computer will prove to be a very useful, life-saving feature.

Environmental Factors to Watch Out For While Scuba Diving

Scuba diving is probably one of the most thrilling recreational activities you can pursue on the face of the planet. But then again, the sport endeavors with it heavy accountability from the diver. Though the open waters of a particular site can be thought of as safe for diving, it would be wise to extensively learn about the profile of the dive site, by coordinating with local diving agencies or scuba diving shops, before plunging its depths.

Here are a few dive spot features and environmental conditions you need to be informed about prior to the conduct of a diving activity so that you won't be caught unprepared in terms of gear or stunned by any eventuality that crosses your way underwater.

1. Low Water Temperatures. Cold water locations such as in the thermocline levels of a freshwater divespot or at a certain depth of the ocean (during winter time) can get particularly chilly and make a diver susceptible to hypothermia if the don of a thicker wetsuit is dispensed with. Wearing a thick jumpsuit with a torso and limb thickness of at least 4 and 3 respectively is a must to prevent the likelihood of freezing underwater.
2. Sharp Corals. Coral debris could get stuck in skin tissue and cause infection. Avoid swimming too close to coral reefs and always wear a full-bodied suit when diving in warm waters to insulate your body from the scorching heat of the sun and prevent abrasion as well.
3. Dangerous Marine Animals. Stings, shark bites and eel electrocution are just a few of the animal-induced hazards underwater. Thus, a diver needs to be informed of the presence of these marine creatures beforehand so that he can prepare for reinforcement as well as avoid direct contact to prevent potential attacks.
4. Hazardous Chemicals. The wear of complete gear such as a drysuit and a full-face mask minimizes the penetration of harmful chemicals present in industrial water areas, particularly to a commercial diver who is trained and skilled to man this type of diving condition.
5. Fast and Strong Currents. This may cause the diver to be separated from the boat or from his team when drift diving. Always employ buoyant markers on the surface to help divers detect their way back to the surface. As much as possible, divers should not swim against the direction of the current.
6. Low Visibility. Too much silt clouding the view, can further reduce the already low visibility profile of a freshwater dive spot. Frog kicking is one technique taught in diving school to counteract the limitations of low visibility diving. Moreover, the diver should be well prepared with a set of headlights, an extra cylinder tank and a reliable diving regulator set if he intends to dive in locations with low visibility profiles.