Buddy Dive - Only 2 tanks at a time?

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bjd001

Contributor
Scuba Instructor
Messages
97
Reaction score
51
Location
Gilroy, CA
# of dives
1000 - 2499
Heading to Bonaire for the first time in late April. (Woo hoo!) Staying at Buddy Dive. Have read (don't recall exactly where... might have been here) that you can pick up as many tanks as you want but was told by reservation agent that we can only pick up 2 tanks per person at a time.

Two tanks at a time should be fine for the most part, but we were wondering about packing lunch and heading up to the north end of the island for a day. Seems more than 2 tanks would be needed for that.

Thanks!
 
Heading to Bonaire for the first time in late April. (Woo hoo!) Staying at Buddy Dive. Have read (don't recall exactly where... might have been here) that you can pick up as many tanks as you want but was told by reservation agent that we can only pick up 2 tanks per person at a time.

Two tanks at a time should be fine for the most part, but we were wondering about packing lunch and heading up to the north end of the island for a day. Seems more than 2 tanks would be needed for that.

Thanks!
Tell'em you've got five people in the car, and you need a couple of spares, just in case. That's good for 12. That's 3 tanks each for 4 people. If you've only got 3 people, that's golden. More directly, just talk to them and tell them your dive plan; I've never had a problem. By the way, three dive up north is probably plenty, with SI's and all the driving.
 
They had the rule when we were there too. Never was really a problem except we had one or two bum valves during the week, so unusable tanks. Despite the rule, it's self serve and the folks at the fill station aren't going to hassle you. Take what you need.
 
Agree with t-mac. No one has ever bugged me re tank numbers loading on the truck.
I always check pressure before loading to avoid valve and o-ring issues. A few spare o-rings in the glove box isn't a bad idea either.
 
Agree with t-mac. No one has ever bugged me re tank numbers loading on the truck.
I always check pressure before loading to avoid valve and o-ring issues. A few spare o-rings in the glove box isn't a bad idea either.

Same here, we routinely have 2 of us get tanks for all 4 and so far no one has said a thing. Don't ask, don't look guilty and be reasonable, you won't have a problem
 
It seems every place in Bonaire has the 2-tank rule, yet I can't recall anyone saying they were hassled about taking 3 tanks or even 4 tanks. I suspect divers are admonished about this "rule" to inhibit them from just hogging a bunch of tanks--more than they need--because they would rather err on the side of having too many than too few. If you have a good reason to need 3 (and I agree with tursiops that you're probably not going to have time to squeeze in a fourth dive up North), then take 3.

If someone were to question you, there are a dozen creative replies, starting with the truth: a long day up North. You could also say one of the tanks in your truck was already there because your buddy picked it up earlier.
 
The primary reason for the two tank rule is to keep the shops from running out of tanks during peak seasonal demand, especially over Christmas and New Year. If they run short of tanks in late April they're doing something wrong.
 
yup there last November and took as many as we needed(Nitrox too) no worries
 
Never have been hassled over how many tanks we took. Just remember its a small truck and if you're heading north then that will eat a lot of your dive day up just driving around, especially if you think about going into the park.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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