1st timer wants to do a liveaboard trip.

[Rob9876]

@drrich2 I agree with everything in your post. I've been wondering about the Deep Diver cert. I've done a number of deep recreational dives (deepest so far was 122' on the Oriskanny), so I don't really feel I need it, but I've heard there are some dive ops/locations where they might want a diver to have the Deep cert. Have you encountered any places where it was needed.

 

[also_anon_dc]

I've heard there are some dive ops/locations where they might want a diver to have the Deep cert. Have you encountered any places where it was needed.

Like you I felt like I didn't "need" it but when I got on my liveaboard on the Red Sea and showed them cert cards the first thing they said was "you don't have deep diver?". They didn't restrict my depth but it made me nervous that someone else would- so I got it. I think it was $300 so worth the peace of mind.

 

[drrich2]

but I've heard there are some dive ops/locations where they might want a diver to have the Deep cert. Have you encountered any places where it was needed.

No. In theory, the AOW cert. may be viewed as 'good to 100-feet,' Deep Diver to 130-feet, and yet many people with OW have dove to (and past) 130-feet, since ideally it's understood people are free to gradually expand their boundaries independently, such as in recreational buddy diving, after and outside of formal instruction.

But we live in a world of imperfect people, lawyers and insurance companies, so the reality gets messier.

I have the Deep Diver cert., but I don't recall ever requiring it to go anything, as I also have my AOW cert. Most recreational diving doesn't go much over 100-feet, but one exception where it's fairly likely is the offshore deep wreck diving (often with sand tiger sharks) out of North Carolina. A given wreck might be sitting on 110-foot depth sand (it varies).

I used Olympus Dive Center when I was there years ago. Just now, I logged on to their website to see what their current requirements are for the sort of diving I might want to do - their 'Full Day Dive Trip.'

"
Full Day Dive Trip



Our Full Day Dive trip consists of two dives on North Carolina offshore wrecks/sites determined the morning of the dives in accordance with optimum conditions and customer preference.

Depths: 90'-120'

Possible Sites: U-352, Papoose, Schurz, Aeolus, Spar, Caribsea, Atlas, HMS Bedfordshire, Box Wreck, Ashkabad

Price: $155/diver** (does not include rental gear or tanks).

**Olympus Dive Center reserves the right to institute a Fuel Surcharge when necessary.

Minimum Requirements for a Full Day Dive Trip:

· A minimum of 25 logged dives. Advanced Open Water Certification preferred. Experienced divers with Open Water Certification and required dives are accepted.

· At least 2 dives in the ocean to 70 feet or greater.

· At least 2 logged boat ocean dives.

· At least 2 dives in the last 12 months. Minimum age for Full Day Dive Trip is 15 years of age.
"

Another place one might exceed 100-feet is on deep wrecks out of Key Largo; the Duane comes to mind. But way back in 2013 diving with Rainbow Reef Dive Center, I believe AOW was sufficient for diving the deep wrecks (Spiegel Grove and Duane).

I've never dove the Oriskany; it's got a range of depths, from deep to tech. diving deep. Per some Google Searching H2O Below offers charter trips to it, and per their page - "

THE ORISKANY IS AN ADVANCED DIVE. WE REQUIRE ALL DIVERS EITHER BE ADVANCED CERTIFIED OR HAVE AT LEAST 25 DIVES. IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO TAKE YOUR ADVANCED SCUBA DIVER COURSE PLEASE VISIT OUR COURSE CATALOG.​

"

---

Has anyone else found a dive op. that wanted a Deep Diver cert. for recreational diving, where an AOW cert. would not be acceptable?

 

[drrich2]

Like you I felt like I didn't "need" it but when I got on my liveaboard on the Red Sea and showed them cert cards the first thing they said was "you don't have deep diver?".

Very interesting. What's the name of the liveaboard? It would be good to know whether this is at all common in Red Sea liveaboard operations, and if so, in any distant (from the U.S.) destinations.

A few follow up questions:

1.) Did you have AOW?
2.) How deep was the diving on that trip? From what I'm told Maldives diving tends to run quite deep; hadn't heard that about Red Sea diving. In the Caribbean, a lot of people dive nitrox with a roughly 32% mix and a recommend depth limit around 110 feet (which they might not hit).
3.) Did you get any impression how common Deep Diver cert.s were amongst other divers on your trip?

 

[also_anon_dc]

Very interesting. What's the name of the liveaboard? It would be good to know whether this is at all common in Red Sea liveaboard operations, and if so, in any distant (from the U.S.) destinations.

A few follow up questions:

1.) Did you have AOW?
2.) How deep was the diving on that trip? From what I'm told Maldives diving tends to run quite deep; hadn't heard that about Red Sea diving. In the Caribbean, a lot of people dive nitrox with a roughly 32% mix and a recommend depth limit around 110 feet (which they might not hit).
3.) Did you get any impression how common Deep Diver cert.s were amongst other divers on your trip?

This was the Blue Horizon liveaboard on the BDE route. I don't know what the northern route diving is like. The diving is really deep on that route, every dive could be 100+ ft if you wanted it to be, nitrox is a must and there were multiple people getting their nitrox cert on the trip. I had AOW but I never took a poll about who had their deep diver cert. Many people seemed like newer, less experienced divers.

 

[mcohen1021]

All this deep diver talk... Man, things have changed over the years. Just to sell another class.

 

[Hoag]

All this deep diver talk... Man, things have changed over the years. Just to sell another class.

IIRC, a "Deep Dive" was a mandatory part of my AOW Course. I always thought that this was to teach the skills required to go to the recreational limit of 130 feet. (Because, as we all know, "There be dragons" below that mystical 130'. )

 

[also_anon_dc]

IIRC, a "Deep Dive" was a mandatory part of my AOW Course.

You're correct but the deep dive that's part of AOW now only goes to 100ft. The "deep diver" cert is to 130ft. Maybe things were different when you got your AOW but this is how it is now.

 

[Eric802]

AOW "certifies" you to 100 feet, but (if I recall correctly, and it's been a while) you don't really learn any "deep" skills - at least, any more than you learn "night dive" skills or navigation. PADI AOW is (IMO) kind of just a taster for other certifications you can get down the road.

 

[mcohen1021]

IIRC, a "Deep Dive" was a mandatory part of my AOW Course. I always thought that this was to teach the skills required to go to the recreational limit of 130 feet. (Because, as we all know, "There be dragons" below that mystical 130'. )

Obviously, you have never been to 130', Otherwise you would have seen the dragons!