Cave 1 single tank restriction scares me...

[Max Speed]

If I take Cave 1, I can take the course in doubles.

My certification to use doubles expires in one year.

After that I can still enter caves on the main line but only with a single and an H Valve.

Did I miss anything? Going into a cave with one tank regardless of the H valve scares me. Can I carry a 40cf stage/deco bottle?

 

[kotik]

You could continue your training, which is the intent behind the expiration date...

 

[Max Speed]

You could continue your training, which is the intent behind the expiration date...

I could, but I suspect I could be perfectly satisfied diving non-deco dives on the gold lines for some time. Just not while relying on one dip tube and one o-ring...

 

[cerich]

what agency has a cave 1 with a single tank restriction?

 

[kotik]

I could, but I suspect I could be perfectly satisfied diving non-deco dives on the gold lines for some time. Just not while relying on one dip tube and one o-ring...

Well, I'm not an instructor & don't play one on TV, but I'm pretty sure my instructor would have told me that adding a tank would mean managing an extra gas supply, thus adding complexity beyond your training. You might be better served by keeping in touch with your instructor, and see if he'd be willing to re-evaluate you in a year's time to extend the validity of the doubles endorsement.

 

[PfcAJ]

Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't sign up to cave dive on a single tank. I've done it (H valve thing), but in hindsight I think it was a poor decision. Simply not enough emergency gas when diving with a single, and past that, all your eggs are in one basket.

A stage bottle is used to extend your penetration distance. This is a full cave/cave 2 skill, and a 40 doesn't really cut it. At the intro/ cave 1 level, you shouldn't be doing decompression dives, either, so once again, no need for the 40.

If you're interested in these things, get the proper certification. If you want to stick to 1/6 goldine dives, try seeing if your agency (see, agency matters, guys) can offer you a permanent doubles card or something. In practice, no one's gunna check or really care if your card says 'doubles' or not, anyway. If you're well practiced with them, I don't see a problem with continuing to use them. Way better than using a single tank, imo.

 

[SandPhantom]

what agency has a cave 1 with a single tank restriction?

I'm interested in knowing this too? Who has a expiration or a card for doubles use?

 

[docmartin]

The idea to lose your right to use doubles and continue to dive caves but with a single tank sounds idiotic and outright dangerous. There is obviously no underwater police. No one but yourself is holding you back if you feel safer diving with doubles.

 

[doctormike]

My certification to use doubles expires in one year.

What does this mean?

 

[ucfdiver]

I took a cave class once in a single tank. I didn't know what I didn't know. Looking back, it was complete and utter stupidity, and a waste of money. I would advise anyone who hears an instructor suggest such nonsense to learn from my mistakes and run away as fast as you possibly can.

Full cave/C2 is really just a continuation of Intro/C1. If you can't take a class which teaches you how to go left and right within a year of diving Intro limits, it wouldn't be a terrible idea to retake intro.

What does this mean?

Back in the day, some agencies issued Intro cards and local dive shops wouldn't fill doubles without a full cave card. The logic was less gas, less penetration. Then when you were ready to take Apprentice/Full Cave, your instructor would issue you a provisional card to dive doubles so you could practice before class. This was time limited (3months?-- not sure) and eventually changed into a formal certification since so many people were diving doubles right out of Intro to cave classes.