certification limits and how they are considered now days....

[formernuke]

It seems to depend on location.

Because of the higher rates of lawsuits, insurance etc, US operators are more inclined to say if you want on the boat for this dive show me x or higher cert card.

As stated above the operators make there own rules.

 

[GiraffeMarineSalvage]

Personally (private boat going diving with unpaying guests, but still ton of potential liability if things go wrong on/from my boat..) the most important consideration is "when was your last similar dive?"
Compare: Experience last week with coldwater/low vis/currents/following deco of computer and gas planning but that only ever went through the very first stage of training so long ago I wasn't even born yet = no worries...
verses
A diver with a pile of warm water certs from years ago that hasn't recently been diving and has never been on a dive with less than 80' of vis but knows all there is to know about everything = no way...

 

[Doc]

yeah Doc, I get that. No laws, operator set's his rules.... yep. Nothing new there.

What are the alternatives?

Look at the gear, watch him set-up, maybe if there’s a log book?

This takes effort, pretty much 1:1 contact, time consuming

C cards, meh. It is, however, a quick decision tree that can result in a best guess appraisal of abilities.

I rather enjoy the CocoView DM statement, an extension of @dmaziuk post, “Anyone planning on beyond 100’? Fine, just tell me first, right now”.

It sorts out the crowd on the first dive, in many ways.

Until maybe 2008(?), they never really required c-cards to be presented. It was all about “the who” that showed up, a different crowd.

 

[TMHeimer]

All stuff about training dive limits vs. non training and how the dive Ops view depths and certs. is good.
What I took from reading the PADI materials about extending your depth:

You are certified to 60 feet in conditions similar to or better than where you were certified....(don't quote me on exact wording). I think there is a reference somewhere about extending your depth by getting experience at gradually deeper sites and/or with an experienced diver (a pro.?)-- as opposed to simply getting your AOW cert. My take on it is simple--most people are certified in 20-30 feet of water so all of a sudden going to 60 feet, hmmm like passing the driver's test on city streets now you can go on the interstate. So 60 feet is not a "similar" condition really than what you were certified in.

My first post OW dive was to 73 feet, but I was with an experienced diver and felt comfortable (until he left me suddenly to chase 3 lobsters...). I think the rule is probably as it always has been- be logical in what you do.

 

[GiraffeMarineSalvage]

I think the rule is probably as it always has been- be logical in what you do.

Also of note is logic can go out the door if nitrogen narcosis sets it, and there is substantial variation one individual to the next in relation to the depth that becomes noticeable (and it can have an impact on decision making ability before it is noticed or be not noticed when calm but be catastrophic in stressful problem solving context...), which is yet another reason to progress gradually with competent dive buddies instead of a regimented progression through certs simply hitting the minimum skills/time/depth/hours required of a given certification...

 

[Doc]

Also of note is logic can go out the door if nitrogen narcosis sets it,

There’s a lot more incompetence than narcosis.

 

[Belzelbub]

but what is the popular consensus out there these days? I haven't dove in over 20 years and I'm just curious....just thinking about how things might be different based on things I'm reading and hearing...that a lot of operators are much more hung up on certifications than they used to be.

It’s all over the place. There have been several arguments on this forum about what OW certification means. Some say it means you are certified to 60’, others say it’s to recreational limits. I’m in the latter camp.

There is some confusing wording on the part of the agencies that contributes to this. I don’t see them rushing to clarify as the confusion probably helps sell additional certifications.

Charters will depend on the type of dive, but I see the trend moving towards requiring AOW for many dives, but it will depend on the location and dive conditions.

 

[pauldw]

I'm just curious how the limits are viewed now days.... suggestion, soft rule, hard rule, law, etc.?

There are hard laws, and they are inflexible laws, and they are absolute laws. They are called the "laws of physics," and they include a death penalty. Those are the laws you'd best obey.

 

[Bazzathemammoth]

Here in NZ the general attitude for “commercial” dive trips is that your certifications are hard limits. Dive clubs and private trips are based on the skippers decision.

On my boat I insist on ow minimum and will generally do safe sites first with some one I don’t know well. There’s still lots of uncertified private diving going on here I reckon, but that’s not something I like to be a part of.

 

[dmaziuk]

Here in NZ the general attitude for “commercial” dive trips is that your certifications are hard limits.

So what does the NZ book spell for PADI OW: 18m or 30?