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

[dmaziuk]

I think you mean you don't get much time before you are in a deco dive?

Yeah, yeah, and my SAC is so low it gets roid rash when I walk... Off the top of my head I don't think I'd want to go to 60 msw, even for 3 minutes, with anything smaller than Al100 -- just in case, you know, -- but I'd have to do some of that gas planing thing I keep hearing about, to be sure.

 

[dhpd]

I dove the Blue Hole in August and the operator, Amigos, ran a pretty tight ship. Just as BoulderJohn described, the divers have a very limited scope of improvisation. We were briefed on the dive profile before we got in; if I recall correctly it was meet at the anchor line; go to the edge, descend for 3 minutes; 8 minutes at depth (90 feet), and ascend for 5 minutes, safety stop at the anchor line.

But if any aberrations from usual dive fatalities haunts the Blue Hole, I'd guess it's due to the notoriety of the dive and attracting divers who get wet mostly on vacations...

 

[Divedoggie]

It seems like there are a lot of convoluted answers to a pretty basic question. The depths for Open Water, Advanced and Deep Diver (all Recreational dives) are recommendations from the agencies. There is reasoning and some logic (and idiot proofing) behind the recommendations.
New divers have been given a ton of new information, and many unfamiliar new skills to perform. The idea is to keep it simple and minimize task loading until muscle memory and a strong knowledge base is built.

It is also a 3 step process to encourage continued education, more diving and experience before going deeper.

New Open Water Adult Diver: 60' NDL for first dive @ 60' is 55 minutes. Gas Time Remaining will control the dive for most new divers. New divers will become low on air before they get too close to the NDL.
For comparison, first dive @ 70' has an NDL of 40 minutes. Most likely, the NDL will control the dive.

Advanced or more experienced Adult Diver: 100' Divers should have enough awareness to plan and perform dives with NDLs and Gas Time Remaining and Time to Surface with Stops, in mind. More to think about and to be aware of.

Deep Diver Specialty: 130' As divers go deeper than 100' and begin to feel some effects of narcosis, they should have some training and experience with recognizing and working through those effects. They should plan their bottom time with awareness of NDLs, plan and manage gas, time to surface and stops.

These are all simple recommendations.

Instructors have strict standards for depth when teaching courses, and those standards can differ from the recommendations above.

 

[rgkv]

A persons biggest concern with depth, [ other than yourself } is insurance, your only insured to your certified depth. I am Padi and I believe a OWD is good to 60Ft. AOWD is good to 100 Ft, Not sure about this but as a certified deep dive I could be good to 130Ft. Please, correct me if I am wrong...

 

[lowwall]

A persons biggest concern with depth, [ other than yourself } is insurance, your only insured to your certified depth. I am Padi and I believe a OWD is good to 60Ft. AOWD is good to 100 Ft, Not sure about this but as a certified deep dive I could be good to 130Ft. Please, correct me if I am wrong...

You are most likely wrong. You need to check your own policy for any limits, but the normal practice for dive insurance plans is either no limit or a 40m/130' or 50m limit.

See for example: DAN Dive Injury (Treatment) Insurance Plans

 

[drrich2]

It seems like there are a lot of convoluted answers to a pretty basic question.

That's because the reality of what is required of divers by dive operators is convoluted. Regardless of the agencies' original meaning for the recommendations, how that is applied in the real world has <evolved, mutated, distorted, morphed, pick your verb> such that it's often something else.

We've had a number of threads about whether AOW is a practical real world requirement now for a lot of the dives many mainstream recreational divers want to do. We tend to get some common themes cropping up...that many divers with 'just' an OW cert. but extensive experience can dive rings around a modern AOW diver with under 20 dives, etc...

Richard.

 

[rgkv]

You are most likely wrong. You need to check your own policy for any limits, but the normal practice for dive insurance plans is either no limit or a 40m/130' or 50m limit.

See for example: DAN Dive Injury (Treatment) Insurance Plans

Thanks lowwall, I will check mine out, those limits have been the impression i have had for a while

 

[tursiops]

Thanks lowwall, I will check mine out, those limits have been the impression i have had for a while

Those limits you describe are not limits, but rather recommendations. Your OW certification is good to 130ft/40m.

 

[formernuke]

You are most likely wrong. You need to check your own policy for any limits, but the normal practice for dive insurance plans is either no limit or a 40m/130' or 50m limit.

See for example: DAN Dive Injury (Treatment) Insurance Plans

What about insurance for the operation that let's OW divers dive to 130. If something happens that puts that operator in trouble for violating common safe industry pratices.. hence why in the US dive boats want to see deep, AOW etc fir deep sites but some foreign countries could care less.

 

[tursiops]

What about insurance for the operation that let's OW divers dive to 130. If something happens that puts that operator in trouble for violating common safe industry pratices.. hence why in the US dive boats want to see deep, AOW etc fir deep sites but some foreign countries could care less.

The question was about certification limits. The limits an operator or country might apply can be quite different. Some foreign countries/operators are MORE restrictive than the US, not less. For example, diving from the Buddy Dive boats in Bonaire, the depth limit is 100 ft, regardless of your certification. That limit is relaxed if you are teaching Deep, or if it is a technical dive.