How do you fund your diving?

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dwiest12

Registered
Messages
30
Reaction score
2
Location
Speinshart, Germany
# of dives
50 - 99
I have finished up my first year diving and I absolutely love it. No, really, I love it. It has become a passion of mine but the truth is it can be very expensive for your average Joe, like me. I have been out of the Army and I have a borderline full time job and I go to school full time (thank you G.I. Bill), have two kids and I live in Germany because that is where my wife is from( euro, ouch, still get paid in dollars).

So, scuba is not for the elite only, but can still be hard to accomplish for everyone, if you want to own you own gear. My question, for those who do not make a ton of money, is how do you accomplish feeding the beast that is scuba diving?

Here is what I have done.. I was given my certification for my birthday including fins, boots and a mask. Then I bought a oceanic setup for less than $300 (Christmas, jacket regs and a computer). Just before Christmas I realized scuba was what I want to do, for fun and eventually business. At that point I began saving all of my change. Both Euro and American went into a change jar. Every now and then the jar was raided by my daughter or my wife but never depleted. Once a year had passed, since my certification I decided to count the change I had saved. I was very surprised at the out come. I ended up being able to purchase a nitek q, d3 (cw) zenith regs , a hog single tank 32lbs wing Bp/h,and a used set of d1 and classic regs and a used, but fitted to me, dry suit (diving in Germany is cold).

I emptied out my change jar and will start saving for another year of diving and upgrades. Anyone out there have any other methods of funding methods for diving?



* fund, not find. Autocorrect
 
I bought mostly used stuff 8 years ago when certified--most of that from the LDS where this occurred. I have rinsed all of it thoroughly after each dive day and most of it is still in use. I replace only things that are really crappy now and/or may affect safety. Get my reg. worked over yearly. I don't buy the newest gadget that comes on the market because I think it's neat. I dive close to home (or condo) when possible even though the site may not be as interesting as others and I've been there lots before. This saves on (Canadian) gas costs. I usually do only one (costly) charter in Florida yearly.
 
Well, here was my progression: had money for a while; then charged up credit cards, until maxed out. Wrote a couple of books on dive etiquette that sell pretty well, and fund 1 or two trips a year; teach part time for gear money and shop discounts; and constantly shop for good deals. The secret: sometimes you just have to go. Funds will emerge somewhere!
DivemasterDennis
 
I have no credit cards and i really do not want one at this point . PArt of my Scuba fund was spent on your book! I agree that you just have to go and that is why I dive the lakes year round here in Germany! Being underwater is the best(except for my family, of course).
 
Sell your children, you can always make more ..... joking :rofl3:

Your change jar is something I use also but for different reasons and it is a good idea.

I do some writing for local magazines and occasionally supply photos for books and magazines, not giving up my day job but it has paid for many bits and pieces and a few trips.

If I go on a business trip to someplace that is also has dive opportunities, then the dive gear comes with me, company pays for the trip and I get to dive when I am not working :wink:

When I first started diving I could not afford everything either at the beginning. Maintaining your gear is key to making it last. My first regulator died after over 20 years of service, I have had two BCs that gave me over 500 dives each. I guess since you dive more often in fresh water then your gear will not take such a beating as salt water dives, just remember to rinse it better when you do dive salt water.

As the saying goes " look after your gear and it will look after you" applicable to more than scuba diving.

---------- Post added September 3rd, 2013 at 09:41 PM ----------

BTW how do you live with no credit cards?

I pay mine off in full monthly but I would find it difficult to survive without them, it is almost impossible to "do things" without one e.g. hire a car, book a hotel etc
 
I buy used gear almost exclusively. I also use a change jar, but that ends up primarily being for family vacation stuff and we don't really use cash any more with debit cards so it's not accumulating nearly as fast as it did in the past.

Mostly I plan for 1 holiday a year where I will get real diving in and then throw in quarry dives throughout the year that don't require a lot of effort, either fiscal or logistical.
 
I see both sides of the fence as I love new toys but and I have to have a little bit if money in the bank. I wanted to get some brand new stuff and take care of it really well and see how long it will last. It is, however , very tempting every time something new comes out!
 
I pay for my diving via side work. ( http://www.iswix.com ) When times are good, I dive less and bank money. When times slow down, I buy toys and go diving more.
 
I accumulated my gear slowly when I was young and poor, and upgraded as my financial circumstances improved over the years. I have also focused on shore diving to keep the actual diving costs to a minimum (and 'cause I like it).
 

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