Logging open water certification dives

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I'd like to see your source for that "fact"
Well, I have no source except for myself. Very few things in this world are hard facts. Opinions abound, though. I will explain my reasoning below.

#1 without a SCUBA set it is not a SCUBA dive. Hence, equipment is required.

#2 if the dive is doable as a freedive, then it's not "mandatory SCUBA". Hence, classifying it as a SCUBA dive is a little bit odd. I could spend 30 sec at 3 feet with SCUBA gear, but would that be a SCUBA dive really? Yes and no! I would prefer "no" though. I prefer to assume the "mandatory" here. If it requires SCUBA, then its is a SCUBA dive, if it doesn't, then it's just an excessive equipment dive.

These requirements are done by me, but you'll understand that they are obvious.

Now, PADI has some requirements for "SCUBA dives counting as enough experience for course X". That is a diffrent thing. PADI does not define SCUBA. It only defines its own internal requirements. The same applies to CMAS, NAUI, SSI, and others.

I do a lot of SCUBA dives to three to ten feet depths. Usually these dives last between 15 to 45 mintes. Corporation X may or may not accept some of these, but that's irrelevant unless I want to attend some of their courses.

and I figure that was a typo and logging dives has nothing to do with whether the dive was through a paid charter.
True
To the best of my knowledge, any scuba dive can be logged regardless of how long or deep it is.
I agree
Now whether or not you'll be taking an advanced course some day and someone will look at that dive and say "Sorry that one doesn't count" is another matter. But it's not like there's a hard and fast rule.
Correct. You're on the point.
I logged a pool refresher dive once, it's in my logbook but I don't count it towards the overall number of dives, in other words in Subsurface digital logbook there's no dive number next to it. So that's another way to handle a marginal dive.
I do count two things:
- Non-pool dive #NR
- Pooldive #NR
This is possible e.g. through tagging dives with keywords.

I have 700 records in my dive logging app, but I only count them as 425 dives. Some records are clearly spurious (e.g. removing fins under water, 1-2 min). Some are parts of a multi-dive-event (many short dives in a sequence to achieve a goal), some are with one tank but many submersions. Hence, accepting divelogs is an unexact science. I tend to record most everything, and if someone asks for detail, I will provide it, and let them choose how many dives they accept as experience. An example: If you would like to take a hypoxic trimix course, then it might be your normoxic trimix dives only, that count - not your air dives to 60 feet...
 
Now, PADI has some requirements for "SCUBA dives counting as enough experience for course X".
What PADI says is:
Logged Dives
To credit as a logged dive for course requirements, the dive takes place in open water and specific information about the dive (i.e. date, time, location, depth, profile, etc.) is recorded. Training dives​
for PADI courses (in open water) qualify as logged dives.​
Also, for the open water course, they state:
During open water dives, have divers spend the majority of time at 5 metres/15 feet or greater,​
and breathe at least 1400 litres or 50 cubic feet of compressed gas or remain submerged for at least​
20 minutes.​
This has gotten twisted by some to mean that no dive can be logged unless it is at 15 ft or deeper, is at least 20 minutes long, and uses at lest 50 cu ft of gas.

Any dive can be logged. There are no rules other than self-imposed.
 
Well, I have no source except for myself. Very few things in this world are hard facts. Opinions abound, though. I will explain my reasoning below.
I like your criteria, but it seems to apply to whether it's appropriate to refer to as dive as a "scuba dive." Your sentence that gamon referred to began, "You can only log something as a scuba dive if ...." So the sentence also relates to whether a dive "can" be logged. Being a pedant like me, I think you will concede that you have two separate but related assertions in that sentence. While I like your definition of a scuba dive, I will also agree with anyone here who has said there are no restrictions on what a person can log, as a log is simply one's personal record, maintained for one's own benefit. An exception is if the intent of the log is to satisfy some authority such as a dive training agency that may want to see evidence of meeting prerequisites for a course or something like that.
 
Any dive can be logged. There are no rules other than self-imposed.
This ^^^.
I log every dive, even the one I aborted last week after 10 min [and the reasons why] less than 10min, did not feel right, called the dive.
Log it.
 
Never logged a dive since my AOW and I have never been asked for a log since then either.
Fundies, OC Trimix and then CCR, never been asked for dive count or logs for any of them.
They're all there in my Perdix though, I've just never bothered to look at them or show them to anyone.
 
The first 4 dives in my second scuba career, starting in 1997, are the 4 OW checkout dive I did when I was recertified and my 12 year old son was certified. 2203 dives later...
 
Old habits die hard, when you are required to log dives and have them signed by a supervisor to progress to another level, you log them.
To the OP, log them.
 
I like your criteria, but it seems to apply to whether it's appropriate to refer to as dive as a "scuba dive."
True (and thanks!)
Your sentence that gamon referred to began, "You can only log something as a scuba dive if ...." The sentence also relates to whether a dive "can" be logged.'
... can be logged as a SCUBA dive ...
So, being a pedant like me, I think you will concede that you have two separate but related assertions in that sentence. While I like your definition of a scuba dive, I will also agree with anyone here who has said there are no restrictions on what a person can log, as a log is simply one's personal record, maintained for one's own benefit.
Yes. And the dive log can even be written like a diary.
An exception is if the intent of the log is to satisfy some authority such as a dive training agency that may want to see evidence of meeting prerequisites for a course or something like that.
Point on!
However, we can allways filter a log, but recreating records is a lot harder.
 
Aside from the aformentioned PADI requirement of logging the 4 OWC dives, the only "required" other reasons to log dives are if you are taking a course that requires a certain number (ie. PADI Self reliant, PADI DM, etc.) or if a dive Op charter wants to see your book and requires a certain number (or type) of dives (no one yet has asked to see my logs).
 
Op charter wants to see your book and requires a certain number (or type) of dives (no one yet has asked to see my logs).
Every diver [16] on the last trip was asked to show logged dives and C card, I showed a log book and the Shearwater app of dives.
It was required, if you had not dived in the last year a 'check out dive' [$30] was required.
Every diver had the required record of dives.

Edit: So if you want to dive here, bring a record of you dives [the last 12mths is enough], a dive log app on a mobile phone worked for the other divers on the above trip.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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