Making a 10 meter RIB suitable/comfortable for divers

[wetb4igetinthewater]

@wetb4igetinthewater have a look here: https://www.instagram.com/chaniadiving/
It is the local dive store I use and in their instagram page you can see the whole range of boats they use. From a "hardcore" small rib for experienced/tech divers, to a bigger rib with a special platform around the engine, to 2-3 bigger hard bottom boats. My experience with running/owning a boat is zero so I can't help you, but you should contact the owner Nikolas Giannoulakis (Nikolas Giannoulakis). He is very nice guy with tons of experience. Talk to him and I am pretty sure he will give you sound advice.

Sorry but I have to disappoint you a bit. Typically around August (peak of tourist season) is also the wind season for the Aegean sea. The so called "meltemi" north winds typically last for few days at a time and can happen few times from July to end of August. Believe me you will not be able to dive during these periods even if you have a tanker sized dive boat It is not only about comfort and safety onboard but also the conditions underwater deteriorate a lot. Fortunately they last "only" few days at a time

BTW on which island you plan to be based?

Let me know if you need any extra help.

All the best

I was on Crete and went by that shop a few times! There were some nice things I liked about the setup. No one was around, I guess out diving. I'll reach out to Nikolas. I know about the winds. I used to come to Greece in August, I prefer September. I'm actually in Athens right now, hoping to go to Patras to meet a professor to discuss a project, but that depends on if I'll be allowed to come back. Going to the police station to see if I can get a return permit, otherwise I'll have to cancel.

For the really rough times, I'd try to go to the south side of the island. It is the meltemi that I have been universally adviced to have a RIB.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

@Diving Dubai

Two of the shops only do one dive at a time. Not sure about the third as that was way up north in the middle of nowhere. I'm hoping, but may have to give up, the idea of 2-tank trips. I'm also hoping to make customers comfortable and that requirement may limit me to 1-tank trips. I have to see.

I'm hoping to work on a nearby island that uses the same sites to get a feel for how to operate. I figure a summer of low pay is financially wise to avoid making bad, expensive, uinformed decisions

 

[Swedinsidemount]

Still think the Protector 28 TARGA is the best offshore option for you

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Still think the Protector 28 TARGA is the best offshore option for you

The cabin takes up too much space. Having a bimini cover is really ideal for the sun.

Now I haven't worked with diesel inboards before (been around them of course), but my hopes is that I would be able to use that space for tank racks, table space, camera rinse stations, ets.

@Diving Dubai brought up the issue of fumes, and that may make me abandon the idea of diesel, but I'll speak to Manthos Marras about that, as he has one on his Kythnos location, outboards at his Porto Rafti location. @sea_ledford mentioned jet drive engines, and I will look into that. My only experience with those engines is when I was on a friend's boat, and he had a friend with a jet boat who would weave back and forth and then go straight to kick up a huge rooster tail to soak us. lol

 

[Russjstewart]

When talking about fumes and outboards you need to take into account the different types of outboards. Most manufacturers will sell a range including four strokes, fuel injected two strokes and carbureted two strokes as well as pre mix and oil injected two stroke outboards.

Not all types are sold in all locations. Pre mix carbureted two strokes tend to be sold in parts of the world where reliability and the ability for bush mechanics to service and repair is important, and emission control standards are not strict. These can be very smoky and fumy. The fuel injected and four strokes motors are a whole different story for emissions.

I believe Yamaha has a range of motors that can re run on Kerosene Enduro | YAMAHA MOTOR CO., LTD.

Pre mix carbureted two strokes are cheaper to buy and maintain, but use more fuel and oil for the same hours or distance travelled, and may not be allowed in certain parts of the world.

Fuel injected two stroke outboards and four strokes are leaner but cost more to buy and maintain, and require diagnostic computers to properly maintain, meaning you are limited in what you can do yourself, as well as the timing belt problems on four strokes. The fuel efficiency if you do a lot of hours is impressive though, and may offset the cost. Most injectors are not tolerant of water, so you need to have a good fuel supply and keep your fuel water separators checked and drained regulalry.

 

[Diving Dubai]

@Diving Dubai

Two of the shops only do one dive at a time. Not sure about the third as that was way up north in the middle of nowhere. I'm hoping, but may have to give up, the idea of 2-tank trips. I'm also hoping to make customers comfortable and that requirement may limit me to 1-tank trips. I have to see.

I'm hoping to work on a nearby island that uses the same sites to get a feel for how to operate. I figure a summer of low pay is financially wise to avoid making bad, expensive, uinformed decisions

Regarding Tanks per trip. In reality it depends on how far teh boat ride. The majority of people only want 2 dives per day.

At our place we have one boat rigged for 2 tanker to sites that have a long transit, the others do 3 x single tank trips per day - this has a number of benefits

Mainly in the summer heat ppl can cool off between dives. People can choose between teh early and midday dive or the midday and afternoon (or do all 3) We can react better to water conditions. Say if we headed south, and it was poor. Well we're committed therefor 2 dives. Whereas we have flexibility by always coming back to base.

We have 4 boats so we have no issues with OW and AoW sites, but if you have only 1 boat then that will be influenced by your customer numbers


We installed "glass cockpit" with better instrumentation - the biggest one being fuel flow meters. Captains can now balance their throttles matching sea conditions, transit speed and fuel consumption. It hasn't saved a huge amount, the new instruments etc were paid for in 6 months and we continue to make small but significant (over time) savings

Every little helps

 

[Ghost95]

As far as diesels go you can buy allot of gas for the price difference of a pair of outboards vs an adequately sized diesel. When people talk about the reliability of diesels they are usually talking about the older, lower RPM, non-turboed engines. Once you start adding turbos to an engine and decreasing the mass to get more RPM you loose a good bit of that reliability. The cost for replacement of a blown diesel vs a blow outboard is way higher. If you're lucky you can rebuild a diesel easier but parts are still expensive.

Good luck with whatever you choose. It sounds like fun.

 

[Swedinsidemount]

The cabin takes up too much space. Having a bimini cover is really ideal for the sun.

Now I haven't worked with diesel inboards before (been around them of course), but my hopes is that I would be able to use that space for tank racks, table space, camera rinse stations, ets.

@Diving Dubai brought up the issue of fumes, and that may make me abandon the idea of diesel, but I'll speak to Manthos Marras about that, as he has one on his Kythnos location, outboards at his Porto Rafti location. @sea_ledford mentioned jet drive engines, and I will look into that. My only experience with those engines is when I was on a friend's boat, and he had a friend with a jet boat who would weave back and forth and then go straight to kick up a huge rooster tail to soak us. lol

Question.. does it have to be a rhib? there are plenty of solid offshore v hulls. if you want space and an open top, maybe the axopar 28 open. Keep in mind rhibs only last 7-12 years and lose value quickly.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Question.. does it have to be a rhib? there are plenty of solid offshore v hulls. if you want space and an open top, maybe the axopar 28 open. Keep in mind rhibs only last 7-12 years and lose value quickly.

Needs to be a soft hull to absorb the waves in summer. Winds can be strong. Everyone who has a dive op in the region all run RIBs.

 

[Swedinsidemount]

Needs to be a soft hull to absorb the waves in summer. Winds can be strong. Everyone who has a dive op in the region all run RIBs.

Well i can only think of a couple more
1. DGS MONSTER 30- really cool boat saw it last year at MIBS(MIAMI INT)
2. Island Hopper boat manufacturer: They specialize in dive and fishing boats
3. SAFE boats defender open line-up: Used by # of agencies
4. SAR RHIBS- small but sturdy would probably be the best choice for you
5. MADERA RHIBS- mil spec
6.LOMAC- decent all around choice