Possibly stupid newbie question...

[radioactivenerd]

Hi all,
I'm terribly new to diving - so new in fact, that I've only just registered for my first PADI training course. I've always been immensely excited with the ocean and with whats under it, and have been snorkeling numerous times, but due to some reason or another, I couldnt actually get started with diving till now.

A few questions, some of which I am sure are going to be quite stupid - I've tried looking through the other threads so i dont repeat anything that has already been asked, so I'm hoping these are first timers...

1) Fins: I hear open-heel are the way to go and not full foot. Any reasons why? What advantages do they have? One disadvantage that I see is that i have to buy a set of wetsuit boots with them as well, which increases the already significant cost. I had no intention of buying a wetsuit or wetsuit boots, or diving in cold water either - thoughts would be appreciated.

2) Wet-suit: Like i said, i have no intention of diving in Iceland or the Bering sea just yet - i might in the future, but i'm not going to buy a wetsuit for that right now. My main areas are going to be Thailand, Red Sea, and possibly the Indian Ocean. Do i really need a wetsuit? Would you recommend renting one?

3) Time to flight home: about how long is recommended, before you hop on a flight to get back to the cold, miserable, wet cities that most of us live in, after a dive? 24 hours, or is it safe to do a dive in the morning and then fly out in the evening?

Thanks for all the help folks!

 

[jasoninbtr]

Welcome to the board RAN.

1) Open heals are more versatile. You can dive the same fin whether using a thin boot or thick boot (within reason). They are also easier to get on/off (esp if using springs). You will also find a greater variety in open heel.

2) Some people don't wear wetsuits in warm waters. I like wearing one just for protection (jellies, etc). The other thing to consider is how many dives you are doing in a day. Even if the water is 80F you will lose core temp if you are doing a lot of repetitive dives.

3) I believe the standard is 12-18 hours for a single dive, 24 for repetitive. Better safe than sorry.

Jason

 

[Jax]

Hi, RA Nerd! Welcome!

My .02psi (they do that here, instead of $.02) -- rent, rent, rent! After you get a few dives under your belt, and you see others' equipment and ask questions, you'll have a better idea of what you need, want, and can afford to get. BTW - used is a good thing, too. People are selling good equipment all the time so they can buy nicer 'toys'.

That leads to the fins -- just try 'em. You can start a huge battle with fins discussions. Also try the 'equipment' forums. I've learned volumes here . . . I consider myself a newbie.

Again - rent! That wetsuit thing -- my Instructor recommended a 5mm, but I dive more in a 7mm. Everyone has their own, personal comfort zone.

Lastly, the standard wait-to-fly time is 24 hours for absolute safety. You'll even get arguments on that, tho.

 

[nordiques]

hey,
1) the biggest advantage of open heels is the support you have on your foot. Booties are really not expensive, you can find new one for 20$ ( don't know how much in Uk money). Plus, if you were considering doing shore dives, booties and open heel fins would save plenty of swearing when walking on a pointy rock!
2) Wet-Suits, even if your diving in warm waters can be very useful as they can prevent scraps and scratches. Also, if you plan on diving deep, water in thailand might be hot on top but it gets chilly near the bottom. A 3mm shorty might just be what you need! and yes you can rent them during your trips but personally i don't like renting them because they are usually old and unclean.
3) The common consensus is to wait 24 hours after your last dive before taking the plane. The exact time also varies with the number of dives you do and a what depth. A dive computer for that is extremely usefull. I wouldn't dive the same day that i am taking a plane but if for example you dive at 8 AM for 40 minutes in 40 ft and your flight is not for another 12 hours, i don't think its a big risk!
So from one newbie to another, have fun diving
Marc

 

[Texasdivechick]

Are you planning on only diving from boats or do you foresee any shore entries in your immediate dive future? If you are doing any shore diving then it is highly recommended that you get the open-heel fins and booties. The booties will protect your feet from sharp, pointy things as you walk out into the water and then if you get the fins w/ spring straps you'll have a much easier time putting them on. Think about the waves, 80 lbs of gear, uneven bottom, sea urchins, broken glass, sharp shell bits, etc... and how much more difficult it would be if you were trying to navigate through that in bare feet and then trying to coax your full-foot fins on. I have also found that wearing booties helps protect my feet from blisters on multi-day, repetitive dive trips.
Jason was right about the wetsuit. I don't always wear a wetsuit (depends on the number of dives, fresh vs. salt, temperature outside) but I usually have some sort of protection on, like a rash guard to keep my bc from rubbing my skin raw. That being said, I HAVE gotten into a school of jellies before without realizing it until it was too late. I was wearing a wetsuit thankfully, and the only place I was stung was under my chin. I was very glad that day that I had opted to wear full protection even if it was only a 1ml.
As for flying after diving, you should get lots of hits in the search function about this topic. It is not recommended that you dive the same day that you fly. Many divers usually refer to this day as the no-dive-day and take advantage of the topside attractions that we haven't paid attention to since we were so busy diving every day on the trip! For example, if our flight leaves at noon on Saturday, we can dive Friday morning and perhaps an early afternoon, very shallow dive (11am-1pm). Then no more diving! That gives us a solid 18-24 hours to off gas before our flight.
Good luck with your training and have fun diving!

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Open heel fins do indeed require the use of boots. That is a good thing if the shore is rocky, has sharp shells, there are bits of broken glass in the water etc. It also helps if the boat deck has any splinters, if you kick a weight that someone dropped, or someone with a boot on steps on your toe! Boots are cheap. A lot cheaper than stitches and a trip to the doctor. Even in tropical waters I wear a full suit. If there is surge you may brush up against coral, if there are jellies you'll wish you had that full covering. It can also help out when climbing a ladder with sharp edges. But all of this is really no more than a little common sense if you take the time to think thru what you could encounter. As to thickness it depends on the water temp, how many dives, surface temp, is it very windy, etc. I took a 3 mil to Bonaire for 80-84 degree water and was fine with 3-4 dives a day. More than that I'd have wanted my 5 mil. One or two a skin would have been ok if there was time to warm up between the dives.
DAN recommends 18 hours after multiple dives over multiple days. I use 24 hour rule and use that 24 hours to make sure my gear is dry, relax, do whatever touristy crap I'm going to do, buy souvenirs for those at home( not much thought required they usually don;t appreciate it anyway other that to say " how nice!" and then behind your back bitch about how you are rubbing it in that you got to go somewhere exotic and they had to sit home on the stoop!) But enough of that. ALL of this should be covered on your course. Make sure it is. Be a pest. Seriously, The question you have, that you do not ask of your instructor, could come back and bite you in the butt when that info would have been most helpful.

 

[jasoninbtr]

That being said, I HAVE gotten into a school of jellies before without realizing it until it was too late. I was wearing a wetsuit thankfully, and the only place I was stung was under my chin. I was very glad that day that I had opted to wear full protection even if it was only a 1ml.

A little OT but on our second OW checkout dive I had a loose string of nematocysts drape across my face between my mask and reg. Ouch!

 

[radioactivenerd]

I'm pretty sure that I'm going to have shore dives, specially in Thailand. I live in London, but go back and forth between Singapore, Bombay, and London a few times a year, so I think the shore dives thing in Thailand is definitely going to happen.

Thanks for all the responses folks - i think i might have jumped the gun a bit and asked all these questions that would probably have been answered during my first course anyway, but I'm gonna blame that one on the excitement

Appreciate the advice everyone - you are all legends!

Edit: reading these posts, am i to assume that Jellyfish are a pretty common occurrence around the caribbean or florida? i've been snorkelling in heaps of places but never encountered them...

 

[deepseafalcon]

1) Fins: I hear open-heel are the way to go and not full foot. Any reasons why? What advantages do they have? One disadvantage that I see is that i have to buy a set of wetsuit boots with them as well, which increases the already significant cost. I had no intention of buying a wetsuit or wetsuit boots, or diving in cold water either - thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks for all the help folks!

I just happen to have posted my experience with full foot fins in the fins/mask/snorkel gear section.

To the contrary of what many people will tell you here (many of which are from the cold water/tech diver fraction), I do believe that full foot fins are very adequate for scuba diving. They not only are much lighter (travel weight), I also found certain models to be more efficient (less fatique) and less expensive!
I do use and recommend neoprene socks, though (very inexpensive, e.g. deep see)

2) Wet-suit: Like i said, i have no intention of diving in Iceland or the Bering sea just yet - i might in the future, but i'm not going to buy a wetsuit for that right now. My main areas are going to be Thailand, Red Sea, and possibly the Indian Ocean. Do i really need a wetsuit? Would you recommend renting one?

I use and recommend a thin (e.g. 1...max 3 mm) long sleeve suit. Not only does it provide some basic thermal protection, more importantly it also protects your skin from stingy jellyfish, sharp objects and UV light in shallow water (no kidding, got sunburned while diving in the Red Sea!)
I am using a Henderson microprene, but anything similar in the 40-100$ range will do.

3) Time to flight home: about how long is recommended, before you hop on a flight to get back to the cold, miserable, wet cities that most of us live in, after a dive? 24 hours, or is it safe to do a dive in the morning and then fly out in the evening?

The usual recommendation is 24hrs. In reality, the time depends on the nitrogen level in your tissues, i.e., dive depth and time.
So theoretically, flying after less than 24hrs after shallow dives should be OK, but better save than sorry!


Two more recommendations:
1. don't forget a good mask: very important for a good dive experience - go to one or more dive stores and TRY them!!
if you wear glasses get a prescription mask!!)

2. At the beginning, limit your gear purchases to mask, suit (I prefer not to dive in other people's pee), socks or boots, and possibly fins. Don't buy all the expensive other gear right away, collect experience first. Renting is not that expensive, in fact, in tropical destinations it saves you quite often little to nothing when you bring your own gear!

 

[radioactivenerd]

2. At the beginning, limit your gear purchases to maks, suit (I prefer not to dive in other people's pee), socks or boots, and possibly fins. Don't buy all the expensive other gear right away, collect experience first. Renting is not that expensive, in fact, in tropical destinations it saves you quite often little to nothing when you bring your own gear!

very useful that - I was thinking of getting the standard masks,fins, snorkel package, but got stuck there as i didnt know which type of fins to get, and depending on my decision, would need to buy boots as well.

I'm heading off my LDS now to have a wee look at the stuff thats out there and try out some masks. From everything ive read so far it seems like masks are the absolute first thing that need to be bought. Everything else can at some level be rented.