Dave Bevan
Contributor
Ok Guys I'm looking for some input from experienced rebreather divers on whether or not you think its a good idea to get it rebreather diving or not?
My situation currently (being honest). Please try not to judge me to badly :/.
I have around 130 dives currently and have been diving about 1 and a half years. I am PADI Advanced Open water, Nitrox etc. Recently completed GUE Fundamentals and got a Tech Pass. I'm 31 years old and in reasonable shape. I am very interested in Dive Training and like training hard and I'm looking for a challenge to my diving.
I live and work in Saudi Arabia (where rebreather diving is currently banned).
I'm doing my Extended Range Limited Trimix (OC) and Gue Drysuit courses in the upcoming months in UAE. My current plan was to follow through GUE training to Tech 1/Cave 1 and onwards moving into increasingly more difficult dives until I can do the magic 100m.
I have significant funding set aside I currently do all my tech diving in UAE where I fly once every 3 weeks for a long weekend (there is very little tech going on in Saudi) and also can take courses etc over there. I dive the other weekends OC fun dives on Twinset usually with others on singles in the Red Sea.
I sometimes dive quite deep on air maybe 40m or absolute max 50m (please bear in mind this is in the ideal conditions of the red sea) using NX40 as a deco gas. I don't often dive Nitrox back gas in Saudi as it is both difficult and expensive to get hold of. I always dive it in UAE and it is my preferred method. I'm not a massive fan of going beyond 40m but I'm trying to be honest.
My specific aim is to be able to reach and explore any wreck in the world 100m in any temperature. I am particularly excited about getting involved in projects where I can dive rarely dived or virgin wrecks in remote places and push the boundaries of what has been explored already.
I have around 2.5 years left planned working in the middle east and my aim is to be qualified and confident by the end of that time. Meaning that when I go back to the UK I will have most of the expensive equipment bought and paid for (Drysuit/Scooter etc) and won't need to shell out for to much expensive equipment but just cover running cost and diving costs.
I work in avionics and I am very methodical and technically minded. I'm used to following checklists and I'm very Human Factors aware. I still put my doubles together in a set order exactly the same each time. I weird about cleaning stuff and I have an excel speadsheet that tells me when each piece of equipment I have is requiring service etc. (see anal retentive for more info).
So my big question is do you think I should switch to CC or continue training OC? I believe that the costs are actually similar if I am going to be doing a lot of deep dives. I like the fact that CCR is cost per hour rather than being more and more expensive as you get deeper and deeper. Also there is the rising price of helium to consider.
Do you think diving two days in three weeks is going to be enough to stay confident ans safe in the first few hours or using the unit? Cost is not a massive issue for me I'm looking for the best training and best gear selection for the job as my ultimate goal. I'm interested in challenging diving and I don't mind putting in hours in the pool to get skills right.
Just looking for opinions (please be gentle) and ideas. I can see the massive advantages of RB through a simple google search and to be honest its starting to look like no matter how much I spend on OC eventually I will end up changing over anyway. So I'm wondering what the thought process is.
Would love to hear how you got in CC and how you felt about it. What level you were at when you made the switch?
If you have got this far then I thank you for taking the time to read my little tale. I wish you all safe diving in the future.
My situation currently (being honest). Please try not to judge me to badly :/.
I have around 130 dives currently and have been diving about 1 and a half years. I am PADI Advanced Open water, Nitrox etc. Recently completed GUE Fundamentals and got a Tech Pass. I'm 31 years old and in reasonable shape. I am very interested in Dive Training and like training hard and I'm looking for a challenge to my diving.
I live and work in Saudi Arabia (where rebreather diving is currently banned).
I'm doing my Extended Range Limited Trimix (OC) and Gue Drysuit courses in the upcoming months in UAE. My current plan was to follow through GUE training to Tech 1/Cave 1 and onwards moving into increasingly more difficult dives until I can do the magic 100m.
I have significant funding set aside I currently do all my tech diving in UAE where I fly once every 3 weeks for a long weekend (there is very little tech going on in Saudi) and also can take courses etc over there. I dive the other weekends OC fun dives on Twinset usually with others on singles in the Red Sea.
I sometimes dive quite deep on air maybe 40m or absolute max 50m (please bear in mind this is in the ideal conditions of the red sea) using NX40 as a deco gas. I don't often dive Nitrox back gas in Saudi as it is both difficult and expensive to get hold of. I always dive it in UAE and it is my preferred method. I'm not a massive fan of going beyond 40m but I'm trying to be honest.
My specific aim is to be able to reach and explore any wreck in the world 100m in any temperature. I am particularly excited about getting involved in projects where I can dive rarely dived or virgin wrecks in remote places and push the boundaries of what has been explored already.
I have around 2.5 years left planned working in the middle east and my aim is to be qualified and confident by the end of that time. Meaning that when I go back to the UK I will have most of the expensive equipment bought and paid for (Drysuit/Scooter etc) and won't need to shell out for to much expensive equipment but just cover running cost and diving costs.
I work in avionics and I am very methodical and technically minded. I'm used to following checklists and I'm very Human Factors aware. I still put my doubles together in a set order exactly the same each time. I weird about cleaning stuff and I have an excel speadsheet that tells me when each piece of equipment I have is requiring service etc. (see anal retentive for more info).
So my big question is do you think I should switch to CC or continue training OC? I believe that the costs are actually similar if I am going to be doing a lot of deep dives. I like the fact that CCR is cost per hour rather than being more and more expensive as you get deeper and deeper. Also there is the rising price of helium to consider.
Do you think diving two days in three weeks is going to be enough to stay confident ans safe in the first few hours or using the unit? Cost is not a massive issue for me I'm looking for the best training and best gear selection for the job as my ultimate goal. I'm interested in challenging diving and I don't mind putting in hours in the pool to get skills right.
Just looking for opinions (please be gentle) and ideas. I can see the massive advantages of RB through a simple google search and to be honest its starting to look like no matter how much I spend on OC eventually I will end up changing over anyway. So I'm wondering what the thought process is.
Would love to hear how you got in CC and how you felt about it. What level you were at when you made the switch?
If you have got this far then I thank you for taking the time to read my little tale. I wish you all safe diving in the future.