Question TDI CCR AIR DILUENT DIVER COURSE cost

[Germie]

There is a big difference between prices in Europe and in the US or Mexico. Here it is between 1000 and 1200 euro for the mod1 (air diluent with deco). TDI or IANTD and sometimes IART.
Also cave diving courses are here less exepensive than in Mexico. And it is not that the courses here are bad. So if you pay 300 per day, maybe also look for the price of a ticket to come to Europe and do a course here.
I will never pay 300 for a day, I simply had and have not the money for that. If I will ask 300 for a day training, nobody will do a course with me anymore. And if I had to pay such prices, I would have been self trained.
So prices are really depending on region.

 

[Wibble]

The course costs are only a fraction of the whole rebreather costs. Obviously there's the large capital outlay for the unit purchase. After that there's the training costs but you must also factor in A LOT OF PRACTICE. This means spending a lot of dives to practice your skills and master the thing. Many of these dives will be spent doing all the course skills and some bailouts.

Rebreathers aren't cheap. But they are wonderful to dive and give great flexibility and can enormously extend your diving.

The principle thing is you must find an instructor that works for you. Someone with a lot more knowledge than they're teaching you. Someone who will give you a hard time on the course to ram home the skills. Good trainers cost good money.

It is odd that European trainers are definitely cheaper than in the US. Their quality is very good too.

 

[jadairiii]

Because that is the first course in switching to rebreather diving.

Old school "logic". Like Agencies making divers dive deep air before allowing them to use trimix. I guess adding helium would way over tax a first time RB diver...........

 

[DiveTucson]

Old school "logic". Like Agencies making divers dive deep air before allowing them to use trimix. I guess adding helium would way over tax a first time RB diver...........

I can't think of a single agency that makes divers do deep air before allowing them to use Trimix. With TDI for OC you can go directly to Advanced Nitrox / Helitrox as your first tech course using Helium which is the only way I will teach it.

The no Helium for Air Diluent No Deco is because the depth limit is set to 100' which is a good starting point for most CCR divers. If the diver has the correct OC tech background they can start the Helitrox CCR course and use helium in the unit for their first course. So everything you mentioned is not really correct...

 

[Tracy]

Old school "logic". Like Agencies making divers dive deep air before allowing them to use trimix. I guess adding helium would way over tax a first time RB diver...........

Sounds like you just aren't familiar with the system. You can cross directly to helium, it is still a mod 1 rating.
The difference lies in the student. To shorten it, you basically need to be able to build the unit and dive it safely to come out with an air diluent rating to 100'.
If you want to achieve a deco rating, there are standards to be met and most students don't get to that level in a week of diving on the machine. Trim and buoyancy control are the two big ones that generally take time to master before moving on to an overhead, be it soft or hard.
A lot of students coming from OC technical never had the skills on OC, they were given a card because they paid for the course. Those are the ones that really struggle on CC and get upset that they don't get the "card they paid for."

As to the deep air, I haven't done deep air in over a decade and I teach a fair amount of technical courses. Like most things, it comes down to the instructor you select. I only teach ANDP with helitrox and I don't teach air dil deco. I don't believe in either, so they can find another instructor if that is what they want.

 

[BoltSnap]

I only teach ANDP with helitrox and I don't teach air dil deco. I don't believe in either, so they can find another instructor if that is what they want.

So if I live and dive in a place where He is unavailable or is extremely scare and expensive, I can't do tech training or diving to 45meters?

 

[Tracy]

So if I live and dive in a place where He is unavailable or is extremely scare and expensive, I can't do tech training or diving to 45meters?

You can do whatever you want. I'm sure if you live in a place without HE, there are people that teach courses without HE.
It isn't unavailable where I live or teach. I am familiar with deep air, I used to do it because I didn't know any better, not because helium wasn't an option. Since switching to using trimix for trimix depths, I have no desire to go back.
My choices are fluid, my air depth limit in the Great Lakes is a lot different that my depth limit in Bonaire. Temperature and visibility have a huge effect on narcosis. Being relaxed helps with consistent breathing and helps to mitigate CO2 buildup.
Every once in a great while, I still do something stupid like a wreck tie in at 200' with air because those are the tanks that were on the boat and I used to do it. I usually remember quickly why I stopped doing those things when you realize you are 15 minutes into a three minute job and now have a deco hang from a tie in.

 

[BoltSnap]

You can do whatever you want. I'm sure if you live in a place without HE, there are people that teach courses without HE.
It isn't unavailable where I live or teach. I am familiar with deep air, I used to do it because I didn't know any better, not because helium wasn't an option. Since switching to using trimix for trimix depths, I have no desire to go back.
My choices are fluid, my air depth limit in the Great Lakes is a lot different that my depth limit in Bonaire. Temperature and visibility have a huge effect on narcosis. Being relaxed helps with consistent breathing and helps to mitigate CO2 buildup.
Every once in a great while, I still do something stupid like a wreck tie in at 200' with air because those are the tanks that were on the boat and I used to do it. I usually remember quickly why I stopped doing those things when you realize you are 15 minutes into a three minute job and now have a deco hang from a tie in.

You don't think that it is better to teach these poor unlucky folks to do it right as much as possible, down to 45m, instead of them not doing it right and having a much higher chance of getting seriously hurt? I am not talking about going down to 60m or deeper, just to 45 - 50m.

 

[broncobowsher]

I can't think of a single agency that makes divers do deep air before allowing them to use Trimix. With TDI for OC you can go directly to Advanced Nitrox / Helitrox as your first tech course using Helium which is the only way I will teach it.

The no Helium for Air Diluent No Deco is because the depth limit is set to 100' which is a good starting point for most CCR divers. If the diver has the correct OC tech background they can start the Helitrox CCR course and use helium in the unit for their first course. So everything you mentioned is not really correct...

Although I didn't get trained via Ben (even though he is probably the best and closest instructor around me) I did fall into the category he is talking about. My first round of rebreather diving was 100' no deco cert. Which looking back on it, was the right call. I had been doing some 150' deco OC stuff, but not a ton. My skills were not that sharp, and sadly, still are not. But I did a ton of rebreather diving in that 100' recreational window and went back for round 2. After going through helium and deco with a rebreather (not that hard, but bailout can get complex in the planning side of things) it was best I spent a year just learning the basics of a rebreather.

 

[Tracy]

You don't think that it is better to teach these poor unlucky folks to do it right as much as possible, down to 45m, instead of them not doing it right and having a much higher chance of getting seriously hurt? I am not talking about going down to 60m or deeper, just to 45 - 50m.

No. I don't think new tech divers should be dealing with narcosis and CO2 on top of already being task loaded with new skills during a course.
I believe if you can't get a suitable gas for a dive, then you don't make that dive. That line may get blurred later with a lot of experience to back up the skills, but not when they are new to everything and taking their first technical course.