Tricks and Tips that Save Pennies

[Stu S.]

How to save money while diving:

Combine diving camping, and fishing.

Avoid any item with a dive flag on it, it multiplies the price by three.

The best way to buy more gear is to lend what you have to somebody else.

Don't buy stuff because it is cool.

Recognize that expensive gear is like a first-class airline ticket. It is more comfy, but when disaster happens, you are no safer than the guy who bought a cheap seat.

Own your tanks. You can waste a lot of money driving around renting things. If you get out of diving, a tank has a uniquely high resale value.

Remember that physical fitness is required for good diving. Smoke? Quit. That could save a fortune.

 

[vladimir]

I guess if I were in her neck of the woods it may do me some good, but considering there are MANY miles between us it would not benefit me at all to talk her into an AOW course.

Yes, I noted that before I posted and was careful not to imply you had an ulterior motive. I only suggested that, as a purveyor of training, you may have a biased view of the value of AOW.

As for the chamber/ambulance, yes you are correct, MANY diver's never take a ride in either, but some advancing training is still better than the posibility.

The probability of DCS is approaching nil and the proposition that AOW is an effective prophylactic is dubious at best. This is fear-mongering with a tenuous basis in reality which is why I responded to your original post.

 

[Aardvark]

Don't by pre-made lanyards at your LDS, they tend to be overpriced and fall apart, especially those with plastic clips. Buy a roll of shock cord from a discount hardware store and get brass or stainless snaps, clips, whatever from a larger chandlery - make what you need.

Dive shops aren't the only place to buy backup lights. Twist on lights designed for hazardous environment work can be half the price from industrial suppliers.

Second hand gear is usually fine, lots of people leave the sport. I wouldn't buy regs or a wing I couldn't test myself first, though. Factor in the cost of a full service for these, though.

Other suggestions have already been mentioned: local shore diving, join a club, use diluted baby shampoo (or spit), get batteries and cyalume sticks (if you night dive) in bulk and not at your LDS, keep an eye on ebay for stuff you need and take care of your gear.

Take food for your post dive munchies, a thermos of soup from home is much better value than anything a cafe by the shore will offer.

As for the advanced course, I'd see if you can find local divers who are willing to dive along side the both of you that you can learn from; even just if it's a pre- and post-dive chat about the area you'll be diving in rather than as buddies. If you can get a recommendation (preferably several) about a good instructor then that's money well spent, regardless of what they call the course and what card you get.

 

[spoolin01]

We are mainly vacation divers

Don't buy the DVD!

Stay out of the LDS, except for air fills and to stay on good terms

Kona shore diving - shop for best rental deals, depending what you need (I like Big Island Divers); get the weekly rate; try the snorkel shacks if the weight rentals are too high.

Buy your own tanks, the biggest you can handle, but don't expect to get 3500 psi fills.

Buy everything second hand, except maybe the wetsuit pieces. Buy online. eBay sellers aren't as often delusional as are craigslist, but you don't get to see the stuff first, not often a problem for the hard goods or new stuff.

Buy good basic stuff, don't chase features or novelty; The useful-value-added vs price curve is pretty flat starting about right at the bottom

Get it for Xmas, or your favorite gifting occasion - your loved ones don't have to dive but they should be on first-name basis at their LDSs.

Catch local seafood

Shop around for air fill cards, tank inspections, and gear servicing. Double check your gear after service. Service whatever you can yourself. The 1st stage reg is the only thing that needs expert preventive maintenance every ... so often. Double check it afterwards.

Rinse and dry your stuff, all of it, like you paid for it yourself

Fix wetsuit damage early

Don't leave nylon, rubber, or plastic things in the sun

Buy rechargeable batteries (online or at Walmart), get a slow smart-charger, getting hard to find. Use alkalines for critical gear unless you have backup (don't use alkaline button batteries).

Buy computers, watches, etc, with user-replaceable batteries

Make your own lanyards from bungee or cord. Zip ties and rubber bands are handy too.

Buy a dive log with lots of pages and not lots of fill-in-the-blanks, or make your own.

Don't buy a dedicated UW digital camera, get inexpensive 2nd hand point and shoot where the manufacturer makes an inexpensive case (like Oly or Canon), couple with a slave strobe. No guarantee this stays inexpensive.

Stay well clear of those gorgeous balls of pointy things - they're hard on soft equipment and ER co-pays.

Ponder with the rest of us how a gas bag with shoulder straps can cost $800.

 

[kathydee]

Buy everything on your frequent flyer credit card, save 60,000 miles to head to Bali or SE Asia - getting and closing credit cards with mileage bonuses collects miles quickly-- making big purchases for friends, family, business on your credit card then collecting the cash helps! Once your in SE Asia, catch airasia.com flights like shuttles --anywhere you want to go, book early for really cheap deals!

Stay in cheap places $4-$6 per night (in Bali: Kerti in Padangbai is one, Puri Madah in Tulemben is another) and dive shore dive for no more than $7 (Tulemben)- $20 per dive, in places like bunakan and lembeh - don't hesitate to try to make deals in off season! Meals should cost no more than $1.50-$3. Dive with good shops but don't spend any more money with them.

Get away from tourist luxury & deals sold before you arrive and quickly learn the actual local cost - if you must book rooms ahead use the Lonely Planet - if solo, take motorcycle shuttles rather than private cars or better yet if you have time brave local transport. Watch how much locals spend for objects and kindly refuse to pay stupid tourist prices! Dress down and things will cost much less. Value the dollar when you leave the country - in places like bali $2.50-$3.00 is a daily salary!

Eat local cooked food and avoid tourist resturaunts where you pay 7X too much (for food that often is not as good)

Catch on-line sales for simple things that are not life support gear.

 

[Walter]

From the looks of thing's, the people you are getting advice from have a maximum of 199 dives. It would seem that if you wanted to save some money, you would not listen to a few of them

We can learn from everyone, even the newest of divers, but usually those with more experience will have better suggestions.

get yourself some further training! One trip to a chamber would cost a heck of alot more than any AOW course!!

Having a tad more than 199 dives, I will agree that AOW is cheaper than a chamber ride, but I also have to ask, so what? One has nothing to do with the other. AOW is a joke. AOW doesn't teach you how to avoid a chamber ride, that was taught in the OW class. AOW is structured to be a money maker without teaching anything of substance.

Besides, if you were to go on a trip and went out on a boat that was going to a site that was below 60', the dive op would not allow you to exit the boat for liability reason's.

There are some operators with that rule, but many others who don't play such silly games. There's nothing about AOW and 60 feet that lessen liability.

Defogger: Use baby shampoo diluted 1/3rd shampoo, 2/3rds water. Buy a bottle of baby shampoo at Costco and a cheap plastic bottle at a drug store ($1). You can defog with no tears for a lifetime for $7-$8.
While this works well, 500 PSI defog kicks the @$$ of Johnson's and other's on the market. And if used correctly, will last for quite awhile.

Use the baby shampoo full strength on a dry mask and let the shampoo dry on the mask. It kicks the butt of any commercial defog.

I'd be a little leary of anyone that tells you to skip advanced training.

Me too, but then AOW isn't advanced training. OTOH, the LA County Advanced Diver Program that runs every summer is advanced training and I highly recommend it.

I don't think any creditable diver would consider AOW a waste of your cash.

You'd be wrong. Many really experienced divers believe AOW is a joke and a waste of money.

 

[Blazinator]

Low cost LED lights are good, but low-vis experienced divers like HID's for their insane light output, but many cannot afford them ($900+ for 10 Watt, and $1400.00+ for 21 watt).

I bought the Brightstar Darkbuster 24 watt HID from http://www.scubatoys.com for less than 400 bucks. Incredible 1750 lumens output, Lithium Ion rechargeable battery, almost three hours of burn time per charge. I never lose my buddy in Lake Erie, cuz he keeps up with my beam on the wrecks, not using his little UK C8.

Not for tech divers who need the goodman handle (its a pistol grip / lantern style), but I happilly made a goodman handle for mine for hands free operation for about an hours worth of work to save over a grand compared to the 21 watt canister lights.


As for underwater cameras, look into the Olympus 720 SW. Great full featured digital camera in the under 300 dollar range, but is also guaranteed waterproof to 33 feet, without a housing. I've read reviews of diving to 60 ft with it without problems (seals just get tighter) except that push button functions are limited. Mine has been problem free for a few years now.

 

[potato cod]

You indicated that you are mainly a vacation diver. If you have flexibility in your vacation schedule, you can really save a lot of money by taking your dive vacations during the "off" or "shoulder" season.

For example, traveling even a few weeks before or after the prime christmas-new year's holiday travel season will often save you a bundle on everything from airfare, hotels, and car rental rates. The other bonus is that the dive boats will be less crowded.

With the money saved in one trip you can probably buy whatever brand-name defog you want for life (although baby shampoo works just great too!)

The advice on frequent flier mile credit cards is also good. I put all the expenses I can on a card and have been averaging 2 free flights a year, which really helps offset the cost of dive travel. Just be sure to pay off the balance every month or this could sting you, though.

 

[sanderw]

I was going to stay out of this, as I am one of those less experienced But I have enough other expensive hobbies to generalize...

First is the horrible truth. If you want to save money, stop diving. Like other expensive hobbies, it will use up whatever money you are prepared to throw at it.

If you are still determined to dive, then you can either dive so little that the expense is negligable (But what is the point then?) Or dive so much that the cost per dive comes down. Lets look at this last option.

The biggest problem is when you start out all enthusiastic, buy some gear and then loose interest. So in order to save money, we have to keep diving above all else.

Everyone says get the best gear you can afford the first time. This is good advice if you look at the long run. In the short run, however, sometimes it is better to get cheaper gear just to get out there. Cheap gear & diving is better than gear so expensive that you can't afford to dive. It also helps you to focus on solid gear with no gimmicks. If you buy solid gear with no gimmicks it will serve you for a long time and still be worth selling when you upgrade. The more gimicky you buy, the harder it is to get rid of it again. Also upgrading gear is a legitimate way of keeping up your interest. For me anyway

One thing I have missed in the advice offered is to join a dive group / club / or bunch of buddies. This needn't be expensive, but will keep up your interest and the peer pressure help you get out of bed early when you would otherwise have chickened out

Also group rates for extra training isn't to be sneezed at. Around here we can often get 50% off if you bring 4 buddies... So a little evangelizing could be money in your pocket. And it isn't difficult to enthuse about something you really like!

Don't buy on impulse. Research, research again, talk to other users, borrow / rent stuff before you buy. Trust me on this one! I am the original impulse buyer, with too much dive gear, expensive cameras, expensive HAM radios, expensive cars, you name it. This is also where your regular buddy group comes in. More gear to sample before you buy..

I purposely left training for last. Training for training's sake may be worth less than the money spent. Especially AOW. Some people teach the base minimum for AOW, some people go the extra mile, so to speak. Any training course is only as good as the instructor. By all means talk to the instructor beforehand, but try to get references from people who have trained with him / her. Some instructors are so enthusiastic that the time spent with them in the course is worth the money regardless of the qualification. And continued training keeps you enthusiastic about diving. It all helps to keep up the dive count and drive down the cost per dive!

 

[er1n99]

Thanks so much to all of you who have commented.

Some of these things we've done already. Hopefully, we've bought our second set of dive gear first, and we've cased out Home Depot to no end for zip ties.

The weights at Big 5--I hadn't thought of that, and it's a great idea. Thanks!

We are now going to give much greater thought to dive clubs/beach dives in our area.

And we're thinking more about AOW.

Thanks again, and if you have more ideas, we'd love to hear them.