What is considered minimum eqiupment for diving.

[Colliam7]

Hawkwood I will be in Dominican, Punta Cana. As I mentioned I should have worded my question better I will be using the Dive centre basic equipment but was curious as to what I may require optionally. Most of my diving will be vacation type diving with hopefully some cold water diving around Canada/US as well to start off with.

With that clarification, I can tell you what I would wear / take when diving the Caribbean, that I would not plan to rent. I prefer my own mask, fins, and exposure suit. I usually wear a full exposure suit (1 mm or 3mm), even in warm waters, simply to avoid problems from inadvertent contact with coral. I consider a light to be minimum equipment, in your case probably a flashlight-style LED light, to look into the nooks and crannies where marine life might be during the day, or for night diving. I consider a nitrox capable computer to be minimum equipment for multiple day diving. I carry a mirror and a whistle in my wetsuit pocket. And, I wear a pair of EMT shears as my cutting device. Beyond that, I don't NEED anything else. Of course, that doesn't mean I don't HAVE (and even take) a lot of other stuff (BCDs, regulators, compasses, computers, SMBs, video camera, etc.). Rather, that is what I consider to be minimum for vacation diving.

 

[DaleC]

Hum... I'm quite surprised by the lack of necessity some feel for a cutting tool. While perhaps somewhat regionally sensitive I personally wouldn't dive without one. I do own a nice collection of big knives but for real safety I have a blunt nose saw back blade and a pair of what are commonly called EMT shears (which I consider the best overall cutting tool (about $10). Around here people fish for salmon and sturgeon and it is very hard to nibble through that sort of net or line under water.

 

[Hawkwood]

DaleC,

You might not agree with my assessment, but where Barry_Calgary is going, the knife is not really a necessity. As a vacation diver, there will be a number of places where he will be going where he will not be allowed to carry a knife even if he brought one. Shears would be different though!

Diving locally or on the Coast? That is a different kettle of fish.

 

[Saxatilis]

I have no idea about where you are vacationing but if you are thinking about diving USA/Canada then you may eventually want to get your own exposure gear. Rental gear will do ok if you only dive locally infrequently. Any more than that and you will probably want to get your own.

 

[fjpatrum]

You could start a new club- hobo divers.......use a garbage can and some bricks for a tank' just got to come back to the can for a breath!

Naw, just put a spicket on the outside of the can and attach a garden hose... should be good enough, right?

 

[Wolfie]

ask Alex777 what you really need!
Tropical Minimalist Diving

 

[XS-NRG]

Mask, snorkel, fins and boots (if you use open back fins). Another good investment is a computer. Those are the personal type things where "fit" really matters. Most dive shops will have a myriad of wetsuits so "fit" in that department usually isn't an issue nor is a BCD. Your question really depends on how much diving you see yourself doing. If you go once a year just on holidays then you probably aren't going to want to lug around a separate suitcase just full of dive gear. You'll always be able to rent. If you have a lake, river, quarry nearby or live on the ocean and plan to really get into the sport then as Ron said get the BCD and regs etc but do so at your own pace. You don't need to rush out and buy everything all at once if you don't want. Ultimately, if you're serious, buy all the gear and go have some fun. I plan on getting everything and when I want to dive I can pay $6 to have my tank filled and that's all it costs

 

[bracko]

Punta Cana is ocean diving yes?

it's been said, but i think emphasis should be put on safety equipment.

-SMB with a reel or permanently attached 10m of cord - learn how to deploy it as well... you won't look like an idiot if you ask the Dive Leader if you can deploy it the first few times to get the hang of it, when you really need to deploy it you want to be able to do it without increasing your stress level. This can act as a surface flotation device if needed as well... i can't personally stress the importance of having one, even if people disagree with me.
-small LED torch (make sure it's a diving one, not a water resistant one!)
-surface whistle and mirror
-under-water noise making device... tank rattle, banger... it doesn't matter what just something that will make noise [only!] when you need it to. this can also be done by tapping your knife on your tank if you have one.

dive computers are useful, but if you're having toured dives then hiring one (to make sure the dive leader isn't sending you into deco) isn't a bad idea.

nice to have is exposure suits. If I'm diving in warm water i like to wear as little neoprene as possible, boardies and 1mm L/S rash vest, i use and love sharkskin branded stuff. if there are stingers around a 1 or 3mm full length is optimum.

other than that, just fins, boots, mask, snorkel. if you're a vacation diver hiring the BCD and regs is probably fine.

 

[DaleC]

DaleC,

You might not agree with my assessment, but where Barry_Calgary is going, the knife is not really a necessity. As a vacation diver, there will be a number of places where he will be going where he will not be allowed to carry a knife even if he brought one. Shears would be different though!

Diving locally or on the Coast? That is a different kettle of fish.

I have heard of this but I was focusing on this sentence "Most of my diving will be vacation type diving with hopefully some cold water diving around Canada/US as well to start off with."

Personally, I think occasional vacation diving is the most dangerous form of recreational diving there is because of the lapse of time between exposures and subsequent skills degradation. While the focus may be on this piece of equipment or that I think the greatest investment would be to find a club or group of local divers and to get wet on a regular basis to build and maintain what one has in the way of skill and equipment familiarity.

 

[bracko]

there's no point diving in areas if you don't enjoy it.

that's the whole point of the sport.

also... it could be said for any sport that is dangerous and seasonal/vacation based, e.g. skiing or sailing