Want to explore deep wrecks? Explore underwater caves? Stay longer at depth? In the event you answer yes to your of these questions, then technical dive training is what you need.

Unlike recreational sport diving which will keep you within no-decompression limits plus a depth limit of 130 feet, technical diving lets us go deeper and/or stay longer at depth with proper knowledge, training, and experience.

Is that this type of diving safe? As with any type of diving, technical diving has risks. To reduce the risks we prepare our gear thoroughly, plan extensively, and employ our skills frequently.

Dive gear because of this type of diving is a bit different than recreational gear. Divers wear either metal or aluminum back plates having a continuous webbing harness to relieve failure points like buckles. The webbing has stainless d-rings that can be positioned in the precise required area it really is needed to secure our gear. Sandwiched involving the back plate and tanks is often a back buoyancy device, a.k.a. wing, which are designed to be used in partnership with twin cylinders. The tanks are twinned together with a manifold system so divers can breathe from both tanks as well or isolate a problem with the system.

Redundancy is a key aspect to technical diving: divers carry a spare masks, two 1st stages, and a couple adjustable 2nd stages on our tanks, two bottom timers, as well as other essential gear to the dive. In addition to carrying the twin tanks on our backs, a diver may have one or more additional tanks with decompression gases including 50% and/or 100% oxygen.

Technical Diving International (TDI) is one of the forefathers of technical diving. The courses supplied by TDI have developed over the years from experiences in technical diving. Each course builds upon the opposite, giving the diver knowledge and experience prior to continue on to the next level. Getting the proper training for technical diving is crucial for safe diving.

The first level of technical diving is “Intro to Tech Diving”. Within this course, the student will discover how to assemble and prep their gear, emergency procedures, trim (horizontal) position in the water, situation awareness, fin kicks (modified frog, backwards, modified flutter, helicopter), surface marker buoy (SMB) deployment, and dive about to name a few. After the student completes and builds experience because of this course, he/she may continue onto Advanced Nitrox Course and Decompression Procedures Course.

While technical diving is not for everyone, divers that want to venture deeper, longer, or want to penetrate a wreck or cave, may want to consider getting properly trained before attempting this sort of diving.