Has it been a while since you scuba dived? If you’re booking an enthralling Red Sea scuba dive, the dive center would definitely want to know the last time you dived.
All alarms go off if it’s been more than one year and you don’t have enough diving experience on top of that. Your dive center might ask you to take a dive refresher course, and we’re here to help you with that.
Bookmark this scuba refresher checklist for your next excursion:
Scuba Refresher Checklist to Keep You Safe
Here’s how you can get back into diving safely:
Scuba Refresher Course Requirements
If you’re taking the refresher course, you must familiarize yourself with its requirements. The first and foremost requirement is fitness since you’ll be lugging around and a heavy tank and other scuba gear. The second requirement is to be able to equalize your ears successfully with any damage.. See an ear doctor if you have troubles. You can’t dive if you can’t equalize. Medical requirements include health declarations to assure that you don’t have chronic illnesses. Finally, you must be of age 10 and over with at least four training dives under your belt. An open water diver course will make the cut.
Mandatory Tips
A scuba diver must have multiple skills, but the following are fundamental skills:
Gear check is important. Ensure that your regulators, BCD and SPG are working fine and your straps are fastened tightly.
Buddy check is necessary. Make sure that your scuba buddy’s BCD inflates and weights and regulators are working. Check whether their air is on because many experienced divers also often forget to turn the air on before diving in.
Holding Breath
Don’t. You shouldn’t hold your breath when ascending. Holding your breath while ascending can cause an air embolism. But worse, this can cause and air gas embolism which can lead to a heart attack, stroke, seizures and convulsion and also death.
Hand Signals
Diving signals is an amazing skill, but it can be overwhelming. The scuba refresher course teaches you the basics again, including “down,” “okay,” and “not okay” signals. You will also learn to signal the amount of air left in your tank.
Share Air
Another refresher lesson involves sharing air with a scuba buddy. This helps during diving emergencies.
Mask Clearing
A quick refresher on mask clearing is necessary. Take a pool session to get comfortable swimming with a flooded mask. Learning the basics of clearing your mask underwater can make your diving experience much more enjoyable.
Safety Stops
Three minutes at five meters is the must-know safety stop for recreational divers. If you don’t have a dive computer, you will be relying on your dive guide to keep you at the right level for the right amount of time.
Scuba Refresher Gear
If you can afford your own equipment, you should have basic equipment such as fins, dive masks, wet suits, and dive computers. This also shows that you’re familiar with diving and can focus on having a fun dive. If not, be sure the dive center has equipment that is regularly maintained, in good condition, and fits you well.
This list isn’t exhaustive. You should take a scuba refresher course to relearn all the basic skills and fundamentals of scuba diving. A good option is to begin online by doing the PADI Reactivate course. Deep Blue Dive Center also offers scuba refresher and PADI dive courses to increase your confidence. Contact us now!
