Maximum depth for Open Water diver

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The problem with going below 60 feet with an Open Water Diver card and limited experience -- task overloading plus lack of familiarity with the basics of scuba. If you are new to the sport it's easier to sort things out within a reasonable distance of the surface, say 20 to 40 feet.

On the other hand, reread the section in your scuba book on the danger of lung expansion injury. This is always a concern, but it really kicks in during the top 33 feet (1 ATM to 2 ATM) so shallow water diving has its own hazards.

Bottom line: in a worst-case scenario, it's easier for a dive buddy to do a rescue from a shallow dive. It's easier to do self-rescue. Take your time and get your skills. After all, who rescues the divemaster?
 
Having only started diving this summer, one reason affecting my decision to take the AOW the same season was instructor(s) telling that where I to go on holiday I might encounter a lot of pressure to pay extra fees for guys who so-to-say will be my guides but often end up just limiting my dive (time, pleasure-wise). And that just because I don’t have the damn AOW card. How common is it that you need this card in rec’ish locations?

I was kind of puzzled since I had been thinking that it would be great to get a guide. After little more preview, my childish world was crushed. So, I realized that I’d like to have the option to pay the DM in new locations if there really was something particular I needed him/her for (maybe for the first dive, drift etc) but it might be way more fun to have the freedom to come and go as I please and have it as an option vs requirement.

Having been trained in cold murkies and then expecting to pay several hundred bucks more a holiday to go dive to 60-80f range (eg because that’s where the real stuff is) just because lacking the card does not appeal. I’d happily pay for learning about local specialties but not day-in, day-out just because I am 10 feet deeper that I have been for 25 times (and now in warm water, with more than 10-15f viz and way less gear).

And hey, paying $250 for AOW here doesn’t sound that bad. That price includes all written material and 5 boat dives. I’d pay nearly that to go out on a charter anyway! So, from this whining a question emerges – is this bleak picture I was painted about a typical DM truthful? Are they there to take your money or really guide the dives for us lesser divers when experience is used as a criteria for needing one? I know this is a bit off topic already…

Another one who has to apologize for being an AOW under 50 dives soon….
 
Trisha:
The problem with going below 60 feet with an Open Water Diver card and limited experience -- task overloading plus lack of familiarity with the basics of scuba. If you are new to the sport it's easier to sort things out within a reasonable distance of the surface, say 20 to 40 feet.

When you got your drivers license did you only drive 35 miles per hour? How much task overloading was there on the expressway at 70 miles per hour. I bet more than scuba diving below 60 feet.
 
And hey, paying $250 for AOW here doesn’t sound that bad. That price includes all written material and 5 boat dives. I’d pay nearly that to go out on a charter anyway! So, from this whining a question emerges – is this bleak picture I was painted about a typical DM truthful? Are they there to take your money or really guide the dives for us lesser divers when experience is used as a criteria for needing one? I know this is a bit off topic already…

I did my AOW in Bonaire for $130. It was less because four out of the five dives were shore dives. :)

As for using a DM, it really depends on the particular DM. If they have their head in the game it can be well worth the money because in addition to them helping you deal with new situations they are usually very familiar with the dive site and can point out things that you otherwise would have missed.

Btw,

Another one who has to apologize for being an AOW under 50 dives soon….

If you earn the ticket by demonstrating the skills then you have nothing to apologize for. Some people just have an ego that makes them look (and talk) down to others that they feel didn't do it the "right way", i.e. their way. That's their problem, not yours.
 
Someone once responded in a thread similar to this, "The question is not how deep one can dive, it's a question of from what depth can one return."

the K
 
AOW or not, It's not a bad idea to do some dives with someone who knows the conditions when diving in a new area. They'll know where the current is, and how to deal with it and where the cool stuff lives.

Dive time is typically limited by the biggest hoover in the group, and usually not by the DM, although this is something you should ask up front.

With an AL 80, someone will usually hit their turn around pressure after about 30 minutes, then decide it's time to start heading towards the surface when they run out of air 20 minutes later. :cool:

Terry

piikki:
Having only started diving this summer, one reason affecting my decision to take the AOW the same season was instructor(s) telling that where I to go on holiday I might encounter a lot of pressure to pay extra fees for guys who so-to-say will be my guides but often end up just limiting my dive (time, pleasure-wise). And that just because I don’t have the damn AOW card. How common is it that you need this card in rec’ish locations?

Having been trained in cold murkies and then expecting to pay several hundred bucks more a holiday to go dive to 60-80f range (eg because that’s where the real stuff is) just because lacking the card does not appeal. I’d happily pay for learning about local specialties but not day-in, day-out just because I am 10 feet deeper that I have been for 25 times (and now in warm water, with more than 10-15f viz and way less gear).
 
howarde:
Do you know where to make your deco stops if you go deeper than 130'?
.

I'm afraid I don't understand this question! What does the depth of 130+ feet have to do with Deco?
 
Dragon2115:
Actually... the recommended depth limits for PADI are 60 fsw for OW, 100 fsw for AOW, and 130 fsw with Deep Diver specialty.

To clarify, the key word in this statement is recommended. These are not hard limits made by PADI but recommedations only.

No one is going to cut your card up if your certified OW and you dive to 61'. In the end, how deep you dive depends largely on your personal skill & comfort level with the environment you diving in.

Diving to 60' in 38 degree water with 5' of vis is a much different thing than diving to 130' in 80 degree water with 50' of vis. So, with the diversity of conditions & skill levels out there, its impossible to set realistic hard limits.

In the end, dive depth should be determined by each individual or buddy teams judgement and common sense. Don't worry about recommended limits. Just don't dive beyond your own skill set and comfort level.
 
awap:
I'm afraid I don't understand this question! What does the depth of 130+ feet have to do with Deco?

130' (approx) is the deepest you can go on air without incurring a decompression obligation.

Terry
 
Web Monkey:
130' (approx) is the deepest you can go on air without incurring a decompression obligation.

Terry

I've been to 140 without deco obligation & dove with a diver who went to 150 with no deco obligation (both planned no-deco dives). My tables say if I start clean, I can go to at least 160 with no deco obligation. Times at depth are, of course, somewhat short.
 
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