"Swim-through" okay for open water divers?

[brsnow]

I love swim throughs but you need to be careful around other divers. I had a very serious issue from sloppy divers in front of me. I have since learned and do things differently. Ultimately my fault, and lesson learned.

 

[Tassi Devil Diver]

What would be rating if this swim through, our local cathedral sea cave system, a video by the local dive charter operator?

 

[SlugLife]

SB Faithful,

A currently-running SB thread has diverted (temporarily?) into posts about swim-throughs. I am wondering if you feel it is okay for an open water-level (recreational) scuba diver to travel through a "swim-through." Ever? Only under certain circumstances? Other considerations?

My personal opinion? Especially regarding new, inexperienced, or out-of-practice open water divers, I personally think that swim-throughs are NOT appropriate, and should be avoided/declined/eschewed, for open water divers.

We all learned that being able to make a direct, immediate ascent from depth to the surface at any point in the dive is an imperative for safe open water diving. So, there's that.

A bit deeper: Can a diver share air while inside the swim-through if necessary? If the diver is delayed (say, by snagged kit, or delayed diver traffic in front of him/her, etc.), can he/she survive the delay? Can a diver assist or rescue a dive buddy while inside a swim-through? More.

My college junior daughter was certified last spring. As she was preparing to leave for her open water check-out, and afterward for her dive trip to Roatan, I cautioned her: ABSOLUTELY NO SWIM-THROUGHS! Of course, I had the gear (e.g., long regulator hoses, redundant stuff, etc.) and knowledge (e.g., of gas planning and protocols for diving in overhead environments) to explain why.

I am looking forward to your opinions.

rx7diver

Disclaimer: I'm not an instructor.

How large/small/tight of a swim-through? How long of a swim-through? Is the diver supervised?

Generally speaking, I'd say any overhead is a bad idea. One's perception of space as a scuba-diver (in-part due to refraction) is heavily thrown off. If your regulators smash into the overhead, or you get caught on something, that can be a really bad day, given the entanglement or issue will be behind you.

Even with large open swim throughs, you still have something between you and the surface.

 

[brsnow]

I will add it is important to dive with people you trust when doing more complex dives. In the event I referenced earlier my dive buddy who I went in before but come out after was about to come back in to look for me because he could tell I wasn’t with the group as he exited,

 

[Jcp2]

Is the Duane an ok swim though? What about the Okinawa? That airplane in the quarry? The school bus?

 

[rgkv]

What would the qualification be?

I earlier mentioned my discussion with PADI. It might be interesting to hear what started it.

I was on a dive boat doing a wreck dive in South Florida, and the procedure there was for the DM (who in this case was a technical instructor I knew) to dive down to tie a mooring line to the wreck so divers could descend and ascend on it. When he got back on the boat after setting the line, he gave a textbook perfect dive briefing for the customers. He said that the upper levels of the HUGE wreck had interesting swim-throughs, like the wheelhouse, for those had the proper qualifications.

I called him over and quietly asked him what those proper qualifications might be. He laughed. Of course he couldn't name them. There aren't any. Can anyone in this thread name the certification that will enable you to swim from one side of the wheelhouse to the other? Do you need cave diving ceritification for that?

By saying divers should have the proper qualifications, even though he knew they didn't exist, he was (hopefully) taking the responsibility for any accidents away from the dive operator and leaving it on the diver. He never said it was OK for unqualified divers to make those entries; if they did it, it was on them.

Maybe I used the wrong word, Certified instead of qualified.. being an OPEN WATER DIVER I thought I was not trained for overhead obstruction..

 

[boulderjohn]

Maybe I used the wrong word, Certified instead of qualified.. being an OPEN WATER DIVER I thought I was not trained for overhead obstruction..

OK, then. What would the cetification be that you would need?

 

[jadairiii]

OK, then. What would the certification be that you would need?

And now you've kicked the hornets nest.

There are lots of "certification cards" out there that would reflect a divers "ability" to conduct a dive in an overhead environment, but was that diver properly instructed?

You've been to Ginnie Springs..............

 

[boulderjohn]

There are lots of "certification cards" out there that would reflect a divers "ability" to conduct a dive in an overhead environment,

Is there a certification for diving a simple (say 10') swim-through? If a vacation diver wants to take 15 seconds to go from one side of the wheelhouse to the other, is a cave diving certification and cave diving gear necessary?

 

[Eric802]

Trying to make this a bright-line "yes it's fine", or "no it's not", is impossible. For simple swim throughs (coral arches, open and unobstructed wheelhouses on artificial reefs, etc) I think the only skill one needs is the ability to control buoyancy. If you're not bouncing off the sand or crashing into the overhead, you should be fine. If it involves anything more complex, like obstructions or the possibility of limited visibility, that's a different story.

The term "swim through" is vague, undefined, and covers a lot of territory. Some that would be fine under some conditions are probably off-limits under others - a wheelhouse on a boat that's upright in 50 feet of water is different than one on it's side in 100 feet. Asking a broad question like "are they okay for open water divers" makes for interesting discussion to a point, but without consensus on what a swim-through is (and more importantly, isn't) there's never going to be an answer.