to log or not to log....

[k ellis]

I log most all of mine but I have many many dives that were short dives like a 5 minute dive that did not make it in the log. One thing I think is very important about logs though is in an emergency it can kind of give details to investigators about your experience. One case was a diver who passed away on the vandenberg.

Even though I have not kept up with the details nor want to start any kind of debate one thing that comes to mind was that the investigation included exactly how much experience he had with his particular equipment, who trained him in his training dives and the conditions of the training dive vs the one he passed on.

A log is good for so many reasons it just makes good sense to keep it. As above posters posted if you dive with a drysuit and miss diving for a whole year then go back you can eliminate alot of guess work trying to find out what weight to use.

and last but not least if you do have a goal to reach such as dive master msdt and other certs then yes it will serve as proof of the dives!

 

[tfsails]

I'm suffering from saltwater withdrawal. I'm also at 198 dives. I'm not looking to get any more certs, so I'm not going to log another dive until I can be assured my official 200th dive is somewhere nice and sweet and salty! Nothing against our local quarry, but my 200th will not be logged there. Truth be known, I probably have about 220 dives, but who's counting???

 

[Protist]

60 for Divemaster, 50 for Master Scuba Diver. I log every dive, including shallow, solo ones. If it's over 15 feet and 20 minutes and I'm with a buddy I make sure to get him to sign. I want to have as many "official" ones as possible for training requirements. Otherwise, it's just a handy journal.

Thank-you for the correction :sigh_2:

 

[diddydidit]

I log most dives, but I only log depth ,date, location and time. I rarely write any notes and rarely have a buddy sign it

 

[rongoodman]

I download and label dives from my Sensus Ultra after trips, and look back at the profiles and temps from time to time. Outside of PADI classes, I've never asked for or seen anyone else ask for a signature in a log book.

 

[diver 85]

Depends upon how good a memory you have----now that I'm getting old(er), I ALWAYS forget to....

 

[N2DeepInAz]

how many of you log every dive? why do it? im not saying not to do it, im asking why? if to seek further training, do the instructors look at your booklet? or do they go off what you tell them?

or is it more like a journal?

im new at this and just trying to understand.

Ryco,

As for whether to log the dive or not. For me, personally it depends on the type of dive and is based on these criteria for me. One, was the dive longer than 15-20 minutes. Two, was the time at depth below 20ft. I've heard the general rule is 20 minutes long and down 20ft to call it a dive. Those are the guidelines I use to define what a dive is. There really is no hard definition of what a dive truly is based on time/depth.

During my rescue diver and later divemaster training, my instructor did in fact verify that I had the required amount of dives to complete the training and certifications by reviewing my logbooks. Some will go off what you tell them, others will actually verify. It just depends on the instructor. I've seen it both ways.

As for the why to log dives and their content. I tend to jot down details or notes about things I saw or didn't see during a dive as well as what exposure suit and weight combos I'm diving with. It also builds my familiarity with dive sites. During my first 80 dives, I've probably changed exposure suits 4 times over different seasons and water temps as well as different types of tanks (AL80 vs, steel 100), which then leads to changes in the amount of weight required to wear for each dive. I'll note these things for each dive and occasionally look back on it just to verify my configuration before getting in the water next time. There's no way I could possibly remember all the combinations of weight/suit/tank that I could wear on any given day.

So to me, it is truly a logbook with brief notes to help me be a more consistent diver. I hope this helps. Hope to see you out on the boat again soon.

 

[TMHeimer]

I download and label dives from my Sensus Ultra after trips, and look back at the profiles and temps from time to time. Outside of PADI classes, I've never asked for or seen anyone else ask for a signature in a log book.

Come to think of it, I don't think anyone's ever asked me to sign one either. Why do you suppose that is? I assume if dive entries aren't signed they probably don't count toward the required number for a course. How do people seem to obtain higher certifications? I know in my case, for Rescue, MSD and so far for DM I've had 3 different Instructors at 2 different shops who just trusted me that I had the required number of dives.

 

[Saltwater Junky]

Use it mostly to log dives for upcoming cert's and as a detailed journal.

 

[diverrex]

I download my computer and only keep a computer log. I have zero interest in reading old log entries, at most I only want to know total dives, dives over 100 fsw and maybe keep track of the number of dives by location. I dive in 3 different wetsuit configurations and I remember each time how much weight I need for each, so I'm never quite sure why others need a log for that. I've never had anyone ask me for my log, diving in over 10 different locations with maybe 20 different charters.