What age for tech?

Hello all,
I am going out to the Philippines next year to go from TDI adv. nitrox----> adv. trimix
what is the general consensus on minimum age to be before embarking on these type of courses? (as well as the amount of experience)

Cheers,
Ben

I think it would difficult to find a dive shop that would take a minor out on technical dives. So I would say that, given the inherent risks involved in technical diving, the minimum age would be the age of consent (18 years old).

I was always told that you should have at least 100 dives before embarking on technical diving diving. It's not so much the number of dives, but the experience and your ability to maintain buoyancy control while multitasking. So I would say that 100 dives is a good number. The time span is important, too. I would say that 100 dives in 5 years is not enough. A tech diver should be getting at least 100 dives a year to maintain proficiency.

Personally, I waited until I was diving frequently enough that I was able to get 100 dives in one year. That's when I started tech diving.

I agree with Harry and would add that those 100 dives should include a fair portion of deep, low vis, cold(er), and perhaps current. 100 dives in a 40 foot deep quarry or on a 50 foot reef is not enough.

I'm not sure it's really an age thing, more an experience thing, though I think most agencies require at least 18. Instead of starting out with the intention of going straight through to trimix why not just spend time going through adv nitrox, then gain experience diving with a single stage intitally with a single cylinder then to twins and a single stage. At the same time start doing some background reading on deco theories/dive planning etc. Once you have got to the point where you can happily do shut down drills/mask on/off/switching stages/dsmb deployment on the seabed, midwater, just below the surface in calm conditions, cold, surge/swell, zero vis -whilst still holding your position without varying it - then think about continuing on to trimix if you still want to. Some folk find that having to plan a dive properly combined with the extra kit takes the fun out of it and don't carry on.
My daughter is now 18, and probably at the point now where she needs to change over to twins to progress as a single cylinder is starting to limit her - she is probably only now at the point where she really understands the full implications of having no clear surface be it physical or deco

Regardless of certification minimums, I would recommend that the diver first reach the age of majority for the country where the training is to take place. I first started diving heliox with the Navy at 19, so I'm the last guy to throw stones at young divers.

I agree that it has more to do with experience than it does age. However given the lower training standards that exist today, I would recommend a minimum prerequisite of 200 dives. Even then, the diver has to be exposed to a number of conditions and environments (as previously outlined by others).

18 yrs old. 100 dives with at least 50 below 60 ft. Minimum certifiction level PADI Rescue Diver or equivalent. Should be SMB deployment proficient, drysuit specialty and wreck and/or cavern specialties would be good too.

thanks to everyone that replied some good stuff in there
so basically i would say 100+ dives i have (in the past year)
done a few dives to 45m+
got deep and nitrox specs but no drysuit spec but ill be having to use one before i go to the philippines as ill be doing some UK diving
from what you guys have said ill do all my training but do it all over the course of quite a while to get used to each new stage.
thanks again,
Ben

Ben,

Thank you for posting. That's what we're here for!

bengregson:

I am going out to the Philippines next year to go from TDI adv. nitrox----> adv. trimix

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That's quite a jump in courses there. How long are you taking to do these?

Advanced Trimix is expedition level technical diving - it may "qualify" you to do 100m+ dives, but it will take years of experience before you'd be able to do those safely.

Even from limited technical diving experience to Extended Range is a big jump. 55m dives are not to be underrated - it's easy to get down to 55m, it's hard to come back up (safely) when something brown and sticky has hit the fan.

Did you mean TDI Normoxic Trimix, not Advanced Trimix?

Personally, if you've found an instructor who will let you do the required courses back to back without gaining experience inbetween - then I'd find another instructor. After all, you are talking about:

TDI Advanced Nitrox
TDI Decompression Procedures (45m limit)
TDI Extended Range (55m deep air limit) or Normoxic Trimix (60m limit)
and finally TDI Advanced Nitrox (100m limit)

If you walk away thinking that you're ready to do the dives that you are (on paper) qualified to do.... that's a scary thought.

AndyNZ:

TDI Advanced Nitrox
TDI Decompression Procedures (45m limit)
TDI Extended Range (55m deep air limit) or Normoxic Trimix (60m limit)
and finally TDI Advanced Nitrox (100m limit)

If you walk away thinking that you're ready to do the dives that you are (on paper) qualified to do.... that's a scary thought.

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Hi Andy,

First I can't say that I'm aware of TDI training policies; but many of the mixed gas programs are depth restricted because of the mixture used. If a diver is trained to understand mixed gases and their boundaries and properties, I cannot help but wonder about the validity of breaking it down like some agencies do.

Air, argox, nitrox, oxygen, trimix, heliox, hydrox, hydreliox, neox, neoquad, I know I've missed some, but the diver just breaths, the main trick is in the decompression and dive planning.

What is the real difference to the diver by using a Trimix 20/35 to 200 ft, Trimix 10/40 to 300 ft or Trimix 5 in Helium to 1500 feet? Is a whole course necessary to teach someone to use a traveler? I don't get it.

The Navy has been using various mixed gases since 1925. The diver doesn't take a course for each mixture. By and large, the mixture doesn't affect diver training much at all. If you are trained to dive deep, the right mixture is required, but you just follow the play book for that mixture. It's not brain science.

The commercial world has followed the Navy's example over the years. Why should recreational diving be different? Forgive me, but the recreational training agencies should focus more attention on diver physical fitness and O2 tolerance for those divers that want to dive deep on mixed gas.