The Planning Necessary for Solo Dives

[Jax]

What I am looking for is your typical pre-dive planning. What areas do you pay special attention to when planning your solo dives? I will be diving in Diego Garcia, BIOT, in the Indian Ocean. They have started allowing diving on the island again. I may not be allowed to solo. I haven't found this out yet, but even if there is no solo diving allowed, the planning that goes into the solo diving can be helpful.

I am familiar with the planning of a regular buddy dive, so I am interested in any differences that people feel are necessary when doing solo, besides making sure that somebody on land knows about the dive, where it is happening, how long the dive is, etc. Are there any special details you pay attention to concerning gear? What about the air reserve? Do you limit your depth, based on being solo?

Let me know your thoughts on the planning requirements you use.

WCJ, there is a solo diver course made to help you answer these questions. International Training :: Get Certified :: Solo Diver Course :: English

The course guides you through the thought process of diving alone, and makes recommendations to consider in diving alone. Some Ops won't let you dive alone unless you have a cert card.

SDI will not issue a cert unless you have over 100 dives.

 

[idocsteve]

Solo diving is something like pornography; you will know when you are ready.

How do you know when you're ready for pornography?

I agree, it can be a lot of fun but what precautions do you take with porn?

Lock the door and turn up the music so you don't get caught when you're enjoying it Solo.

 

[goonsquad]

How do you know when you're ready for pornography?



Lock the door and turn up the music so you don't get caught when you're enjoying it Solo.

I'll dive that plan from now on!

 

[pwr2al4]

I like to plan out all my dives the right way every time, I usually use it as a fun way to pass the time out and to make sure im settled if something is out of the ordinary with the dive, or the DM or my buddy whatever.

So for me solo is much the same. The big changes I make is I dont ever rush my prep, cause theres obvioulsy no need to. I make sure to do a really thorough gear check, both for function and for the fact that I actually rememberd to grab it, this is generally my line cutting stuff and my nighttime setup. I always carry 3 cutting tools and make sure they are positioned such that I can reach one no matter how bad I might get tangled. (knife inner ankle, trauma shears drysuit pocket, knife bc.

Even if its a simple beach dive I always carry a couple extra signaling devices, usually a sausage clipped tight to my bp/w, a sdu/5 strobe ziptied to my bc, and a signal mirror. the reason for this is sometimes getting attention isnt because your lost or unable to make it back but it could be that there is a medical issue of some kind etc.

I run through my BWRAF 'pre-flight' I slate my plan and keep it handy.

And finally lately ive been getting a little antsy about this whole controversy about what to fill my pony with when diving 38%, my main concern is entanglements, a simple malfunction would be a nonissue cause I could just ascend, but an entanglement could bump my bottom time over the limit if switching to air, so I keep a chart of my air time on my slate as well just for a rough estimate/peace of mind.

 

[sylpha]

i totally agree that solo diving kitting up should be exactly the same as buddy diving. if you are unsure of your kit then you are adding risk and to change your kit for a different situation means that in an emergency your instinct is not your asset.

what i would say is that in all situations you should develop a routine and if anyone tries to 'help' which varies that routine you should explain that you like to do things your way and if you have to start again it will only slow you down.

once you have kitted up & checked your gas is on, whips are working etc. start from the beginning again just touching your kit to check you have done it (just how many divers have you seen who have forgotten their weight belts?), you can replace this by a buddy check if you are not on your own, but do it your way, get comfortable with it and don't let anyone confuse you the only 'right' way is the way which suits you.

 

[okamiotoko2004]

I have solo dove numerous times and it is a great experience. But I would seriously heed the cautions posted here. I did not start solo diving until I had over 300 dives and I really only dove sites that I knew and had dove with buddies on numerous occassions. I kept my dives simple, dove with a spare air, let someone know where I was diving and how long, and what to do if I didn't check in.
I too am in Diego Garcia and the lure of the water is strong here and I miss diving. Seeing the ocean here and all the potential of the reefs is killing me. But I would not recoomend solo diving here. These waters are not well known to divers and really only dived by Navy divers and a few other divers here on the island. The only place we are allowed to dive is in the lagoon and right now is pretty murked out by the sand being stirred up by the surf. You may be comfortable in the water but as you have said you have not dived in a couple of years, getting in the water and solo diving could have grave consuquences here. Vis is a major issue right now and you could get lost. Plan and be ready, have a compass and stick to a dive plan that is very simple. Know what to do it you do get lost. I would stop by the marina and get a dive flag, yes they sell them there. I would also let someone know where you are diving, how long you plan on being down, and what to do if you dont come up as planned. There are rescue divers on the island but they may be working and already underwater as part of their military duties. Another thing to consider is gear. Do you have your own gear? When was it serviced? If not where will you get gear? Are you familiar with borrowed gear? Getting in the water solo to figrue out gear is not advisable. Do you know the currents and other local hazards here?
Basically I would not solo dive here, it is just too much of a risk here in DGAR. I would try and find a dive buddy and dive with them. Or take some EML, get to Singapore and from there take a dive vacation in the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. From SG you are close to some of the worlds best diving. I would love to get in the water but my command has made diving off limits.

 

[KP3S]

This is what I do evey time I go Solo diving. This is my Pre-Diving Plan: (48~96 hours Prior)
Time to complete tasks about 2-3 hours
(Take your time check and Re-Check everything your life depend of these checks)

1- Check Weather/Road Conditions to and from Dive Site.
2- Contact LDS closest to Dive Site and Ask for sea conditions, Ask Operating times for refills.
3- Check All Gear: Mask, Snorkel, Visual inspection of All tanks, O-rings & Pressure, Regulators/Octopus under pressure, Dive Computer & battery.
4- Check Route to and from Dive Site/LDS.
5- Make a list of Name/Phone numbers to notify in case of an Emergency and give a copy to LDS and keep a copy in your log book.
6- Re-Check Weather/Road Conditions to and from Dive Site.
7- Plan your Dive Profile (This is where you will spend most of your time, I do two plans for two different sites if primary is not available)

(24 hours Prior)
1- Check Weather/Road Conditions to and from Dive Site.
2- Pack essentials: First Aid Kit, O2 Tank, Water, Snacks, towels, sunblock, dry clothes, ice chest.
3- Pack Dive bag: Wet suit, boots, gloves, hood, mask, snorkel, fins, buoy, spare O-rings, tools, Intova IC-12, ISS-4000 Strobe, Dive Computer, Spare batteries, first aid kit, Money, C-Card and Last your Log Book so it could be on top of the dive bag with C-Card/Money inside.
4- Check All Fluids, Horn, Lights, Brakes, Wiper Blades, Turn/Emergency Lights, Head/Parking Lights on vehicle. (Do not want the Police to ruin your dive with a Safety Fine.)
5- Pack everything on Vehicle the night before 2 hours after Sunset, your vehicle should be cool by then.
6- Fill up your vehicle with fuel.
7- Re-Check Weather/Road Conditions to and from Dive Site before going to bed to get a good night sleep.

Dive Date
1- Re-Check Weather/Road Conditions to and from Dive Site before getting on the road.
2- Eat a good healthy Breakfast, high on Calories. (Do Not worry you will burn them during the dive)
3- Take your time driving to LDS/Dive Site. (Do not get a speeding ticket!)
4- Stop and get an ice bag for your Ice Chest with water, juice (No sodas, they make you more thirsty)
5- First stop should be LDS, let them know where you are going to be and that you will call them after you get out of the water, give them the Emergency number list.
6- Arrive at Dive Site, Fill Log Book, Gear up, Re-check everything, no air leaks, get in the water and check for bubbles from your gear (a small mirror can help to check for air bubbles on 1st. Stage regulator)
7- Dive, Dive, Dive.

Post Dive
1- Get out of water and as soon as you get your gear off call the LDS and let them know you are OK.
2- Drink water and hydrate yourself, eat a snack and fill log book.
3- Drive to LDS and fill tank for 2nd dive if necessary, then start again on #6 from the Dive Date section.

 

[VooDooGasMan]

As long as you have air in your tank, a knife and a camera or video, you'll be fine.

Air so you can breathe.

Knife for sea creatures attacking you.

Take pics or vid so if in the event you should die while solo diving, it can be discussed here on SB with better information on what lead up to the tragic moment of death while solo diving.

There are many other things a diver can do to reduce a solo fatality, but just grab your scuba unit and go diving and don't wory about it 99% of the time you'll be just fine.

Happy Diving

 

[KP3S]

As long as you have air in your tank, a knife and a camera or video, you'll be fine.

Air so you can breathe.

Knife for sea creatures attacking you.

Take pics or vid so if in the event you should die while solo diving, it can be discussed here on SB with better information on what lead up to the tragic moment of death while solo diving.

There are many other things a diver can do to reduce a solo fatality, but just grab your scuba unit and go diving and don't wory about it 99% of the time you'll be just fine.

Happy Diving

I agree but everybody want to have a system, I like mine and it works.

 

[DevonDiver]

Check #1 Am I ready for solo diving?

If you don't know what to check, don't go solo diving.