Wreck diving - how to proceed

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

I know very little about SwedTech - read about the agency on this forum, did some reserach and didn't find much information. Do you have some experience with them? Would love to hear more :)

No personal experience, no.
I know a couple who have and there are mixed opinions.
I think that an agency who peddles an entry level tech course for divers with single tanks and the use of 2 stage/deco bottles is hard to take seriously.
Seems like a great way for inexperienced divers to learn what happens if you grab your deco bottle instead of your bottom stage at 50m.
 
Ha! Quite old thread, I know, but wanted to write here a follow up for others in case somebody finds it and reads it whenever later.

In the process of training for the tec-pass, you will understand many other things about diving, GUE and other agencies; so, at the end, you will be able to make your decisions more consciously.

I found this out only partially truth - yes, during the training for tech pass I understood many other things about diving. But my knowledge about GUE and other agencies are moreless the same as it used to be in October the last year.

Do a deco course, then do a load more diving. You don’t need to be squirrelling about inside narrow passages to enjoy wrecks. Do straight forward wreck diving for a bit and then do a proper wreck course with someone who dives them on a regular basis if you fancy going inside in a serious way.

After re-reading the whole this thread again after some time, I consider this as the most useful advice which I was given here. Forgot about it of course, but I came to the exactly same conclusion by myself.

Good luck for your tec-pass!

Done! :)

If you ever find yourself thinking about other agencies please do stay clear of Swedtech though

I still don't think about any other agencies for my training, just wanted to mention that I met some SwedTech divers (instructors included) and they are excellent divers who are for sure capable to run excellent courses. I am not familiar with their curriculum though, maybe it is worth to check it and ask them about it directly though - I am curious about how they are going to defend "entry level tech course for divers with single tanks and the use of 2 stage/deco bottles" (if they really have such a course still).

---

Now comes my own wrap-up. I will try to answer some - hopefully - interesting questions.

1) Did starting this thread help me to proceed in my diving training?
Definitely yes. I remember I felt stuck in between "should I challenge the tech pass" and "I am greenhorn who is not ready for technical diving". This thread helped me to set up the goal (deeper wreck diving) which created the need for the progress (tech pass).
Without having the goal, it would take me significantly longer time to come back and challenge the tech pass (if ever). Why would you care about tech pass if you don't want to continue with GUE tech courses? That doesn't make any sense - at least not to me.

2) How did I decide, i.e. what is an answer to my original question?
As I mentioned above already, I plan to do T1 and then do lot more diving - and after a while I will see. Either I will take C1 or some specislised advanced wreck course - or both, in case I will feel a need.

3) Do I feel ready for technical diving when having my tech pass?
Yes I do. Since October 2020, I did about 80 more dives with a strong focus to prepare for the tech upgrade. During this path I met lot of other divers (who helped me), discussed lot of other diving related topics, studied a lot more diving theory and was having a great fun.
I did know I am ready to challenge the tech pass mainly because I started feeling confident and relaxed during all of my dives. I could hover totally static when I wanted. I was moving under the water exactly how I wanted. My buddies understood what I was saying exactly how I meant it. I was not worried anymore what will happen next during the dive - I was ahead of it. And when something unexpected happened, I was able to resolve it totally calm and with a bright mind.
I don't feel ready for the technical diving because of having the tech pass. I felt ready to challenge the tech pass because I felt ready for technical diving. And I trully believe the tech pass just proves I ready am.
Just one last thing I want to add to this - we were talking skills only in this thread, ignoring the equipment needs completely; well yes, I need to upgrade my equipment and yes, it will be expensive like a hell. But that is the whole another story :p
 
I know about this. John Chatterton is for sure one of the best wreck divers and I have been considering a lot taking this course with him - the reason why I am hesitant is that I know he has very specific approach to team diving and he promotes that every diver should be foremost an independent diver. That is totally opposite compared to GUE approach which I like much more. He is also far away from DIR diving, which I am not saying is a completely bad thing either, but I am not sure it is for me.
 
There are divers who prefer to obtain certifications than actual experience. Dive the shallow wrecks using recreational equipment, but don't stray from the light zone.
 
Dive the shallow wrecks using recreational equipment, but don't stray from the light zone.

That's what I have been doing for the past three years :)

Regarding the equipment, I have my own tech gear but it needs some upgrades; foremost I need a new dry suit so I can have more layers of undergarment so I am not cold on longer dives. My current dry suit is too tight for that. Heating vest is probably a good imvestment as well (I dive regurarly in -1 to 4 degrees water temperatures). Plus I need a deco cylinder with regulator, dry suit inflation package for trimix dives, second set of D12. That's lot of money before feeling ready equipment wise to sign up for T1.
I could of course do the course in warmer water (and maybe I will do that anyway, longer in water times are much better for the training) but after the course I want be able to do T1 dives locally and for that I need to fix the insulation issue first.

There are divers who prefer to obtain certifications than actual experience.

Definitely not my case, don't worry ;-) Card wise I am very poor diver, I have only 3 :-D
 
That's what I have been doing for the past three years :)

Regarding the equipment, I have my own tech gear but it needs some upgrades; foremost I need a new dry suit so I can have more layers of undergarment so I am not cold on longer dives. My current dry suit is too tight for that. Heating vest is probably a good imvestment as well (I dive regurarly in -1 to 4 degrees water temperatures). Plus I need a deco cylinder with regulator, dry suit inflation package for trimix dives, second set of D12. That's lot of money before feeling ready equipment wise to sign up for T1.
I could of course do the course in warmer water (and maybe I will do that anyway, longer in water times are much better for the training) but after the course I want be able to do T1 dives locally and for that I need to fix the insulation issue first.

Definitely not my case, don't worry ;-) Card wise I am very poor diver, I have only 3 :-D

I did T1 in warm waters, and I have no issue in doing T1 dives in cold waters, and I know many people who did the same. However, warm=23°C for me, cold=5/6°C... but -1°C... :laughsnow:

Equipment-wise, t1 is expensive :) If you do not plan to do A LOT of T1 dives AND a lot of rec dives, consider sticking with a single set of bi12; use it for dives shallower than 30m, and rent a set when you need to go deeper (this is what I do for now - buying another set of bi12 during the pandemic does not sound very smart to me).

Congratulations on your tec pass!
 
If you do not plan to do A LOT of T1 dives AND a lot of rec dives, consider sticking with a single set of bi12; use it for dives shallower than 30m, and rent a set when you need to go deeper (this is what I do for now - buying another set of bi12 during the pandemic does not sound very smart to me).

I can do T1 dives locally with good access to both helium fills and boat trips (approx 30 minutes driving from home). I expect 10-20 trimix dives per year and 80-100 rec dives per year (pandemy or not, doesn't matter - 90 % of my diving is local diving).
With renting D12 for trimix fills I will be also loosing the residual gas, the same as filling it to my current D12 and emptying it because of nitrox fills for rec dives. So it is not just the price for renting D12 which you need to count in but also wasting money on helium which is way more expensive compared to the rental prices. I think the second set of D12 will pay out after one year (the new one, used one even earlier). Do I miss something?

Congratulations on your tec pass!

Thanks!
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/
http://cavediveflorida.com/Rum_House.htm

Back
Top Bottom