new to diving and want to know if i should get nitrox cert

[thefreeviper]

so i am new to diving and like i said in the title i would like to further my ed in diving. but not sure what route i should take. right now i am at 13 dives. and i have enjoyed and loved every second i have had under water. i know i plan to go and get my AOW here soon. but im not sure on if i should go nitrox or not. my understanding is that it limits your depth. other than that i dont know much about it. and not to lie im not a very smart person and reading up on it online im lost. so i guess the question comes down to should i go nitrox. or atleast if someone would break it down barney style.

thank you
bryan

 

[Brewski]

At first I'd say no, don't rush it.
Nitrox's main benefit is to extend your bottom time due to lower nitrogen levels in your breathing gas. As a new diver you probably run out of gas before you hit your no decompression limit. so If you won't get the benefit of extended bottom time, why pay the extra money for a nitrox fill?

 

[Deep-6]

I'd say no. Don't rush, become very comfortable with your new skill set before taking on new ones. Enjoy just being a diver for a while, then when you feel ready and things make more sense to you...go for it. It's not about how smart you are, it's about how much you've improved and if you're ready to take on another challenge.

 

[Chaela]

I agree that you don't want to learn to dive nitrox until you've got your "dive chops" down. But here is my experience with divnig nitrox - after I felt comfortable in the water and had a bunch of dives under my belt, we got nitrox certified. Now we dive nitrox all the time. We found that when we started diving nitrox we felt better - more energetic after a dive.
Diving nitrox causes you to not absorb as much nitrogen on the dives. As a result, you can nearly double your dive time at depth before reaching the safe limits of excess nitrogen. Also, we can safely dive to recreational recommended depths on our nitrox mix.

Your age can also play a part in your decision to dive nitrox. We read a study a few years back that stated that "older divers" who dove nitrox experienced less bone loss than those who just dove air. Since we dive every weekend, we wanted to give ourselves every benefit we can as time ticks along.

Chaela Sumner
ScubaGadget.com

 

[thefreeviper]

thank both of you. see that sounds good to me. i will do that ill wait and when i feel my breathing is good. and when i actually understand it ill look into it. so thank you

 

[knowone]

I am not the brightest when it comes to this stuff so I use my energy thinking about thinking about what diving I am divng now.
I don't use nitrox for MY recreational diving and never will but when I know I am going to use it then I use my energy thinking about what I should use and how I should use it and certainly depth ramifications when I am using it and then don't think about it anymore and just use it..
Because I am told not to exert before during or after diving.
Perhaps someone brighter with typing skills will come along and tell you something cognizant.
Further education in diving is diving.
Very good.

 

[grammaticus]

I would spend money on gear before a nitrox class. I think that if you are a new diver you should work on your skill-set first. After that, then do all the classes you want. If you buy your own equipment, you will be even more comfortable in the water because you know exactly how it works with you, rather than adjusting yourself every time you get rental equipment. That's what I did.

 

[DevonDiver]

Nitrox is nothing mystical. Air is nitrox...21% Oxygen mix.

Having a nitrox certification is just another 'tool' at your disposal. It allows you to enjoy longer no-deco limits within recreational dive depths.

If your air consumption is the limiting factor on your dive time, then nitrox would be a tool that you would very rarely need to use. It can still be useful if you are diving 'aggressively', i.e. multi-day, multi-dive patterns when on holiday.

 

[thefreeviper]

I would spend money on gear before a nitrox class. I think that if you are a new diver you should work on your skill-set first. After that, then do all the classes you want. If you buy your own equipment, you will be even more comfortable in the water because you know exactly how it works with you, rather than adjusting yourself every time you get rental equipment. That's what I did.

i actually do own most my gear. the only thing im missing is a wetsuit for this state ( washington) but im moving to texas next week so i didnt see a point in buying one i just rent em on post for lik 8 dollars. and i agree when i rented all the gear i felt weird like it aint fit right. but once i got a bcd that fit me. and i started getting everything to my likes it was better.

 

[emoreira]

Nitrox is nothing mystical. Air is nitrox...21% Oxygen mix.

Having a nitrox certification is just another 'tool' at your disposal. It allows you to enjoy longer no-deco limits within recreational dive depths.

If your air consumption is the limiting factor on your dive time, then nitrox would be a tool that you would very rarely need to use. It can still be useful if you are diving 'aggressively', i.e. multi-day, multi-dive patterns when on holiday.

All my dives were done with EAN21