New to diving, and would love advice.

[MermaidLiv]

Hey my name is Olivia and I just joined SB. I got certified last May (2016) and realized scuba diving is a dream. Any advice for a new diver or just suggestions on how to make diving a great experience each time? Or just introduce yourself so I get a better feel for this forum!

 

[JIMMY PHILLIPS]

Hello Mermaid, I am still new to diving myself and welcome to the adventure. The best advice I received early on but too late with the explanation was to clear ears early and often . I only learned after a little pain that early means before you feel pain or even pressure and even while you are entering the water! Now my dives are a wonderful experience no longer followed by a month of things sounding like I am still under water.

The next best advice was to dump all air from BC before starting ascent so I can easily control depth once I get to safety stop depths. Really solved issues I had.

Last but not least, relax and enjoy what this adventure has to offer, go dive and have fun with it while staying safe

 

[MermaidLiv]

Hello Mermaid, I am still new to diving myself and welcome to the adventure. The best advice I received early on but too late with the explanation was to clear ears early and often . I only learned after a little pain that early means before you feel pain or even pressure and even while you are entering the water! Now my dives are a wonderful experience no longer followed by a month of things sounding like I am still under water.

The next best advice was to dump all air from BC before starting ascent so I can easily control depth once I get to safety stop depths. Really solved issues I had.

Last but not least, relax and enjoy what this adventure has to offer, go dive and have fun with it while staying safe

Thank you! My instructor always told me to equalize constantly to avoid any pain. Hoping to have many dives with the least amount of problems. Just gotta learn how to dive smart.

 

[drrich2]

At the end of your dive, when you finish your 3 minute 15 foot safety stop, and your ink pressure is pretty low (at least 500 PSI is what a lot of people end dives close to), before you head up to the surface...let the air out of your BCD. If there's not much sinking afterward, your weighting is probably about right. If you quickly sink, you may well be over-weighting.

You don't have to rush to be a 'weight nazi,' but if you can avoid being strongly over-weighted, your diving will probably improve.

Also, when you get down to a comfortable depth, get horizontal...and relax without swimming/finning. This will give you some idea of how well your weight is distributed. If you can stay horizontal without much effort, good. But let's say for sake of argument your feet sink and you assume a vertical, head up/feet down position pretty soon unless you swim along or make an effort to counter it. Then moving some weight from your weight belt or integrated weight pockets to trim pockets, or taking other measures to come some up your body, might help you more naturally maintain horizontal trim with less effort and have a better dive.

At least, that's my understanding of it, on matters I still work at. Be interesting to hear if anyone else here has a different take.

Other than that, book a trip and go diving. There's no substitute for that...

Richard.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Hi Olivia,

I stress to my students to be comfortable. I teach in cold water, so I advocate thermal protection (unless you can rent at a reasonable price) before anything else. I don't know how cold the water gets in Maryland, but if you want to dive year round, a dry suit with dry gloves with a good undergarment is a good investment. It isn't fun diving cold. Once I went to dry gloves (especially when diving deep), I could never go back to even semi-dry gloves which are pretty good.

I hope this helps.

 

[RainPilot]

Hey Olivia, welcome to the madhouse!

Congrats on your certification, best advice I can give is dive and enjoy it. Often as you can.

If you feel there are some things you would like to understand better, have a look around and see what's been asked before, can almost guarantee you aren't the first person with whatever problem it is.

Dive. Enjoy. Repeat.

 

[Bubblesong]

Hello! My advice is to keep taking classes and reading books about diving. I was certified in 1988, yet really did not explore it until My daughter got cert. and then I realized all the different experiences, night diving, cold water, photography, rescue, just to name a few. Enjoy!

 

[chubadoodman]

Hey Olivia,
As a new diver myself, the best piece of advice I have would be to stay curious and keep on learning. If you have something that you're curious about, look it up on the forum and learn about it from other divers. After a while, you start to get a better idea of how far you want to take your diving and your own path on how to get there. Through the forum I learned a lot more about trim, buoyancy, propulsion, gear....the list goes on. This led me to take a class that focuses on those foundational skills, which leads to more comfort in the water, and ultimately, more fun while diving. Although reading doesn't compare to actual diving or classes, it does fuel your curiosity and passion for the sport!

 

[flyboy08]

Always be willing to listen and learn. And in time, people will want to listen and learn from you. Continue your education in diving and make every dive a learning experience. Get some dives under your weight belt then take the AOW and Rescue Diver courses....

Welcome to a world we're few have gone

 

[Streydog]

I have been certified for three years this April, started late in life. You get better at it every dive so dive as much as possible. It is all about buoyancy. Sounds simple but took me a while to realize it. At first I was always swimming to compensate for bad buoyancy and would be ahead of the group. Equipment is not what makes you a good diver.