Nitrox card required to dive, not just for fills?

[divekraz]

Been diving for almost 30yrs with my wife. I always carry a small bag filled with spares, tools, o rings, medicals, along with a log holding all our cards. I also keep a picture of all the cards on my Iphone along with a dive log on the phone. I never fill out the log until all the diving is over and just put in the basics really for my memory. I also carry a doctors note saying I'm healthy to dive as I'm 50lbs overweight. When I least expect it some boat would want to see something or give me some lame request that I never expected I would need to produce. I decided it was just easier to have the bag and all my information with me rather than arguing with them, You show them what they want, they shut up and I get to dive in peace. No worth stressing just to make a point of who is right.

 

[redacted]

Hmm let's see... You need a nitrox card to get a nitrox fill, ok. Now what do you need to get an air fill or a rental tank? Normally at least something like an OWD card, right?

Now when you get to a dive charter and bring all your own gear, including an air tank, what do you need for them to let you on the boat? Normally you still need at least your OWD card, right? And if it's something like a deeper dive, you may need to produce an AOW card or something similar, right?

So why shouldn't that requirement also extend to diving nitrox, even if it's your own tank?

I know it's silly and I'm not saying that I agree with it, but I'm still able to follow their logic.

The problem is not so much the requirement (but I agree it is stupid) but that they did not establish the requirement in advance. Perhaps they should also be analyzing all tanks brought on their sponsored dive trip. How do you rationalize requiring the card and not analyzing the gas???

 

[dfx]

The problem is not so much the requirement (but I agree it is stupid) but that they did not establish the requirement in advance. Perhaps they should also be analyzing all tanks brought on their sponsored dive trip. How do you rationalize requiring the card and not analyzing the gas???

Of course they should otherwise, they could have people bringing nitrox but saying that it's just air, right?

 

[kaerius]

I can see both sides of this. The shop wants to cover their ass, and the OP could've been someone who just had their buddy get them a nitrox fill. On the other hand, when the OP is showing a full cave card, it pretty much goes without saying that he can dive nitrox(and probably use it for accellerated decompression besides).

That said, last time I dived nitrox, on a liveaboard, I don't think they actually did any card checking at all. I told them I was an instructor, I had to sign the usual medical forms, but I don't think they ever asked for my card, and certainly not my nitrox card. Then again they were pretty fast and loose on a lot of things(like staying within MOD, the guides quite happily went down to 40m on 30% nitrox, one was a master instructor and the other was an assistant instructor).

 

[Abdullah]

I don't get it. How inconvenient is it to carry something the size of a nitrox C-card ? And doesn't at least PADI now have an on-line "look up" to to confirm certification if you don't have a card? Ok, so you were put off by the experience, but hey, this is such a prevenatble thing, that the lesson learned for all thread readers is simply this: when engaging in any activity that requires or may require certain credentials, be sure you carry those credentials with you. That includes having your drivers license and proof of insurance when driving, appropriate C cards when diving, and so on. Sorry, JahJahwarrior, but on this issue, I think your anger and retaliation may not be appropriate. But then, I am not there in Florida and I do not know the people you were interacting with. Maybe they were being a little overcautious, but you should not be surprised that they wanted to see a nitrox card.
DivemasterDenis

Actually, I would be shocked to be asked for a Nitrox card when diving my own tanks. I'm not renting from them, I didn't fill from them - they don't have a duty of care. It sounds like the shop went around the bend on this trip.

 

[redacted]

Of course they should otherwise, they could have people bringing nitrox but saying that it's just air, right?

Don't forget the receipts from your last required regulator (and BCD) service. What about pregnancy tests, as appropriate?

 

[Peter Guy]

I'm with whoever wrote, really, is it that hard to have the card in your wallet? Yes, the person at the shop perhaps could have had the foresight to ask "What mix are you diving?" when you called the day before, but he didn't. And it is also possible that the "reason" given, it is an insurance requirement, is a cover up, but perhaps not. In any event, going all ballistic is such overkill.

And yes, I have been asked for my Nitrox card, my Dry suit card and some OW card on just about every boat I've ever gone out on.

 

[diverrex]

I just happen to carry my Nitrox card with me on all day charters but it would never occur to me that I would need to show it for tanks I bring. I bring Nitrox tanks on and it doesn't even occur to me to tell the boat I'm diving Nitrox and my tanks aren't marked with any green & yellow stickers so they wouldn't know.

But now that I hear this I guess I understand some logic of it from the shop's point of view. I just started diving a drysuit but haven't and probably won't take the class. But drysuit is different than Nitrox the class is optional where the Nitrox card is required to dive Nitrox. I guess I'm saying the shop can make the rules they want and the customer can decide if they want to do business with that shop and those rules or not. But the shop should have it on their website and tell anyone booking that is their rule since I consider out of the ordinary.

 

[Mark Michaud SELAUSAR]

My insignificant thoughts are this.............A dive shop in the state of Florida should be astute enough to know Nitrox cert is a prerequisite for cave certifications. The OP is Cave Certified. In law enforcement we call this "lesser and included". Nuff said.

 

[drrich2]

Since the shop did not provide, endorse or encourage use of the nitrox, which was provided by the divers themselves, I see no duty to act was 'scuba police' to try & regulate it.

If 'insurance' is a legitimate reason, perhaps one of their people would be interested in posting the policy provider & the supporting documentation? It would be very interesting to see that!

Others made good points - they don't analyze all tanks, require women to take pregnancy tests to certify non-pregnant status, etc...

I usually carry my card, but some people use water proof boxes like Otterboxes with little space once keys & a cell phone or what-have-you are in there. And don't want to leave their wallets on the boat. It's quite possible a person wouldn't be packing a wallet. And I imagine many women divers don't carry purses onto dive boats.

Richard.