Should I log these dives or not?

[fgray1]

I log every dive reguardless of time or depth.
If for no other reason to record the process of the dive. I recently tried to dive in Venice Fl. and Had to call the dive due to bad vis. Well I logged the shortest dives I ever done 15 ft for 2 min. 3 times that day. The reason I logged them was to record the reason for the called dive, buddies I dove with, equiptment I used. Date and weather conditions. If I suit up and enter the water It goes in the log book for future referance. A log book is a history of your diving experiances for you more than anything else. It gives you something to look at as you build up your diving experiances.

Fred

 

[turnerjd]

Logging dives is a personal preference.

There are many reasons for logging dives. The most important are:
Currency
Training
Liability
Information / record for the future

Currency - If you spent the majority of your diving time as holiday diving, then any diving done in between holidays is very good in you log. It shows (as other posters have mentioned) that you take the time and care to keep your skills in practice. some dive operators insist on a scuba review if you havent dived for a while.

Training - sometimes you need a minimum number of dives to get a qalification. It is good to have them logged. Also, if you try out new pieces of equipement, it is often worth noting when you first dived with it, what changes in you weighting it caused etc...

Liability - this only applies to people diving with DM level or above, but if you are in a situation where you are in contact with clients or you could have a "duty of care" it is good, nay imperative to log them so that if, in years to come somebody claims you didn't cover this skill or that, you have a record of the dive.

Information / record for the future - Often it is nice to have in your log the basic details of a site you have visited, but also, it keeps a record of how things like your SAC improve with training, and how you improve as a diver. There is also the fact that some time in the future you will look back through your log, and having the details there helps bring back the memories.

So based on these considerations you have to make a value judgement for yourself.

PADI training dives have to last a minimum of 15 minutes (IIRC), but when I DM, any time I go under water with somebody is logged. For pleasure dives I log them all as well if (and it is very rare) a dive is aborted (and I don't go back underwater) it is not logged. If, after resolving the problem I can dive, then the abort gets noted together with the successfull dive.

HTH

Jon T

 

[SMKChef]

I tend to agree with the log everything but skip the pool dives, though I could rack up some extensive log times if I had logged all my pool hours while I was between OW classes. My buddy and I would go practically every day for the three weeks during our OW classes. Great experience but not worth the log.

"Dove the pool, again... Noticed that the gunnite has a rough finish and without gloves my fingers get chaffed. Next time I will use my warm water gloves. Also noticed that the workmanship around the tiles is very poor; I sure hope the shop owner didn't pay a premium for such poor quality..." LOL...

 

[brizzolatti]

There are really 2 things being discussed --- 1) what to record in your logbook, and 2) what "counts" as a dive for purposes such as meeting the minimum number of dives required for DM or instructor certification.

So what defines a dive that counts for, say, the 60 dives for DM?

 

[fgray1]

There are really 2 things being discussed --- 1) what to record in your logbook, and 2) what "counts" as a dive for purposes such as meeting the minimum number of dives required for DM or instructor certification.

So what defines a dive that counts for, say, the 60 dives for DM?

The thing I learned is what counts as a dive is subject to your instuctor interpitation. What they mainly look for is your overall experiance more than anything else. I you have 100 dives in 15' of warm warter only in the summer months with good vis then your not all that experianced of a diver. (that sould upset some folks) If you have 100 dives logged and they consist of deep dives, boat dives, drift dive, beach dives, cavern/cave dives, nitrox and with differant equiptment then the instuctor will think you are a experianced diver (which you are) That's why I say broaden your horizon and try differant types of diving, not only does it make you a great diver but it's a great time. Never stop trying to improve yourself. Qualifing to be a DM is up to you and your instuctor and what's acceptable to him and that will change from instuctor to instuctor.

Fred

 

[bedazzle410]

The thing I learned is what counts as a dive is subject to your instuctor interpitation. What they mainly look for is your overall experiance more than anything else. I you have 100 dives in 15' of warm warter only in the summer months with good vis then your not all that experianced of a diver. (that sould upset some folks) If you have 100 dives logged and they consist of deep dives, boat dives, drift dive, beach dives, cavern/cave dives, nitrox and with differant equiptment then the instuctor will think you are a experianced diver (which you are) That's why I say broaden your horizon and try differant types of diving, not only does it make you a great diver but it's a great time. Never stop trying to improve yourself. Qualifing to be a DM is up to you and your instuctor and what's acceptable to him and that will change from instuctor to instuctor.

Fred

My insructor constatly reminds us to log all dives (of course not pool dives) but all other dives even relatively shallow dives where we assist him in ow and advanced classes. I guess the reason is to build up dives for the dm program.

 

[busted]

If you are breathing under the water with scuba equipment, I would call it a dive.