Swim Throughs - OW cert.

[Grumblefish]

I am pretty inexperienced - around 30 dives to date, and OW cert (AOW soon!). A couple of my dives (in Turkey) have included 'swim throughs' - one is a tunnel easily wide enough for two divers side-by-side. The depth is only around 4 or 5 meters, and the vis is good - the tunnel is around 15 meters long, and at all times, you can see the exit (it's a coarse sandy bottom, which would take a lot of stirring up to significantly affect the vis).

My question is should I be doing this on OW cert - I felt comfortable with it, and my bouyancy is OK, but it's still an overhead environment. Any thoughts ?

 

[ScubaFreak]

Overhead environments have obvious risks. Theres nothing that says you cant do this, it all boils down to your own limitations. There is also overhead environment training that can be done (Wreck, cave etc..) Personally, I wouldn't advise my OW students to go for this, however, i teach and dive in very low viz condititons.

In conditions like Turkey, where you can see the exit, it does add some reassurance.

Just be careful with ur buoyancy and dont crack ur head of the top!

Thats my $0.02

SF

 

[Diver0001]

I am pretty inexperienced - around 30 dives to date, and OW cert (AOW soon!). A couple of my dives (in Turkey) have included 'swim throughs' - one is a tunnel easily wide enough for two divers side-by-side. The depth is only around 4 or 5 meters, and the vis is good - the tunnel is around 15 meters long, and at all times, you can see the exit (it's a coarse sandy bottom, which would take a lot of stirring up to significantly affect the vis).

My question is should I be doing this on OW cert - I felt comfortable with it, and my bouyancy is OK, but it's still an overhead environment. Any thoughts ?

I've been in some tunnels like that in Turkey. One I recall drops off from 10 to 36 metres if memory serves. It's fun and exciting to do it. I guess the question is if you're sure you can get to the exit fast enough if something goes wrong. In a course setting it's a big no-no. Technically it's an cavern.

R..

 

[ninjamuzo]

I loved swim throughs as a student and they are a good way to test bouyancy if they narrow a little. It comes down to your own comfort level. If you don't want to do it swim over or around.

 

[JDostal]

From my experience, swim throughs are considered okay - I know that I did them in all of the shipwrecks that I dove before I got the training to do real penetrations. Use common sense though - don't do a quarter mile swimthrough or something like that

My favorite was on a shipwreck up in Copper Harbor, MI - you could swim down to the deck of the wreck and through one of the doors. The hallway took you past a few officers quarters, through the mess hall (swimming past the juice machines and over the tables) and then past a few more rooms and out the other side. It was a pretty cool swimthrough.

 

[String]

If you're happy doing them then do them. I cant see a problem.

 

[Walter]

From a liability standpoint, no agency is going to agree to swim throughs with an OW cert or even an AOW cert. The standard line is don't do anything for which you haven't been trained. You get initial overhead training in Cavern, Wreck and Ice specialities only. For a practical matter, lots of OW divers go ahead with swim throughs.

 

[DeputyDan]

If you are comfortable
If you can see the exit, and
If you are not in a situation where you could have a silt out, then
I think you are OK.

 

[mikelegurra]

when i did my ow in thailand my intructor thought i was doing ok with buoyancy control and she led me into a swim-through. she asked if i was ok with it before going in and then we proceded. i loved it.

during the SI she asked how i felt about it and i had loved it. we still had one more dive that day and she asked the boat captain to take us to another site where there were some more. this time they were much narrower and i still loved it.
to this day it remains one of the most vivid memories of my ow certification classes.

i also believe that if you're feeling ok, not stressed, and are up to it, you should do it.

as in every other thing in diving you shouldn't do it to prove anything. don't do things that you feel are over your head (no pun intended) just because other people are doing it or spoke about it. when you feel confident and you're willing to try it... go ahead.

 

[Jason B]

From a liability standpoint, no agency is going to agree to swim throughs with an OW cert or even an AOW cert.

Back in '89 two of my AOW cert dives were cavern dives in King Springs.