Tricks and Tips that Save Pennies

[Dr Neil]

Several have already stated it, but don't buy cheap equipment. And the equipment you do buy take care of it! Good gear can last many years if properly cared for.

Buy a large 35 gal or larger rinse bucket. Use a small amount of Mr. Clean or Lysol cleaner on everything but your regulator and mask.

Buy or make a good hanger for wetsuits and store in a dry location (not your garage.) Buy an inexpensive box to store your regulator.

And before you buy anything, try it out!

 

[Buoyant1]

Buy your second set of gear FIRST!

The most money you can waste in diving is money spent on the gear you bought instead of what you SHOULD have bought.

No *****! The only original pieces of gear I have are my regs (although I did replace the hoses)

AOW is only as good as the instructor...dive a lot THEN make your decision to get it or not.

Buy zip ties from hardware stores.

 

[davidpfitz]

Another way to save money ... don't buy crazy gadgets - you don't need them! Get the very best basic gear you can afford, especially regs / bcd - it'll stop you wasting money on buying it all over again later on. As my grandfather used to say, "Buy cheap, buy twice". If you're squeezed for cash, pick up cheap used fins and other kit you're life is not dependant on from eBay.

 

[Anti-Hero]

I'd be a little leary of anyone that tells you that AOW is "advanced" training...

HAHA! Awesome

 

[akbpilot]

Don't waste your money on expensive "dive luggage". You can buy a nice rolling duffel without the dive flag logo that screams "STEAL ME" for about 1/5 the cost of name-brand "dive luggage".

After the airlines get done trashing it, you can donate it to a charity for the tax write-off and buy another new one.

 

[ScubaSteve]

........Defogger: Use baby shampoo diluted 1/3rd shampoo, 2/3rds water. Buy a bottle of baby shampoo at Costco and a cheap plastic bottle at a drug store ($1). You can defog with no tears for a lifetime for $7-$8.
While this works well, 500 PSI defog kicks the @$$ of Johnson's and other's on the market. And if used correctly, will last for quite awhile........

Save money and do not listen to anybody trying to sell you defogger. Especially if it is more expensive. I have dove in water from 36 degrees to 86 degrees, 300 or so dives and used defogger on my first couple and never since. Waste of money in my opinion (based on my experience). Maybe I have magic spit and should sell it, but that does the trick much better than defogger.

 

[The_DivePirate]

A good tip on ScubaBoard is to be skeptical of instructors promoting training--they probably mean well, but they aren't necessarily objective. I have managed over 700 dives without a chamber ride, without an ambulance ride, and without AOW. And nobody has ever tried to limit my diving because of it. Of course, good training is a great idea, but that is the kind of fear-mongering that can get you elected to the presidency. And your DAN insurance (not a good place to save money!) will pay in the unlikely event of a chamber ride or an ambulance ride.

My money-saving tip: fly economy class. If you absolutely have to.

I guess if I were in her neck of the woods it may do me some good, but considering there are MANY miles between us it would not benefit me at all to talk her into an AOW course. As for the chamber/ambulance, yes you are correct, MANY diver's never take a ride in either, but some advancing training is still better than the posibility. With any insurance, DAN included, yeah it is a burden to pay, that is until you have a claim....

I'd be a little leary of anyone that tells you that AOW is "advanced" training...

Maybe you should look up yhe definition of "advance". It means to progress. By learning one extra skill you have progressed/advanced, now I did not say take a technical advanced course such as "hypoxic trimix" it was merely meant that you should not stop with only a OW course. I tell my student's, they should go out and get some practical diving experience before returning for an AOW course. Besides, 5 extra dive that are guided by an instructor do not make you an ADVANCED diver, but it does advance your knowledge from an OW diver status. Not to sound like a flame, but maybe you should ADVANCE your knowledge and learn the definition of ADVANCE???

Dive Pirate: Well spoken by an instuctor whose pocket money comes from inexperienced divers and puts down the same people. Less than 199 dives? That's the majority of divers.

My pocket money??? You appearantly don't realize that SCUBA training in general does make any money!!! By the time you figure the cost of book's, registration, gear upkeep, and the time spent with student's. Not to mention the cost of fuel to get to and from the dive site's, we usually lose money in the end!! It is because we love the sport and want people to be safe and keep diving for years. "That" is in our best interest, not spending a bunch of time with a diver for the miniscual amount of money we get for an AOW course. Sounds as if we really don't need dive instructor's at all, to learn you should just find someone that has all of the gear at the lake and have them teach you. That would surely save you some cash.

 

[ianr33]

Sounds as if we really don't need dive instructor's at all, to learn you should just find someone that has all of the gear at the lake and have them teach you. That would surely save you some cash.

Well I figured out how to use a drysuit,sidemounts and do stage dives from a buddy. My trimix course was pretty much a waste of time,only thing I got out of it it was the card I needed to buy the gas.

Some courses are great,others not so much.

 

[ScubaSteve]

.........As for the chamber/ambulance, yes you are correct, MANY diver's never take a ride in either, but some advancing training is still better than the posibility........

OK DivePirate, I will say I am not looking to bash you for anything you have said however I do want to touch on something. My AOW class was NAUI and for it I did the following: Deep Dive, Search & Recovery, Night Dive, UW Navigation and Peak Performance Buoyancy. Absolute waste of money. 200% waste of money. I even had to pay extra to get the NAUI card (that is an issue with the LS not the course though). Absolute waste of time. I learned absolutely nothing from it that diving with a good well trained and educated AND capable diver would not have taught me.

My point is this, there are a number (big or small it is up to the reader to decide for themselves) of instructors out there who really have no clue what is happening around them. Nor are they truly capable of teaching people sklills that they themselves do not have. Preaching that AOW is important or that it will likely prevent a chamber ride is not true. Common sense, diving within your limits and training AND a good dive buddy are more likely to prevent a chamber ride than any AOW class.

Having said this, I am all for people getting the AOW because it is 5 more dives, a bit of education and some experience with a competent diver (or so one would hope). It will also get you onto some dives that you cannot do without it. But it is FAR FROM REQUIRED as a diver.

 

[ianr33]

How to save money diving?

Dive locally. Shore dive. Trust experienced divers as to what gear you need rather than diveshops.Borrow stuff to try out before you buy.

Go on vacation with friends,rent a condo,eat in and again,Shore dive (Bonaire and Cayman are great for these type of trips)

Learn enough about gear so that you can make informed purchases from Ebay , Scubaboard or online shops.e.g.I have 4 regulators.Only the first came from a LDS. Probably saved $1000 that way. My Dry Suit came from Ebay,another $1000 saved

Buy what you need,not what the dive industry tells you is cool. Nobody NEEDS an air integrated computer or $150 fins.

Ignore everything in Rodales