When should I look into getting my tech cert?

[battles2a5]

I would get comfortable w/ doubles before you start cave/cavern training. You can train without them, but I wouldn't feel comfortable in a cave with a single. As long as you have a good and safe attitude, good situational awareness, good buddy awareness, and really good skills you should not have a problem. But the more comfort you have w/ the equipment, the better off you will be. You will have enough new skills and task-loading on your mind, no use in struggling w/ new equipment as well. I would sign up for a cavern/basic cave course and see how it goes. Even if you decide cave diving is not for you, you will definitely walk away a much better diver. I did my Basic w/ Jim Wyatt (a couple of posts up) and would definitely recommend him.

 

[meierdierck]

just my 2 cents.....i would start with intro cavern,(agree with Bigcountry) and make sureyou are committed, start diving your doubles and getting used to the new gear and biggest thing imo...bouyancy is critical (agree with jpac)skills, skills, skills...you are getting into a very different type of diving, and it will take a lot of dedication & continuous practice, and accepting alot of risk.....good luck

 

[Kevin Carlisle]

Accepting a lot of risk is not a very true statement!! If you dont pay attention or you dive beyond your level or those trust me dives maybe so. Open water diving can be just as dangerous if you dont follow the rules. Most divers who die in caves did NOT get the training. BIG DIFFERENCE.. There are more risks but you minimize those when you abide by the rules. Biggest thing is always be ready for an emergency and have a plan for it but thats why you take the classes.

just my 2 cents.....i would start with intro cavern,(agree with Bigcountry) and make sureyou are committed, start diving your doubles and getting used to the new gear and biggest thing imo...bouyancy is critical (agree with jpac)skills, skills, skills...you are getting into a very different type of diving, and it will take a lot of dedication & continuous practice, and accepting alot of risk.....good luck

 

[ucfdiver]

From my understanding, someone who wants to take Cavern/Intro through another agency would still need to retake the Cavern class even if they have a PADI cavern card. The skills might be beneficial, but the card will not fulfill any prerequisites. Please chime in if I'm wrong, you probably know a lot more about the c-card game than I do.

Per the NACD website-
NACD Training

Intro to Cave Diving ​

The Introduction to Cave Diving course is taught in a minimum of two days and includes and a minimum of four single tank cave dives. This course is designed to help hone those skills previously learned in cavern. New skills and procedures are taught which are needed for limited single tank cave penetration.

Purpose: To develop a cave diving proficiency within limitations of a single tank. It is for the diver who does not wish the burden of double tanks or is not interested in cave exploration and long decompression dives. It is recreational cave diving course. The course develops and establishes minimum skills, knowledge, dive planning abilities, problem solving procedures and the basic abilities necessary to safely cave dive using single cylinders.

Prerequisites: NACD cavern diver or equivalent and a minimum of 25 logged non-training dives.

It's up to the instructor from best I can tell. I know lots of NSS/NACD instructors that could cut you a padi card if you wanted it, for the same class they cut a NACD card for.

Heck, look at Jim's website!

 

[tflaris]

A good starting point might be an Intro to Tech Class to teach the basics
Intro To Tech

The Introduction to Technical Diving Course (Intro to Tech) is designed as a bridge from the recreational diver to an introduction to the rigors and discipline of technical diving, and is a great preparatory course if you are considering technical diver training or interested in streamlining your equipment configuration.

Your NAUI Intro to Tech instructor will introduce you to dive planning, physics and physiology, decompression, and decompression associated with technical diving. The NAUI Technical Equipment Configuration (NTEC) course may also be available as part of your Intro to Tech course or as a separate technical course.

The Intro to Tech course is your first step to a whole new world of technical diving!

Hope this helps

Tony Flaris
NAUI #44662

 

[Dive-aholic]

I have used twin 80's, however not really a need for them now. I thought I'd get that training with a Tech class.

It's not a bad idea to get an introduction to diving doubles in a tech class, but you will still need the time in the water with the doubles. The class won't give you that. If you have experience in doubles, then get back into them and start diving them regularly. If you get the buoyancy and trim, the rest can easily be covered in any course, be it tech or cavern.

 

[Sloth]

definitely recommend doing a GUE fundies or UTD intro class. Go for a tech pass with doubles. Unless you are a scuba god you will get to see how crappy of a diver you really are. After this if you still have a taste for tech then do another 25 or 50 dives until you can hover motionless, back kick, hold trim and depth and not generally freak when things go sideways. Ok... if you STILL want to get into tech diving then go for it.

I've seen a lot of people go into tech way to soon. Make sure you are squared away first then do it. If you are already squared away then ignore this

Mark

 

[TSandM]

The big transition for people to make from their original dive training to cave or technical diving, is to understand that the standards are completely different. What you are expected to be able to do, and the parameters of acceptable performance, are so much more challenging in tech or cave classes, that many people, regardless of the number of dives they have, are poorly prepared.

I second, with emphasis, the recommendation to take a Fundamentals class if you are interested in cave diving. Although different instructors from different agencies will teach different things in detail, the basic demands of solid buoyancy and trim, strong personal skills, non-silting propulsion, and good situational awareness will carry over into any cave class you do from anyone.

I would recommend taking Fundies in a single tank and practicing until you can get a rec pass, and then transitioning to doubles and getting a tech pass. At that point, you will be well prepared to head into anybody's cave classes.

 

[Sloth]

Different ways to get there but I ended up doing fundies in doubles and got a rec pass. If you really have the mindset to go into tech diving then get into doubles asap. Doubles aren't really that hard to deal with. I think I had five dives in doubles before my fundies class and after the first day I had the doubles properly trimmed.

Going with doubles will you get exposed to valve drills right off the bat. Better to experience valve drills in fundies or intro to tech in doubles imo.

 

[ScubaDocER]

Different ways to get there but I ended up doing fundies in doubles and got a rec pass. If you really have the mindset to go into tech diving then get into doubles asap. Doubles aren't really that hard to deal with. I think I had five dives in doubles before my fundies class and after the first day I had the doubles properly trimmed.

Going with doubles will you get exposed to valve drills right off the bat. Better to experience valve drills in fundies or intro to tech in doubles imo.

TSandM underscores a very important point when transitioning from recreational diving to technical/cave diving. Some (or I would suggest most) divers coming out of the average recreational dive training program are ill prepared for the rigorous demands of a well taught cave/tech class. While the idea of getting into doubles may fit like a glove for a few, many I would imagine would spend most of their time turtling on the bottom. The ability to exhibit and display sharp buoyancy skills in the water cannot be underappreciated. If mastered with a single tank setup, then a bridge to doubles is set on a solid foundation. I would not rush into doubles until you are comfortable with your trim, buoyancy, balance, and movement through the water in a single tank setup. I don't think that doubles are "hard" per se, but I do believe that the ability to handle them in the water would be helped by a strong sense of buoyancy control and proper trim. I am not sure what skill set the OP possess, but I echo the sentiment of those who suggest that the OP spend time sharpening the above listed skills prior to getting in the water with doubles and pursuing a cave/tech course. This will make the transition much easier and the educational experience much more enjoyable.