FAQ - Diving

This is one of very frequently asked questions at the beginning of the diving journey.
In fact, there are very few diseases that would disqualify the diving adventure.
Before entering the course, together with the instructor you will fill in a medical survey that will allow to determine whether you have any medical condition that would increase the health risk related to diving. The survey includes questions e.g. about the earlier surgeries, head injuries and heart attacks.
However, even if you provide positive answers to the survey questions, it does not mean that it is not possible for you to dive and become familiar with the secrets of the underwater world. This only means that you will have to obtain your doctor's approval for diving. In most cases, the GP's approval is sufficient; however, in case of serious diseases or injuries, a specialist consultation may be required.
There are many types of diving, and one of them is diving for people with disabilities, with very serious congenital afflictions, after serious diseases, strokes, etc. - even such health issues are not contraindications to diving, if done with the doctor's approval.
Remember that your health and safety are most important, but there are really not many diseases that would disqualify diving entirely.
During the course, you will also learn how important it is to take care of your health and fitness, as well as what impact it has on the processes occurring in our bodies when diving. Perhaps it is diving that will make you care about your health even more, thanks to which you will be safer under water with the increasing skills and fitness.
Because this is what it's all about - exploring safely the unexplored, magical underwater world!

The course age limit is determined each time by a particular organisation where you decide to enrol on your first diving course.
In most organisations we may 'enter water' already at the age of 8.
Classes for children are run in the form of games in shallow, safe swimming pool water. The youngest diving practitioners become familiar with breathing by means of aerial equipment, the neutral buoyancy state, new for them, which is felt as weightlessness, as well as with the basic principles of safety, communication and team diving. Children fulfil different missions under water - from solving the easiest tasks, like completing puzzles, playing chess or underwater games, to more complex ones, such as performing navigation tasks, or becoming familiar with darkness and playing with underwater light sources.
The youngest children, who then continue their diving journey already as juniors, are much more self-confident. Diving also builds responsibility in children - not only for themselves, but also for their partners, because diving is a partner sport.
The first junior diving courses require reaching the age of 10 - this is the age when children begin to be aware of the risk of a failure to comply with the rules, which also makes them more mature.
Regardless of the diving organisations, the depth limits to which a child can dive increase with the age - it is only after reaching the age of 15 that the depth limits for recreational levels become equal.

This is one of the most difficult questions at the beginning of the diving journey. Most difficult not only because there are many diving organisations, many schools and instructors, but also because there is no straightforward answer to it.

Imagine that you want to start riding a bicycle.
How much does it cost to become a cyclist?
How much does a bicycle cost? How much does it cost to learn riding it? How much does it cost to enter the course for bicycle riding licence, to become familiar with the road signs and traffic rules for bicycles? Or maybe a training session in a different place - a trip? Or maybe a competition - how much is the joining fee? Or maybe an individual coach? And some sportswear is also needed for the competition? And footwear? And a helmet? And gloves? And well, you will not go to a competition with your first bicycle... a new one is needed. And tyres. And a saddle. And periodic inspections. And nutritional supplements to take care of your body and fitness. And ... There you go. So, how much does it cost to become a cyclist?

The same is with diving.
When choosing a diving elementary course, you must take into account the cost components. First of all, the instructor's working time. There will be theory classes, at least a couple of hours of own work and further few hours with the instructor. Practice in the swimming pool, pool-like (shallow and transparent) water will take another few hours. The journey to dive in the open water, which is in fact our goal, will take further few hours. All of this requires the place, materials and equipment. The course is completed with a certificate registered in the diving organisation chosen by you.

When searching for the course prices online, before you compare the amounts, make sure what each course contains.

The total course cost includes:

• Basic price of the course, i.e. work with the instructor
• Course materials including the certificate
• Rental of a complete diving set (or purchase of a part of own set, depending on the Instructor/school)
• Filling diving cylinders with air
• Swimming pool entrance fee
• Trips to open waters - basic fees
• Price of optional extra classes with the instructor in case it is necessary to polish the exercises

It is only after summing up these costs that the total cost of diving course will be revealed.
On the average, in Poland in 2017 it oscillates between euro 400 - 600.
Therefore, do not be misled by the offers such as 'Open Water Diver course for euro 250' - when you calculate all additional elements, it may turn out that the amount will be multiplied by many times.

As with many questions about people, there is no single straightforward answer. It depends mainly on what you expect from the instructor, and at the same time - what you expect from yourself.
When you choose a driving licence course, you look for the school, opinions about the school, pass rate and other parameters that will be interesting for you personally. These parameters are not universal for everyone.

At the beginning of your diving journey, pay attention to whether the instructor focused on learning the above-mentioned expectations, on getting to know you, your abilities and attitude towards the course. Each of us has their own idea of the course, of diving, as well as their own feelings and thoughts - it is important for the instructor to be able to understand them and adjust the course programme to the particular group of trainees. Diving classes with teenagers are completely different from classes with a group of mates aspiring to join FORMOZA

Nowadays, in the times of massive information flow culture, it is very easy to find opinions about any instructor. In most organisations, it is possible to check the instructor's online status (i.e. data about whether the instructor is actually entitled to teach) and opinions of trainees. For example, at PADI the instructor's status can be checked here: http://apps.padi.com/scuba-diving/pro-chek/. When reading the opinions of trainees, remember that the opinions of individuals cannot always be a determinant of the training quality - the fact that a person evaluates a training as 'poor because it was difficult' is just a subjective assessment - perhaps for you it would be 'easy'.

The training standards of the particular organisation in which you decided to enrol on the course might be helpful for you. Search online or talk to the instructor about the course credit requirements - the minimum number of hours worked, the scope of material, as well as the scope of skills that a trainee must gain on a specific certification level. Standards are determined by the organisation rather than the instructor; however, they guarantee the minimum level for all trainees who apply for a certificate in a particular organisation. The method of passing knowledge and skills will obviously depend on the instructor - just like at school, there are also 'better' and 'worse' teachers here.

Apart from the instructor's skills and experience, the most important thing is the 'chemistry' between you. You will spend a lot of time together; perhaps, or maybe rather for sure, you will want to continue your diving education, take further steps and develop your skills. Being able to trust your instructor and feeling good with them is just as important as the logistics and equipment background.

This question can be compared to the choice of car brand for driving. Before you take the decision regarding the choice of the car to spend your money on, you think not only about the colour, but, perhaps first of all, about the technical parameters, potential performance, operating costs, service availability and probably a thousand other things. However, the situation can be reverse - perhaps there is this one particular brand on your mind and the new car is precisely the only right car of the only right brand?

It is similar with the choice of diving organisation. The teaching and safety standards in recreational diving are mostly very similar. It is worth making an effort to meet and get to know the instructor with whom you could potentially take your first steps in diving. This is because there is always a man behind an organisation, and whatever the organisation is like, you can run into a person you subjectively like more or less. Pay attention to the fact whether the organisation that you choose has a specific structure of standards, course structure, or whether you know the schedule and requirements right from the start. Ask about the certificate issuing procedure and entitlements you receive after the course completion.

Note that diving is learnt mostly in water, so the course should not consist mainly of theory. It is obviously important, but it will not replace the diving practice. The more renowned the organisation is, the easier it will be for you in diving centres or bases around the world, because a diving certificate authorises you not only to dive, but also to rent equipment or to fill in diving cylinders with proper breathing mixtures.

Remember that you do not automatically become a member of a specific organisation after completing the first course, or even a number of courses in a particular organisation. You are simply a diver certified in accordance with the standards of a particular organisation. At the higher levels of diving art, there are divers who possess certificates of many different organisations by selecting a specific instructor-specialist in a particular type of diving rather than an organisation.

This is slightly similar to the above-mentioned cars - you can either develop and tune the model you possess, or change to better models of the same brand, or change the brand and model completely. If you want to change the diving organisation in the future, there are no obstacles to do it.

Yes, elementary swimming skills are required to begin a diving course. During one of the first classes at the swimming pool, your instructor will check your swimming skills by doing a few basic exercises (depending on the organisation - swimming certain distance, or being able to float in water).

In order to be a safe diver, you will learn how to react in very unlikely situations of equipment failure - it may turn out that you will have to swim to the coast from the middle of the lake, towing your partner. Your skills must guarantee that you will be able to do this type of exercises successfully.

This question is very frequently asked by the beginners, divers who do not have the experience yet. During the course you will learn that depth as such is never the actual purpose of diving. The purpose of diving may include for example admiring underwater life, shipwrecks, exploration of new diving areas, underwater photography, or other individual goals of each diver. However, reaching depth can never be the goal of recreational diving itself. Such attitude may lead to accidents in which both divers and their buddy partners will suffer. This is important to realise right from the start and demonstrate a responsible approach to diving.

However, when starting a diving course, we receive certain entitlements that determine the maximum depth to which we can dive. In most organisations, the entitlements for the elementary diving course allow us to dive to 18 or 20 metres, depending on the organisation. This is more than a four-storey block of flats!
With the following steps in diving education, mostly referred to as advanced diving, we gain the right to dive to 30 metres. The deepest possible step to be achieved on the recreational ladder is the deep level, which entitles us to dive to as much as 39 or 40 metres deep, depending on the organisation. This depth is the absolute limit for recreational diving. At 40 metres, human body is exposed to pressure which is five times greater than on the surface, and our mind works in a completely different manner under the impact of respiratory gases under pressure. The air that we breathe consists of oxygen and nitrogen, and both these gases demonstrate narcotic properties, depending on the pressure achieved at a particular depth. In order to ‘descend even deeper’, first you must gain the appropriate skills, then practice, experience and proper training. It is only when we are very well prepared in many aspects that we can continue the diving exploration path.

Not only you can, but you have to! At the beginning of the diving journey, nobody can determine with full confidence what type will suit them best.
During the elementary diving course, the instructor will explain to you what particular elements of equipment are intended for, show various options, as well as select the most suitable equipment for you for the duration of the course. Once you start diving, you will see that there are as many equipment manufacturers and types of equipment depending on the type of configuration as there are manufacturers of smartphones. Do you prefer small handy devices for calling, or rather a large screen and excellent camera for taking photos? It is good to find out first what you are really going to need, before you make the purchase. By then you will be able to rent every element of equipment that interests you practically in any larger diving centre. In the diving centre, the instructor will also help you select the equipment elements suitable for you, based on their experience. Your centre will also help you with annual inspection or required maintenance in the future.

If you want to be a conscious, responsible, safe diver, you begin your adventure by enrolling on the elementary diving course. Regardless of the organisation chosen by you, upon completing such a course and complying with all required course credit requirements, your instructor will report you for certification in a particular organisation. Therefore, you will obtain a ‘licence’, referred to in diving as a certificate, which specifies your entitlements.

It is important for you to have your certificate with you whenever you go diving anywhere. This is a ‘proof’ for diving bases, indicating that you have complied with the requirements of a specific course and you are a certified diver. This document, in the form of a plastic card of the credit card size, will also allow you to rent equipment or fill the cylinder with specific gas mixtures that you will be entitled to, such as e.g. nitrox.

To start your adventure with diving, you don’t need to possess any specialist equipment for diving. You will be able to rent all that you need from the instructor or at the diving centre where you decide to do the course.
Good centres have huge and varied equipment base precisely in order to adapt well to each trainee.
The terms of equipment rental may be very different. Remember to ask about this before the course begins.

It happens that instructors or centres require the trainee to have their own ABC - i.e. diving mask, snorkel and fins. If you have your own ABC, you are guaranteed that it is fit and comfortable for you, which is important. However, on the other hand, buying any equipment before the course, when you do not really know what to pay your attention to, may not really be a good idea.
Ask your instructor for a recommendation and support with the choice of equipment - relying on their experience may be key for the equipment to serve you longer than just for a small number of diving classes during the course.

To start diving, you must possess the elementary swimming skills and willingness to learn. You will get to know everything that you need to be safe in water during the diving course. First you will learn the theory to find out what impact water has on our bodies and what happens under water both to our organisms and to the equipment that we use. You will get to know how to use the equipment, which will no longer seem to be complicated already after the first class. You will acquire the basic skills in shallow pool water and go diving in open water - all this by doing exercises under the vigilant eye of the instructor.
When you come to the diving course, you will simply know how to swim. When you finish it, you will be a diver, capable of discovering themselves and exploring areas that are still available for few, thanks to crossing the border of horizon separating the surface from the deep.

And how to find a martial arts club? Most of us have once looked for ‘something’ ‘somewhere’. We are usually assisted by Uncle Google. However, we recommend using industry portals, such as for example www.iliveunderwater.com. You will find in one location not only centres, but also diving instructors, bases, areas, descriptions of lakes or shipwrecks available for diving.
If you want to get to know our wider offer, join a diving conference or fair - in Poland e.g. Baltictech, wreck diving festival in Łódź, ‘Wiatr i Woda’ Sailing Fair and Festival. These events are accompanied by typical fair events where you will find stands of exhibitors, diving centres, organisations and manufacturers of diving equipment. You will also be able to listen to interesting lectures which - who knows - may direct your diving path.

One of the diving authorities once said that the best answer to a majority of questions concerning the diving industry is ‘it depends’. The same applies for this particular question. Whether a diving course abroad is a better idea than in Poland depends mainly on what you expect from a diving course and in what direction you would like to develop after the course.

When choosing a course in broadly understood hot countries, oriented rather towards the so-called masses and diving tourism, you have to realise that the instructor will fulfil the standard course programme within the shortest possible time and will not have the possibility to dedicate time for you individually, whether for conversation or for polishing the exercises. The obvious advantage of ‘hot countries’ is warmer water and its transparency, generally speaking. However, the Polish waters can be equally beautiful, they are rich in plants, fish and underwater creatures, although they are obviously very different. In Poland, a diving course is mainly connected with joining a diving group, that is, constant contact with divers, training, possibility of discussing any bothering issue, and also, consequently, the instructor’s availability in case of any doubts, even if you have already finished the course.

Another aspect is the language of the course and materials, which become your property after the course. Are you fluent enough in a particular language to have a course taught in it? If you choose a course abroad, make sure that you receive materials in Polish.

You must also remember that the standards of most organisations will only allow for diving provided that the conditions are not worse than during your training. This, in turn, means that when you finish a course in Poland, you will be able to dive practically all over the world; however, if you finish a course in Maldives, it will be difficult for you to dive in the Baltic Sea.

It shall be emphasized that Polish waters, contrary to the universal opinion of non-diving individuals, are really beautiful. Feel invited to watch that film that was recorded right after another person asked me a very classic question - but what can you actually see there? This question became an inspiration for assembling a number of shots which show, in line with the film’s title, ‘what can you see under water in Poland?’
http://vimeo.com/163219385

There is practically no single answer to such a question. The lower age limit when you can start diving pool games is 8. The first junior certifications can be obtained at the age of 10. But does it mean that if I am 60, I can no longer dive? Of course you can! There is no upper age limit that would not allow you to enter water. Obviously, the factors such as health condition, fitness, lifestyle and conditions in which we begin our adventure should be taken into consideration, but there is an increasing number of centres that offer courses dedicated to seniors. It depends only on us when we start to learn diving. I personally think that the sooner the better, and classes with children are the ones that bring most joy and satisfaction. When it comes to the season of the year, I recommend that the first descend should take place in water that is as warm as possible. It provides bigger comfort and possibility to focus on yourself and surrounding environment, which is completely new for us. But the season of the year itself is not important, because when it’s winter in Poland, it’s summer in Australia. If you are in a place where it is warm and see beautiful transparent water - give it a try!

Snorkelling originates from the English word ‘snorkel’, which simply means a pipe. This is the easiest form of observing the underwater world, that is, watching it through the mask, using the snorkel as the ‘device’ for breathing and fins for stabilisation on the water surface. With the snorkel we can obviously dive a few metres for a moment to take a closer look at the underwater formations or underwater life; however, this basic equipment only allows for short-term stay under the surface, at small depths.

Diving with breathing equipment, i.e. scuba diving, means descending under water surface using diving equipment, i.e. scuba gear. The basic diving equipment consists of a cylinder with compressed air, diving regulator, personal flotation device (popularly known as ‘jacket’) and ABC - i.e. mask, snorkel and fins. In diving with equipment we also use diving suits, which in recreational diving are usually made of neoprene foam, less frequently of dry diving suits. Diving with breathing equipment allows us to remain under water deeper and longer than with stopped breathing. We can plan an underwater trip and complete it without the necessity to ascend to take another breath - we have the necessary air in the diving cylinder with ourselves.

The choice of diving school is similar to the choice of any other school or course. When you choose the language school - what do you look for? Distance from home? Number of offered languages? Group size? Individual lesson opportunities? Perhaps these factors are important, or maybe there are others.
The same is with diving - when choosing the diving school, first of all think about what you are looking for, and only then review the offers with respect to your own criteria. It is important that the school should be represented by instructors with active status, i.e. teaching qualifications and insurance. A school having their own equipment facilities, compressor system, a few or even many instructors, organising diving trips, may teach you just as well as an individual instructor who does not represent any school. This is because passing knowledge does not only depend on the equipment, but also, or maybe especially, on the approach to the trainee and experience of the instructor.

You cannot know it for sure ‘Centre’ is an organisational unit of human beings. If a particular diving centre has good opinions and is certified in specific organisations, it is likely to observe specific standards and have experienced instructors teaching. However, it does not have to be a rule. Therefore, before you begin a course, meet the instructor who will run the course. Talk to them, ask about their experience, about diving, and what their classes look like. After such a conversation you will get the picture of what awaits you, but also what you can expect from a particular instructor. Does their method of communication suit you? Are they willing to answer your questions? Do they talk in an understandable manner? It is precisely with this instructor that you will spend several hours, learning completely new things; you should feel comfortable to be able to fully use what will be provided to you.
If you want to verify the scope of material learned, ask the instructor about the issues that are mandatory in a particular organisation. In the booklets for recording diving (the so-called logbooks), you can very frequently find materials to be learnt during classes. Therefore, you can trace yourself whether you perform the required skills in a smooth and comfortable manner. Remember that learning diving is not only about knowledge provided ‘from the outside’, but mostly about your own work, improvement of further skills and gaining more experience.
You will find an example of a table for planning skills improvement here:
http://padiproseurope.com/plan-the-dive-dive-the-plan-with-the-padi-skill-practice-and-planning-slate/

Diving specialisations are ‘the next step’ in your diving education. Once you are an elementary diver and you have completed a dozen, or maybe a few dozen dives in different conditions, you begin to want something more. When you have a specific certificate, you also know that you are allowed to dive in conditions not worse than during your diving course.
And what if you want to dive at night? Or deeper? Or in a shipwreck? The systems of diving specialisations were created precisely to enable divers to develop further skills and gain new experiences under the eye of the instructor.
Specialisations have different names in different organisations, but usually you can easily guess what they concern by their names.
You will find an example of specialisation path here:
https://www.padi.com/sites/default/files/2017-09/ConEd2017_chart.png
or here:
https://www.tdisdi.com/sdi/get-certified/
Ask your instructor about the diving specialisation that is interesting for you. Remember that ongoing improvement of skills and acquisition of experience will allow you to feel safe in water.

Imagine that you have just received your driving licence. It cost you a lot of effort, learning theory, manoeuvres, finally driving in the city. And finally - phew! - you have passed the exam. You frame your driving licence, hang it on the wall and admire for the next five years... after that time you sit behind the wheel and decide to go on a trip to the mountains. Is it wise? Is it safe?
Of course not.
It is similar with diving.
If you ‘put it on the shelf’ after obtaining the certificate, you will simply forget the skills you have acquired. In order not to forget, as well as to be able to improve constantly, a special system of diving specialisations was developed, allowing to gain new skills and, at the same time, to climb the subsequent ‘steps’ in diving. If you want to discover safely the subsequent ‘levels of initiation’, become familiar with the shipwrecks, charms of night diving in the dark, perhaps a higher number of cylinders in sidemount configuration, or maybe others - among many offered to us by organisations, it is enough to talk to your instructor. With the instructor, you will be able to plan your diving ‘career path’ best - maybe to the Master Scuba Diver level, maybe to the instructor level, or maybe in a completely different, technical diving manner? Remember that each outstanding diver once used to be in the same place where you are. Everyone began with the basics, with a few specialisations. Whatever you do later depends on you only.

Just like any other sport, diving has many ‘faces’. You can go on motorcycle trips, or take part in motorcycle cross-country races - how to compare the level of danger? And both these activities consist in riding a motorbike.
In this study I will refer to recreational diving which we had previously defined here: How deep can I dive?
Recreational diving, just like any other sport, is safe on the condition that specific rules are observed. These rules are discussed during the diving courses, but I would like to bring them closer collected in one place by a global organisation acting to the benefit of divers and diving world - Divers Alert Network (DAN).

The safety rules prepared by DAN can be found here:
http://www.daneurope.org/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=2128d869-87f9-4868-9834-1acc191c0539&groupId=10103

Below I will try to discuss the rules based on DAN principles, emphasizing at the same time that each diver must be aware of the injury risk when entering water. Water is a foreign environment for the human being. We do not have gills and cannot breathe under water, whereas breathing is necessary for us to live. However, we can minimise the risk of failure of equipment or injuries, provided that we observe specific procedures and rules.

Skills
Take care of your knowledge and skills, improve yourself, learn from those who are better than you - diving is an ongoing improvement process, do not neglect it. Remember not to exceed your limits - not only the formal training limits, but also limits on a specific day - do not dive when you feel bad, when the conditions make you feel unconfident or uncomfortable. Remember that you do not have to enter water if you do not feel like doing it. Gain experience and skills gradually, first in controlled conditions, and only then ‘go into the deep water’.

Health
Examine your health condition regularly, at least once a year. This is absolutely mandatory after each diving injury or disease, but even if you have not suffered any of these, it is worth being familiar with your health condition. Good health, physical and mental condition reduce the risk level in diving.

Irrigation
Remember that our body mostly consists of fluids in which gases dissolve when diving. To improve the process of gas dissolution, and then gas release during the ascent, we must remain well irrigated. Avoid alcohol Also avoid huge effort before and after diving - remember that desaturation also continues on the surface when diving has been finished.

Equipment
Use the appropriate diving equipment for a particular type of diving. Take care of the equipment! Only the equipment which is properly taken care of and serviced will not fail you in the least expected moment. Use the scientific accessories required at a particular moment (computer or timer and depth measurement rod, diving buoy, adequate cutting tools). Remember that the best accessories are useless if you do not know how to use them - improve your skills so that the equipment becomes your ally rather than an obstacle in an emergency situation.

Partner
Your partner and support from the surface are also elements for providing security under water. However, two divers swimming under water next to each other are not enough to be called ‘partners’. Partners must take proper care of each other, have a developed, coherent system of signs and reactions, as well as the appropriate level of training to be able to actually secure each other. It is good to have a constant diving partner, coherent procedures and similar training level. Practise with your partner emergency procedures in controlled waters, even as a fun element - build the sense of comfort, familiarity with procedures and sense of trust to your own skills in yourself and your partner. Do not be just two objects in water - be the real buddy partners.

Limits
Observe the diving limits! The certificate issued to you by a diving organisation authorises you to perform specific diving. If you are willing to perform another type of diving, above the certification limits, gain new skills by taking part in a specific course or specialisation.
Take care to perform diving in line with the profiles you were taught - avoid the ‘yo-yo’ or ‘saw-tooth’ profiles.

Ascent
Observe the ascent rate not higher than 9/10 m/minute, or such rate that is displayed on your computer. Get familiar with the computer service, use conservative settings. It is better to dive conservatively with specific safety margin than rely on your ‘luck’. There may not be a place for luck under water.

Emergency procedures
Be familiar with the emergency procedures in the area where you dive. In case of suspecting a decompression injury, give oxygen immediately and notify the relevant services. Never perform recompression in water!

Flying
Observe the procedures concerning flying an airplane after diving.

Diving, just like any other sport, carries an element of risk. If you observe the above recommendations, you can minimise this risk.