Downey Diving - Dry Suit Specialty

Dry Suit Specialty

Water may cover seven-tenths of the earth's surface, but if it weren't for exposure suits, diving would be limited to a relatively narrow band straddling the equator. That would indeed be too bad, because some of the best diving lies well north and south of tropical waters, in lakes at altitude and at deeper depths that constantly remain cool. Without protection from the cold, some of the best diving would be inaccessible.

Of the exposure suit types available, the modern dry suit has opened the door to comfortable diving in the coolest water - in some instances, you may be warmer underwater in your dry suit than at the surface preparing to dive! In our region, adding a dry suit to your equipment adds to the number of dive sites you can visit and extends the dive season into the cooler months.

While the dry suit offers the most warmth, it does require you to learn special techniques not needed with other exposure suits. Fortunately, it's not much of a drawback because learning and mastering dry suit diving skills isn't difficult.

Overview

Dry suit diving has become increasingly popular in recent years. While dry suits were once used almost exclusively for situations such as ice diving or deep wreck diving, sport divers are now using dry suits on a regular basis. Material technology, valve design, and zipper reliability have all improved to a point where dry suits deliver greater value per dollar for cold and temperate water diving. This course will provide the diver with a basic understanding of the knowledge and skills needed to minimize risks and gain experience in dry suit diving. It will train scuba divers to properly use and maintain dry suits. By learning proper dry suit use and maintenance, you will extend your opportunities for diving to year-round.

Program Description

Two scuba dives.
Maximum depth 60 feet.
Completion of a confined-water dry suit training session is required of students never having used a dry suit prior to enrolling in the course.

Program Steps

Read Dry Suit Diver chapter in PADI Adventures in Diving and complete chapter review, or read the dry suit specially manual and watch the video.
Dives can be completed locally.

Prerequisites

Certification: PADI Open Water, NAUI Scuba Diver or equivalent
Previous Dives: The elective dry suit dive from the PADI or NAUI Advanced Open Water Diver course may be counted toward this specialty.

Class Schedule

Date	Location	Cost	Registration
This course is offered "on demand" please email us if you are interested in this specialty.