Depth limits - rules or recommendations!

[gansell]

Seeing as this has come up on several previous posts, there is an interesting article on it in this quaters Undersea Journal.

If a PADI professional takes a diver on a dive over the PADI recommended depth limit 18m, 30m, 40m etc, and it is NOT a training dive, then they will be subject to Quality Assurance (QA) procedures. Even if it is just a pleasure dive.

PADI makes depth recommendations, and expects it's members to observe them in a professional manner.

So, how many people stop at 18m on the 20m ledge at stoney?

[Reikimaster]

being dumb, what does QA stand for?

RM

i'll put the "dooh!" in now to save me posting again later!

[gansell]

Quality Assurance from big brother.

[And]

Hi

I've always looked at it in terms of recommendations. I just do the dives I am ready to do, or whoever the least experienced member of the team is. Sometimes I may talk to a 'mentor' about a dive I want to do, but that is just for a confirmation of what I already thought really.

The trouble is knowing when you are ready, and not rushing into deeper dives just because you are 'qualified' to do so. To dive beyond the depth you are qualified to really does depend on experience and the diver.

I'm not a professional diver so I also don't really care Those who want to dive outside their experience, training, and quals are going to do it anyway, we'll just read about it in some incident report later. Dive policing is impossible as the ultimate responsibility lies with the individual diver, as well it should.

Andy

[jph6969]

Originally Posted by gansell

If a PADI professional takes a diver on a dive over the PADI recommended depth limit 18m, 30m, 40m etc, and it is NOT a training dive, then they will be subject to QA procedures. Even if it is just a pleasure dive.

PADI makes depth recommendations, and expects it's members to observe them in a professional manner.

So what about a Padi open water diver that has say 150+ dives and has dived all over the world including many to 30+ m but has stayed within the rec dive limit of 40m? Padi and all agencies for that matter can only have recomendations, because they are not enforceable in law. The only thing they can do is revoke your membership - Padi saying no to your money I don't think so!

Jason

[NotDeadYet]

I imagine this is more a concern over getting sued rather than any real concern for safety. But then I'm a cynic

[nigelH]

Originally Posted by gansell

PADI makes depth recommendations, and expects it's members to observe them in a professional manner.

That's OK then.

Not many of us are PADI members we just received qualifications from them.

Actually I think most of the depth limits I've been set were quite good. I suspect it will be quite a while before I push my current one and by then I will have the hours/dives to take the training a stage further if I want to go there.

If deco wasn't so darn boring I might be tempted to some deeper sites but....

[garethwoodruff]

I suspect that PADI's view is that its professional grades should be setting an example!

My view on all this is that on holiday or a club dive or if you have life insurance you obey the limits of your qualification.

If you dive with a club then you understand that you obey the rules, thats one of parts of being in a club.

If your on holiday then you need your insurnace to be valid and if you exceed your qualification depth it ain't gonna be valid.

If you have life insurance and have an incidnet doing a too deep dive.........

If your on a UK dive and your with a buddy, both dived up and say as a AOW and do 35 meters, so what??? (assuming you do not have the deep speciality)

The overuling principle is do what is safe.

G

[Colin Marriott]

Originally Posted by gansell

Seeing as this has come up on several previous posts, there is an interesting article on it in this quaters Undersea Journal.

If a PADI professional takes a diver on a dive over the PADI recommended depth limit 18m, 30m, 40m etc, and it is NOT a training dive, then they will be subject to QA procedures. Even if it is just a pleasure dive.

Best not tell 'em then

ColinM

[James Price]

Depth limits are set for a reason, that being to keep levels of risk a diver exposes him or herself to with an exceptable limit. And regardless of how we all feel about different training agancies truth be known if you take a close look at the limits that they provide, you will notice that they are all very similar to each other ( not including technical agencies ) for certifications of a similar level.

It is right that there is really no way that these limits are going to be policed, but it is worth baring in mind especially if on holiday that if you do dive beyond these "recommendations" that you insurance will most likelly be void, and I have heard of more than one diver having problems due to diving beyond their limits.

At the end of the day it could be compared to driving a car in that speeding above the limit is all very good and may get you where you want to go faster - but you are more likelly to have an "issue" and may not be ready with the knowledge needed to get out of it safely - and that IS when it hits the fan .