The diver wishing to expand their diving knowledge and skills with Technical Training must be prepared for extensive training before committing to these courses. Unlike traditional Advanced or Specialty courses, where relatively inexpensive additional equipment may have been required or recommended, by contrast, Technical training requires specialized equipment purchases that can become quite costly.
Cavern and Cave Diving courses have some unique equipment requirements. Some of your existing Open Water equipment may be unsafe or unnecessary in the overhead environment.
Use the chart below to review the equipment requirements for each of the 4 levels of Cave Diver certification.
Cavern and Cave Diving Courses Equipment Requirements
Key: A=Acceptable for use, H=Highly Recommended, R=Required, #=Quantity of specific item required
* Equipment that can be rented in Florida.
Print the below chart as
a
| Equipment |
Cavern Diver |
Intro to Cave / Basic Cave Diver |
Apprentice Cave Diver / Full Cave Diver |
| 2 Tanks (85cuft or larger) * | R | ||
| 2 Tanks (85cuft or larger) with Dual-orifice (Y or H) tank valves * | H | R | |
| Doubles (85cuft
tanks or larger) * Required for Basic Cave Diver certification |
A | A/R | R |
| Regulator with Primary and Secondary second stages | R | ||
| Regulator with a Primary second stage | R | R | |
| An additional regulator (with first and second stages) for use with doubles | R | R | |
| 7-foot regulator hose | R | R | R |
| Full wet suit with hood and boots | A | A | A |
| Drysuit (with P-valve) | H | H | H |
| BCD or backplate and wing with power inflator | R | R | R |
| Pressure gauge | R | R | R |
| Bottom timer or dive computer and dive tables | R | R | R,2 |
| Depth gauge with MDI | R | R | R |
| Weight belt and weights if necessary | A | A | A |
| Wrist Slate | R | ||
| Primary dive light (may be rechargeable but non-lantern or pistol-grip style) | R | ||
| Primary dive light (umbilical, rechargeable with a hand-mount, minimum 20 watt standard or 10 watt HID bulb * | H | R | R |
| Small Backup light (non-rechargeable, non-lantern or pistol-grip style) | R | R,2 | R,2 |
| Primary cave-diving reel with approximately 350-400 feet of guideline | H | R | R |
| Safety reel or line spool (minimum of 140ft of line) | R | R | R |
| Jump/Gap reel or line spool (minimum of 50ft of line) | R,2 | ||
| Cutting tools | R | R | R,2 |
| Line Arrows | R,3 | R,5 | |
| Line Markers (Cookies) | R,2 | R,2 | |
| O2 Clean Deco bottle (30 cuft min) * | R | ||
| O2 Clean Dedicated Deco Regulator with minimum 39” regulator Hose and pressure gauge (on 6” HP hose recommended) | R | ||
| Dive Accident Insurance | R | R | R |
It is also strongly encouraged that you discuss the suitability of the equipment you own with the course coordinator Jim Vafeas before bringing it to class. Equally important, do not purchase any new equipment for Cavern or Cave Diver training without discussing it with us first. Equipment that isn't right can distract from your enjoyment of Cavern and Cave Diving, and interfere with the learning process. In some instances, it can actually be unsafe. Please contact the course coordinator Jim Vafeas with all your equipment questions and concerns at 631-756-0924.
Primary Dive Lights:
|
Examples of
acceptable rechargeable, non-lantern,
Examples of unacceptable, lantern or pistol-grip style lights:
|
Backup Dive Lights:
|
Examples of
acceptable, non-rechargeable style
lights:
|
|
|
Primary Cave Diving Reels
|
Examples of Primary Cave
Diving Reels: (approximately 350ft to 400ft of line required)
|
Safety Line Reels
|
Examples of Line /
Finger Spools: (minimum of 140ft of line required)
|
Jump-Gap Reel / Finger Spools
|
Examples of Line /
Finger Spools: (minimum of 50ft of line required)
|
Cutting Tools:
|
Examples of cutting
tools:
|
Please consult the staff at Tiedemann's Diving Center for current pricing and additional details or any other questions you may have.