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Diving From Your Own Boat |
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Written by Administrator
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Saturday, 28 July 2007 19:42 |
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| Dive Your Own Boat | Many people, especially new divers and divers that haven't spent any time diving the gulf coast, don't give enough consideration to this topic. To many have spent a lot of time fishing, skiing or just boating and think that experience is all they need to dive the gulf safely. There are, however, many things that might sneak up and bite you if don't plan ahead. Failure to take the proper precautions and bring the right gear can mean the difference between a successful dive trip and floating alone in the gulf for hour, days or until you sink for the last time.
Take these few simple precautions and you should be able to dive the gulf without problems and any problems you do encounter will be minor as a result of your excellent preparation, | Check out the West Marine "Deal of the Day" - One deal per day, everyday!  | | The first consideration is Common Sense. By this I mean, USE COMMON SENSE when planning and executing your dive trip. Think and don't do stupid things. The following are real considerations for conducting boat dives from your own boat. | Save Big on rebate offers from West Marine 
| 1. USE COMMON SENSE: enough said about this one for the time being. You can't use to much common sense so use it whenever you have the opportunity. | | 2. Make sure your boat is suitable for the conditions: Just about any boat can be used for diving. Some boats may, in general, be better for diving but, in addition to being suitable for diving the boat should be appropriate for the sea conditions you might encounter in the area you are diving. Not all boats are good for everything, for example: a pontoon boat, although it has a lot of uncluttered deck space and generally provides a very stable platform, is not the best boat for the open ocean where you have rolling swells or higher seas. On the other hand, there are plenty of days, particularly toward the end of the summer, where there is no breeze and the gulf water is glassy smooth.This is one place where the COMMON SENSE factor comes into play. Choose the right boat for the trip. | | 3. Make sure your boat is properly equipped: You will need the following equipment. - Dive flag
- Radio
- GPS or other navigation equipment to locate the dive site
- First Aid kit
- Emergency Oxygen
- Swim Line
- Drift Line
- Drift Line float
- Dive ladder
- Shepherds Crook (Rig Hook) if you are diving oil platforms
- Buoy Line
Some of this equipment is found on most boats. The VHF radio, a GPS or other navigational equipment, rig hook and first aid kit are used even if all you do is ride around. The lines, dive ladder and, dive flag and O2 are peculiar to dive boats. Most purely recreational divers fail to carry O2 with them even though it is the primary initial treatment for most serious dive related injuries. It is absolutely to your advantage to carry emergency O2 and have the training to use it. | | | 4. Stow your gear aboard so it will not come loose and create a hazard. The last thing you want is several hundred pounds of gear (like pressurized scuba tanks) banging around the boat in a rough sea. This means, inf you have room for them, you need tank racks. There are numerous styles, from pre-cut foam blocks to home built wooden racks. Not every style is suitable for every boat so whatever works best for your boat is the best style rack to use. | | 5. Take the time to rig the lines properly before you get in the water: I ran a dive charter business in Gulf Shores for approximately eight years and at least once a year one of our boats would pick up a diver floating alone in the gulf. In almost every instance we observed the personal boat the diver was from had not taken the time to set the proper safety lines before starting diving. Take the time to set the lines and avoid possible problems. Setting the lines is simple and takes less than five minutes if you have everything set up ahead of time. | | | 6. Always leave someone on the boat: Preferably you would like someone on the boat the actually operate it, including pulling or releasing the anchor, if need be. At a minimum your boat tender should be able to use the marine radio to call for help if there is a problem. | | | 7. Make sure you can get out of the water at the end of the dive: You would be surprised how many people overlook this one. Make sure you boat has a ladder that is strong enough to support you getting out of the water and make sure the ladder goes deep enough to make climbing it possible. Many ladders are to short to allow easy access. | | Images of the equipment and procedures mentioned here will be added soon.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 01 May 2009 21:24 )
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