Apart from the Sidemount equipment you will need your normal wetsuit, fins mask, computer, compass, DSMB, and other accessories.
Certificate cards: These are issued only to those who have earned them. Certification is not guaranteed by simply taking part in a course. Multiple training agencies might offer certification cards for cave courses. C-cards usually cost about $30, depending on which agency you choose. Talk to your instructor for details.
I can't recall when or why it was that I decided to take the Sidemount course. Like most of my diving decisions it was just a matter of "oh, that looks cool", and I was willing to give it a try. Sidemount would have been a valuable certification that I could use for future training. Sidemount certification would also be helpful if I wanted to go cave diving.
Sidemount diving was originally developed in cave diving. However, it has now made its way into recreational non-overhead diving. Simply put, sidemount diving means that you no longer wear one or two tanks on your back. Instead, you wear your tanks on either your side. The tanks can be attached to a Sidemount BCD with clips and/orbungee cords. This gives you great flexibility. Cave divers were able to use this flexibility to allow them to transport their tanks underwater and fit into tight spaces.
To extend their time at the wrecks and reefs below the ocean floor, decompression divers use oxygen mixtures. Decompression divers can cruise around the ocean floor for as long as 60 minutes, whereas sport divers may only be able to do two bottom dives at 100ft for 15 minutes each.
You will also learn how to use Sidemount regulators. Usually, you will have one regulator on a long hose as well as one regulator on a short hose with a necklace. Unlike your normal regs, Sidemount regs are also marked so you can easily distinguish which tank you are breathing from. During my training, this included a swivel joint for my short hose regulator. In addition, you will have 2 SPGs – one for each first stage.
Despite the gear choice the entry level tech diver will be taught to streamline their equipment to prevent dangling items and drag. This ensures a maximized profile for efficient propulsion and awareness.
While technical diving is still fun, it's not for people who wish to go deeper. Cave and decompression dives carry more risk. The best way to reduce the risk is to plan your dives and train well. This is why divers who take these dives must be held to a higher standard. It takes practice to become a competent diver. There is no substitute for the practice and time in the water. Divers will be able to see that the minimum standards are frequently exceeded during training courses. Individual technical instructors sometimes do this. Technical training teaches divers how to redundancy. It enables them to solve problems at 1500 feet inside a cave. It's not easy and it's scary, but it's an important aspect of diving within that environment. Technical training can be challenging, but it can also be fun. At the end of it, the diver will have the ability to see areas that are completely closed off to the rest of the world.
Technical diving means that a diver is not allowed to reach the surface from any point during the dive. It could be due to a ceiling in the form of a cave/wreck or virtual ceilings created by decompression obligations. To avoid decompression sickness, you must perform mandatory stops on ascent when the NDL's are exceeded. This usually requires the use special equipment like Sidemounts and Twinsets. Twinsets and Sidemounts require special gas mixes, additional training, and twinsets/sidemounts to ensure that you can perform these stops correctly on ascent in order to maximize Nitrogen offgassing.
Sidemount diving is easy with an Open Water Diver. You will need to be able to handle your equipment yourself. Sidemount diving adds a new dimension in terms of equipment setup and skill.
New gear means new techniques. Sidemount diving, even if it's simple, requires some new skills (easily learned).
You are interested in becoming Sidemount Diver? This article will provide all the information you need about what it takes to become a Sidemount diver.
By allowing divers to exhale gas, the rebreather can extend their diving capabilities. The rebreather will then recycle the gas and inject the required amount of gas into the cylinder. This can dramatically increase the dive time when compared to using double the size and weight cylinders, especially for deeper dives. You can have rebreathers back- or sidemounted. The profile they create will depend on their configuration.
You may also be interested in the PADI tec Sidemount Diving Course.
Technical diving (also known as tec diving or tech diving) is non-professional scuba diving that exceeds the agency-specified limits of recreational diving.
The depth range of oxygen rebreathers (simple closed circuit) is limited to approximately 6 m, beyond which the risk of acute oxygen toxicity rises to unacceptable levels very quickly.
To begin a technical diving course, you must have completed the following prerequisites: a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver certificate or equivalent, a PADI Enriched Air Diver certificate or equivalent, and a PADI Deep Diver certificate or proof of at least 10 dives to 30 metres/100 feet.