Scuba Certification Advice!

[gysgt7486]

Hi All

I'll be on vacation the first week of May, and going to Florida. Taking 2-days to complete my certification in Florida about 13 miles from Spring Hill, FL. The school where I'm going to said I can take most of the classes here in New Jersey and finish 2 half days in Florida.

Is there anything I need to know, before I sign-up! Also where would you recommend for me to buy my gear which I will need for the certification?

I live in PA, but I work in the New Jersey area.

Appreciate your input, thanks

 

[reefinmo]

gysgt7486, the way it works is you would take the classroom and pool parts of the class locally in PA/NJ. Then your instructor will give you what is called a referral to use when you finish up the open water portion of your class in FL. The referral tells your instructor in FL what parts of the class you've completed.

If possible, I would try to finish up the entire class before you go to FL so you can just enjoy diving and having fun when you are there instead of having to worry about what you have to do to finish up your class. But that may not be practical depending on the water/temperature conditions in your area before your trip.

I would definitely buy at a minimum a mask, snorkel, fins, and neoprene boots before your class. The most important thing about these items is to buy whatever fits you the best. That will go a long way to making sure your diving experience is positive. Any of the major brands are fine. Cost is irrelevant. Don't try to save $10 on a mask that doesn't fit as well to try to save a few bucks. It's not worth it. I'd buy from a well respected local retailer so they can fit you in the proper equipment and can handle exchanges if needed.

There's nothing you need to know before you sign up other than to get ready for the time of your life! Well, you do at least need to know how to swim a little and there are a few medical conditions which could preclude you from diving, but most of the time they just require a doctor to sign off saying you are OK to dive if you have them. Your local instructor will give you the details on all of that.

Have fun in your class! It really is a lot of fun, even better than you can imagine!

 

[gysgt7486]

Appreciate your and reply. Thanks

 

[billsreef]

reefinmo nailed it. Do the classroom work and pool work locally, and your local instructor will give a referral to do the open water check dives down in Florida.

 

[kplummer]

Yes I agree with Bill. I have been an advanced diver for over six years now, and I did my book work, and pool work first then did my open water when I went to Key Largo, Florida and very glad that I did, it gave me more time to dive rather than doing school work.

Check divers outlet, they have some good pricing. Or if you have a local dive shop check with them.

 

[organism]

Also where would you recommend for me to buy my gear which I will need for the certification?

I think you just need booties, fins, gloves, mask and a snorkel, in general they'll supply the rest. craigslist is great for fins, masks and snorkels, so many people selling used gear on there that usually in great shape.

 

[gysgt7486]

Thanks, i will take all your advise. I'll do everything here in NJ or PA and the dive in FL

 

[AndoCleophus]

Sometimes I wish i had done my open water dives down somewhere tropical, however; I found that diving in the caribbean the first time after training in a murky quarry made me so much more at ease. For me it felt like learning to dive in 5-10 ft of visibility made it seem so much easier when i got into the more pristine waters in the tropics. Either way you can't go wrong, but if you've dove in a quarry you definitely have great appreciation of water quality/visibilty when you head down south...Good luck to you on your certifications.

 

[psilver]

I agree with Ando there... I used to teach in PA/NJ (Princeton) and we used to do our open water dives at Dutch Springs quarry, up in PA, and the difference for those who then went to the Caribbean was astounding... if you can, you should do them up there, as I would assume that is where you would be doing the open water dives... of course, it will be quite cold this time of year... but good luck to you...

Make sure your referral documents are all in order...

 

[snorvich]

What he said. Do all your work where you are, enjoy the difference where you are going. Be sure to test any mask you buy for fit.