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What You Need to Know about Scuba Diving

There are a number of important facts about scuba diving that you need to know. The first one is that you need to have a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus. These high pressure tanks that are strapped to the back of the diver, provide air to the diver that is regulated through a breathing device. This lets the diver go very deep in the water without worrying about coming up for oxygen.

Next of the facts about scuba diving is that you need specific diving apparel to protect your body and allow you to swim easily. Such apparel includes wetsuits, gloves, hoods, computer watch, etc. The next fact about scuba diving is that nearly anyone can be certified for scuba diving. More than one million people get certified for scuba diving each year. As long as you can put on a heavy tank filled with compressed and dive down deep, you can become certified. The thing that scares most people away from scuba diving is that breathing through the rubber tube connected to the air tank is the only way to stay alive that deep in the water. People have a fear that something will go wrong, but it is rare that something does.

The next of the facts about scuba diving is that the diver must make a decision on what type of underwater adventure would be preferred. You could dive in warm or cold water, or explore locations of shipwrecks. If you are on a cruise or in other specific instances, you may not have to get certified before going scuba diving. In cruises to the Caribbean, Acapulco, and the Florida Keys, you can get a one day crash course on scuba diving before you go exploring.

If you want to become a serious diver, you will need to know the mental and physical facts about scuba diving before pursuing the sport. Physically, you will need to look at your swimming, breathing, and equalizing abilities. You need to be able to swim well, not only for exploring, but also in case of an emergency where you need to be rescued.

Breathing-wise, you need to be able to breath solely through your mouth. This is one of the most important facts about scuba diving, because otherwise you won't be able to stay under water. When it comes to equalizing, you need to know how to "pop" your ears. When you go deep in the water, there is a lot of pressure that builds up in the ears, and so you must "pop" your ears in order to equalize the pressure. To do this correctly, you will need to consult your scuba instructor or a doctor.

The last of the facts about scuba diving is knowing whether you have any physical conditions that might limit your ability to scuba dive. Such conditions include being overweight, fatigued, having diabetes, heart conditions, or any other ailments, and prone to drowning. It is always a good idea to get a physical done by a doctor before scuba diving.
For information on purchasing scuba diving apparel and equipment or finding scuba diving lessons, start searching online. You are sure to find everything you need.

About the Author

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Scuba Diving in London and the UK

My name is Alex and I run a busy dive shop and school in Clapham, South London called Diving Leisure London.

When I'm chatting to people about diving I get asked all sorts of questions  about the sport itself and also about UK diving.

I've decided to write a blog article to try to answer some of those questions.

Where do you dive?

I dive all over the world, The Red Sea, Malta, the Maldives, South Africa. I also dive regularly in the Uk in places like Plymouth, Falmouth, Portland, Scapa Flow as well as inland lakes and anywhere deep enough. You can learn to scuba dive anywhere there is water deep enough. Even as close as Heathrow... Scuba instruction in the UK is usually of a very high standard.

Why scuba dive in the UK?

Apart from exploring wrecks, collecting scallops for dinner and the many other underwater activities, UK diving also offers the opportunity to extend your social group and to have great weekends away where you can enjoy parts of our nation that you don't usually see.

What do you see?

Lots and lots and lots. Wrecks, including battleships, cargo vessels and submarines. Lots of marine life including, large crabs, dogfish, dolphins, seals etc, and some great underwater topography.

Isn't UK diving cold?

Yes water temperature in the UK is a bit cooler than other parts of the world, but that doesn't mean you can't dive in it. It's like presuming that you can't go out in the winter. As you would above water , when it's colder, you wrap up warmer. Drysuits are designed for keeping you warm whilst you scuba dive in cold water and give you the opportunity to dive year round. Scuba diving certification for using a drysuit is only two dives or one additional dive if you do your open water or advanced open water course in a drysuit.

Isn't it dangerous?

In short, no. Scuba diving is an extremely safe and safety conscious sport. When diving responsibly and within the limits you're trained problems are unlikely to occur. Even so, you are trained in how to deal with problems, however unlikely they may be.

Bare in mind that unless you've had a conversation with a professional diver, the stories you've heard are likely to have been dramatized to make them sound more exciting or death defying than they really were...

Isn't it really hard to control your buoyancy in a drysuit?

I was recently having a chat with I diver who wanted to dive in the UK, but only during the warmer months as he had been led to believe drysuit diving is really difficult. Initially it may be a learning curve, but with proper training, diving in a drysuit can be as much fun and as easy as diving in a wetsuit. Personally if I could I'd always dive in a drysuit...

Is it really worth me doing all these extra scuba courses?

Scuba certification in as many specialities as possible is of great benefit to your diving ability. Scuba training in additional areas helps you gain valuable expertise and to learn directly from a scuba diving instructor. Scuba diving instruction in areas such as wreck, deep, nitrox, peak performance buoyancy and drysuit are great if you're looking to make the most of UK diving. The rescue diver and divemaster courses are also great for gaining experience.

Where can I learn scuba in London?

Chances are wherever you live in London you'll be able to find a scuba training school within about 5 miles of where you live, or about half an hours journey time on public transport, all offering a wide range of scuba diving courses. Most offer scuba classes every week.

Diving Leisure London runs all it's classes in Battersea near to Clapham Junction train station and with Clapham Junction being a hub, it's quite easy to get to from most parts of London.

What is PADI scuba?

The Professional Association of Diving Instructors is known as PADI. PADI are the largest scuba diving training organization in the world, offering scuba diving classes for all levels of scuba diver.

What scuba diving course should I do?

Which scuba lessons to sign up for is going to depend on your level of training. If you haven't received any scuba diving training look into doing either a discover scuba diving course, or the open water diver course. A scuba instructor will be able to advise you in which scuba diving lessons to take, depending on what you are looking to get out of diving.

About the Author

Alex Griffin is an experienced scuba diving instructor who runs Diving Leisure London in
Clapham South West London. Visit his website at: http://www.divingleisurelondon.co.uk

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