Cave Diver

This course is created to give you, the student, the ability together with your team, to be able to safely dive cave like environments.

Goal with the course

This course is created to give you, the student, the ability together with your team, to be able to safely dive cave like environments.

Cave Diver is developed under Scandinavian conditions where techniques and procedures from the start are adapted for cave like diving in water temperatures around 3°C with the obligatory equipment this kind of dive requires. During 12 days we build on the experience you already have from your Extended Basic Skills course. You learn how to plan and perform dives in cave like conditions with Nitrox or air as bottom gas and we dive with a bottom stage from the first day of the course.

Even though the course is created for complex cold water diving, it gives you essential knowledge to experience similar diving in warmer waters. You get the theoretical knowledge concerning cave environments and practical experience from at least 2 different systems.

After passing the course, the student is able to:

  • Explain the importance of preserving the cave like environment
  • Configure and use equipment for diving using technical diving equipment according to SwedTech Diving equipment configuration
  • Prevent and solve equipment related issues such as entanglement and equipment failures
  • Plan and perform dives with no decompression limits
  • Solve problems regarding loss of gas and prevent greater loss of gas
  • Multiple problem solving with the most common failures that can occur during a dive with equipment for technical diving
  • Be able to calculate and dive using turn point on time and pressure
  • Make complex navigation decisions without have a visual reference
  • Be well aware of the risks concerning diving with a over head environment
  • Be able to predict and prevent a dives potential risks so a real problem don't occur
  • Use a stage with bottom gas as safety, gas logistics or to prolong the penetration
  • Plan and perform dives consisting of; linear in and out navigation, navigation over a three way crossing and closing a jump
  • Towing a paralysed diver
  • Collect line data

Course outlines

  • The course can be run as an intensive course or split up in smaller segments after agreement with the students and the instructor
  • The course will take a minimum of 12 days with at least 15 hours in the water where as 20 dives must be in overhead condition
  • The course is concluded with two dives for evaluation of theoretical and practical skills

Limits

  • Maximum PO2 for bottom gases are 1.4 bar
  • Maximum Equivalent Narcotic Depth (END) during the course is 30 meters
  • Maximum depth during the course is 30 meters
  • Maximum three students per instructor during the practical training in the water
  • Maximum three navigational decisions during the course
  • Minimum 2600 litres gas at the start of cave like dive

Prerequisites

  • The student must be at least 20 years old
  • The student must be in excellent health
  • Have passed the Extended Basic Skills course or equivalent with other organisation
  • Have proof of at least 75 dives at Extended Basic Skills level