| Diving equipment is more complex than some people | | | | wearing underwater is your skin. Another note, the |
| think. For the most part, people think if you've got an | | | | pressure applied by a wetsuit can also prevent |
| adequate air supply and flippers on your feet, you're | | | | bleeding from small wounds incurred underwater. This |
| set for diving. Wrong. I suppose this approach would | | | | is essential for those who like swimming where |
| work for the casual scuba enthusiast, but there's a | | | | sharks hang out, unless you enjoy being a snack for |
| lot more equipment needed for a proper dive than a | | | | Jaws and his buddies. |
| tank and flippers. If you're going to get serious about | | | | Weighted Plates - contrary to the popular belief of |
| diving, here are all the pieces of equipment you'll be | | | | those people who can't swim, people do NOT sink |
| needing, and why. | | | | like rocks when thrown into the water. The human |
| Tank or Rebreather - this is, obviously, the single | | | | body is naturally buoyant, and will float in water, |
| most important piece of gear you'll be needing on a | | | | especially salt water. To this end, divers need to |
| dive. A tank provides you with a good supply of | | | | carry different sorts of weights to adjust their depth |
| compressed air so you can breathe. Unless you | | | | when they're diving. |
| suddenly evolve gills, you'll need a good air supply for | | | | Fins and Diving Motors - for propulsion underwater, |
| scuba. Rebreathers are small electronic devices that | | | | you'll need either fins or, for those who want to |
| are more expensive then tanks, but they have the | | | | conserve their energy, you can buy a Diver |
| advantage of lightness and compactness over a | | | | Propulsion Device, which is an electric motor driven |
| regular tank. Rebreathers actually recycle the air used | | | | device that you hold onto. It is roughly the size of a |
| by a diver, reintroducing oxygen into it. | | | | large vacuum cleaner, and basically does the |
| Masks - there are several different types of masks, | | | | swimming for you. |
| and you can pretty much pick and choose from | | | | Gauges - you'll need a compass for navigation |
| which type you want. Goggles are the smallest and | | | | underwater, along with underwater pressure gauges |
| simplest mask type to use, while others have integral | | | | and an electronic depth measurer to make sure you |
| snorkels for breathing in shallow water. Aside from | | | | don't go too deep and encounter pressures that may |
| these simple eyegear affairs, there are also full face | | | | cause you decompression sickness. |
| masks with integral communication gear that allows | | | | Dive Markers - these are floating buoys that you |
| you to talk to other people while diving via a built in | | | | need to set to let people on the surface know |
| radio comm unit. These are the preferred types of | | | | where you're diving. This is essential for safety in |
| masks to use for deep extended dives, as some | | | | case you run into problems underwater, as well as |
| models of full face masks also include low light vision | | | | providing a means for passing boats to know there's |
| lenses, and these are essential for traversing depths | | | | a diver in the area, which lessens the chances of |
| which aren't penetrated by sunlight. | | | | bonking your head on a passing ship's hull when you |
| Thermal Suit - diving gets COLD. A full body suit is | | | | surface. |
| necessary for serious diving endeavours. These | | | | Handheld sonar and Light - for navigation in extremely |
| rubberized suits are full body wrapping outfits that | | | | dark areas, as well as for diving at depths where |
| not only help with thermal insulation, they also help to | | | | sunlight from the surface no longer penetrates, |
| avoid abrasions if the diver's skin encounters rough | | | | having an underwater sonar and a portable electric |
| surfaces, especially coral. Getting mugged by a | | | | light source is a must. |
| jellyfish is also not a pleasant experience if all you're | | | | |