Tec Diving at Salaya

At Salaya Beach Houses, we offer training in technical diving, and if you are already a certified technical diver, we are excited to take you on deep dives in Dauin and Apo island. There is lots to see at 40 meters or deeper, beyond the depth of recreational diving. Tec diving allows us to go to these depths in a safe, controlled manner. We love it!

Let’s first address the issue if you even need all that tec gear and lengthy training. “I know a guy who knows a guy who dives to 70 meters with one tank and regular scuba gear. He is just a really good diver.” you might say.

Yes, I know such a guy who knows such a guy, too. It’s a very bad idea to do deep dives without the appropriate training and equipment. Divers come back from dives like that healthy … IF nothing goes wrong. Any small problem can quickly escalate and have dramatic consequences. The guy whom that guy knows is not a good diver at all, but a diver who lacks the training to even understands the risks he exposes himself to, let alone handle these risks.

Tec diving is to a good degree about controlling these risks. That’s why we train for potentially dangerous situations, and bring extra, redundant, gear. We also plan our breathing gas use, and the exact progression of our dive (when to be at what depth).

The PADI curiculum for air-decompression tec diving includes the TEC40, TEC45 and TEC50 courses. The numbers correspond to the maximum depths the students will be trained to safely dive during these courses. Each course takes about 3 days, and includes theory, hands-on training with the tec diving gear on land, and dives.

The entry requirements are for the student to be Advanced Open Water, Nitrox and Deep certified. 10 dives to 30 meters can substitute for the Deep specialty certification.

At Salaya we have two tec instructors, Marc and Klaus (writing this). Marc is even an instructor trainer for tec diving. Some of Klaus’ writing on the physiological changes which occur during deep dives is  here, here and here on PADI’s tec blog.

I greatly enjoy tec diving for two reasons:

There are really interesting things to see at depth. Wrecks, and fish species which do not live in shallower waters. Sharks often live deeper on the reef, and some of the fascinating small fishes I love so much are sometimes only found at depth. Tilefishes and dart fishes are one group of colorful fishes which are much more likely to occur below 40 meters. Look at this pretty fish, found at 45 meters:

I also enjoy the challenge that comes with a well-executed tec dive. Did we dive well as a team, and communicate? Did we stick to our deco plan properly? Did all the gas changes go smoothly? It’s very satisfying to me to do everything according to plan when conducting a deep dive.

Chat us up, and give tec diving a shot when you are in Dauin!