How to Prepare for Your Next Dive Vacation

Getting ready for a dive trip, whether on a liveaboard in a bucket-list destination or at a local pond that’s too cold and murky for sensible people, takes a little planning. If you’ve just broken your gear out of winter storage or haven’t been in the water for a few weeks, take a moment to review the basics and make sure you’re ready for your next diving adventure.

Have Your Gear Serviced

Regular maintenance of your life-­support gear by a trained professional is critical. Regulators, tanks, BCs, lights and computers generally need servicing annually to function reliably. Minimize the possibility of an equipment failure that could put you at risk underwater or leave you high and dry on a liveaboard by having your gear inspected and serviced at your local dive shop before your next dive vacation.

Clean and Dry Your Equipment

Properly serviced equipment will ­continue to perform only if you take care of it. Rinsing your gear and ­hanging it to dry in a cool, shady place after you dive will minimize the amount of sun and water damage your equipment will sustain, and go a long way toward extending the usable life of your gear. Left in the sun to dry, wetsuits will lose flexibility, hoses will crack, BCs will fade and disintegrate, and fin and mask straps will weaken. Prevent these and other failures by carefully rinsing your gear after you dive and finding a cool, shady spot for it to dry completely.

Read the Manual

Your safety depends on knowing your equipment inside and out. In an emergency, you don’t want to be grasping at straws trying to remember what the salesperson told you about your new computer or regulator when you bought it — proper operation needs to be second nature. Whether you’ve had your equipment for six months or six years, sit down with the manuals before the season starts and brush up on what’s most important about each piece of gear. You’ll keep yourself safe, and you might learn something new.

Use a Checklist

Checklists are mandatory in ­aviation and surgery, and they should be an integral part of your predive procedure. Make a checklist for packing and for getting ready to dive to make sure you don’t end up on a boat (or underwater) without an important piece of equipment. Checklists are a great way to improve safety, but they can also save your vacation — how can you dive halfway around the world in a remote location when you’ve f­orgotten a critical piece of gear?

Consider a Refresher Course

The most effective way to make sure you’re ready for a dive is to do one — with a little guidance. No amount of reading and planning can compare to actually getting in the water with an instructor and going through the logistics of a dive. You’ll have the opportunity to brush up on emergency skills, get some pointers on your buoyancy and trim, and address any gear or training issues that come up. Most important, you’ll be comfortable and ready to enjoy yourself the next time you get in the water.

Dive travel is a great way to experience new sites, new countries — and new strains of bacteria. Local flora and fauna — which have little or no effect on residents and frequent visitors — can leave you spending more time in the head than underwater. Keep yourself healthy and happy by using these guidelines for food and water while abroad.