GUE Dry Suit Course

What is it?

The GUE Dry Suit Course is intended to introduce students to the particular skills required for sound diving using a Dry Suit. Using a dry suit in cold water introduces a further level of complexity to your diving and there are several skills that should be developed in order to develop your comfort, competence, and confidence in cold water diving. Dry suits can significantly increase the level of enjoyment you will have diving in cold water, but they require additional training past that usually given in warm water environments.

 

GUE Drysuit Course in Depth

Purpose

GUE's Drysuit course is designed to prepare divers for dry suit diving using proper equipment and techniques.

The GUE Dry Suit cours is designed to provide a diver the opportunity to develop proficiency using a drysuit, thereby developing more comfort, confidence and competence as a diver.

Prerequisites

  • Must meet GUE general course prerequisites as outlined in section 1.6
  • Must be a minimum of sixteen years of age
  • Must be a certified open-water diver from a recognized training agency

Duration

The GUE Dry Suit Course must be conducted over at least two days, encompassing both classroom and in-water work. Course requirements include a minimum of 6 hours of academics & land drills and a minimum of four in-water sessions; at least two of these dives must include a depth of at least 40ft/12m. Course time should total at least 16 hours encompassing classroom, land drills and in-water work.

Course Limits

  1. General training limits as outlined in section 1.4 
  2. Student-to-instructor ratio is not to exceed 6:1 during land drill or surface exercises, but cannot exceed 3:1 during any in-water training, and should be adjusted downward to account for bad conditions and/or poor visibility 
  3. Maximum depth 60 feet/18 meters
  4. No decompression
  5. No overhead environment diving

 Course Content

Combining lecture and in-water sessions, this course focuses on cultivating the basic skills required. The GUE Dry Suit course is focused on increasing dry suit proficiency through proper control of the buoyancy, trim, propulsion, teamwork and other GUE principles.

Training Materials

  1. GUE Dry Suit Presentation

 Academic Topics

  1. Class Overview
  2. GUE Introduction
  3. Dry Suit Introduction
  4. Developing Diver Capacity
  5. Dry Suit selection
  6. Undergarment selection
  7. Dry Suit inflation
  8. Cold water equipment considerations
  9. Cold water dive planning and logistics
  10. Buoyancy and Trim
  11. Dry Suit skill overview
  12. Pre dive sequence
  13. Situational Awareness
  14. Dry Suit maintenance and field repairs

 Land Drills

  1. Pre dive sequence
  2. Team positioning
  3. Communication
  4. Equipment fit and function

 Required Dive Skills and Drills

  1. Demonstrate proficiency in safe diving techniques; this would include pre-dive preparations, inwater activity and post-dive assessment
  2. Must be able to swim at least 300 yards/275 meters in under fourteen minutes without stopping. This test should be conducted in a swimsuit and, where necessary, appropriate thermal protection
  3. Must be able to swim a distance of at least 16 yards/15 meters on a breath hold
  4. Demonstrate proficiency with required course equipment and an understanding of the GUE equipment configuration
  5. Efficiently and comfortably demonstrate how to donate gas to an out-of-gas diver
  6. Efficiently and comfortably demonstrate how to donate gas to an out-of-gas diver, followed by an ascent to the surface, utilizing minimum decompression. 
  7. Demonstrate proficiency in executing a valve drill including drysuit inflation if appropriate.
  8. Demonstrate the ability to connect/disconnect the dry suit inflation hose
  9. Demonstrate the ability to manage a dry suit inflation valve that is stuck in the open position by disconnecting the inflation hose and dumping gas.
  10. Demonstrate the ability to connect/disconnect the buoyancy compensator inflator inflation hose.
  11. Demonstrate the ability to manage a primary inflator that is stuck in the open position by dumping gas and dissconnecting the inflation hose
  12. Demonstrate good buoyancy and trim, i.e. approximate reference maximum 30 degrees off horizontal while remaining within 5ft/1.5m of the target depth. Frequency of buoyancy variation and the divers control of their buoyancy and trim are important evaluation criteria
  13. Demonstrate proper management of a free flowing second stage regulator.
  14. Demonstrate safe ascent and descent procedures
  15. Demonstrate a safe and responsible demeanor throughout all training
  16. Demonstrate proficiency in underwater communication

 Equipment Requirements

Each student should have, and be familiar with, all of the following equipment:

  1. Tanks/Cylinders: Students may use a single tank cylinder with a K-, H-, or Y-valve. Students many also use dual tanks/cylinders connected with a dual-outlet isolator manifold, which allows for the use of two first-stages.
  2. Regulators: One of the second-stages must be on a 5-to7-foot/1.5- 2-meter hose. One of the first stages must supply a pressure gauge and provide inflation for a dry suit (where applicable)
  3. Backplate System: A rigid and flat platform of metal construction with minimum padding, held to a diver by one continuous piece of webbing. This webbing should be adjusted through the plate and should use a buckle to secure the system at the waist. A crotch strap attached to the lower end of this platform and looped through the waistband prevents the system from riding up on the divers back. A knife should be placed on the left webbing tab. This webbing should support fir D-rings; the first should be placed on the left hi, the second should be placed in line with the divers right collar bone, the third should be placed in line with the divers left collar bone, the fourth and firth should be affixed to the crotch strap to use while scootering or towing/stowing gear. The harness below the diver's arms should have small restrictive bands to allow for the placement of reserve lights. The system should retain a minimalist approach, with no unnecessary components. 
  4. Buoyancy Compensation Device: A diver's buoyancy compensation device should be back-mounted and minimalist in nature. It should be free of extraneous strings, tabs, or other material. There should be no restrictive bands or "bungee" or any sort affixed to the buoyancy cell. In addition, diver lift would not exceed 50 lbs /25Kg for a single tank and 80 lbs / 40 Kg for double tanks. Wing size and shape should be appropriate to the cylinder size(s) employed for training.
  5. Wet Notes
  6. One primary light: A primary light should be minimalist in design; it's power source should consist of a rechargeable battery pack residing in a canister powering an external light head via a light cord. Primary lights should produce the equivalent output of 50-watt halogen/10 watt HID or greater.
  7. Two reserve lights: Reserve lights should be powered by two or three in-line non-rechargeable c-cell batteries, with a minimum of protrusions and a single attachment at its rear. The light should be activated and de-activated by twisting the front bezel. 
  8. At least one time-/depth-measuring device
  9. Mask and fins: mask should be low-volume; fins should be rigid, non-split
  10. At least one cutting device
  11. Dry suit and undergarments appropriate for the duration of exposure