Scuba diving classes in MPLS Minnesota

[ViviTheMage]

scubacenter.com

they have a place in Minneapolis that teaches! Its is somewhat $$ but thats okay if I can get my cert! I have always wanted to scuba dive.

Who here has taken classes inland and been out to the open sea? How long does it take to get your cert? How many courses/hours?

Well worth it?

How pricey is the gear if I ever want to go alone and not rent anything?

 

[rudder]

Its worth every penny. The only problem for me is I learned to dive inthe Philippines. Now I live in Tennessee and I have no desire to put on a dry suit and dive in a quarry.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: rudder
Its worth every penny. The only problem for me is I learned to dive inthe Philippines. Now I live in Tennessee and I have no desire to put on a dry suit and dive in a quarry.

oh wow, theres gotta be a HUGE difference haha

Ive never been to the Philippines, but im pretty sure its better 😀

 

[petrek]

My friend is a Scuba instructor, and I'm technically certified as a Rescue Diver (but personally I don't like diving in cold water, especially since the viz is usually only 30 feet and there is rarely anything interesting to see), so I don't dive much out here.
My friend normally charges between $275 - $350 depending on the number of students, the more students (4-6), the less he charges.
The course itself consists of a few pool sessions, a few classroom sessions, and a few open water (lake, ocean) dives.
A couple weeks ago he taught a group of 3 over the course of a week. Mon, Tue, Wed, were pool and class session, then the weekend he did 3 dives at the lake to complete the course.
It's certainly worth it if you have a place close by that you will enjoy diving at, or if you can get down south every once and a while for some warm weather diving. I'll be heading to Mexico and Belize this winter and either do some cavern diving in Mexico with my Instructor friend, or do some diving in Belize with a buddy of mine who's living their for a year...as he keeps messaging me about the dives he's on, he got a ride on a nurse shark this past weekend. A few weeks ago he saw his first nurse shark, now he's going for rides.

As for the price of gear, you can probably get a set for about a $1000 off ebay if you wait for the deals to come along. But if your not planning to do much diving around were you live, then your better off just renting the equipment when you go down south, as you'll have to rent the tanks and get airfills anyway.

Dave

 

[freegeeks]

I'm a PADI advanced open water + nitrox 40% certified
I've been doing cold water diving and tropical diving

gear is pricey, I bought everything from bottles to regs to drysuit. My whole setup was around 3k euro

worth every penny, entry level cert is a couple of hours theory classes + some pool sessions + open water dives. Depens also which agency you are using

I made a diving thread a while back with some pics

linky linky

 

[ViviTheMage]

well thank you free geeks!

I was thinking...maybe we should get a dive team together?! I am not sure how to go about getting a dive set when im in say, florida, or jamaica?

 

[freegeeks]

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage
well thank you free geeks!

I was thinking...maybe we should get a dive team together?! I am not sure how to go about getting a dive set when im in say, florida, or jamaica?

you go the local dive shop / dive operator, you show them your certs, you say what gas you want (air, enriched air). They fill the bottle for you, you rent the other equipment you need (regs, ...), you go on the boat, strap the bottle on your back and jump in the water

one thing, NEVER dive alone, look for a good buddy on your diving tips

anyways, if you get certified they will explain all that stuff

btw: I would like to take you on a diving trip but I live in Belgium 🙂

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: freegeeks

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage
well thank you free geeks!

I was thinking...maybe we should get a dive team together?! I am not sure how to go about getting a dive set when im in say, florida, or jamaica?

you go the local dive shop / dive operator, you show them your certs, you say what gas you want (air, enriched air). They fill the bottle for you, you rent the other equipment you need (regs, ...), you go on the boat, strap the bottle on your back and jump in the water

one thing, NEVER dive alone, look for a good buddy on your diving tips

anyways, if you get certified they will explain all that stuff

btw: I would like to take you on a diving trip but I live in Belgium 🙂

They made plans for a reason! If I had a place to stay in Belgium I would come over 🙂

I think I would get my own dry suit, thats about it, because I have one for jetsking in lake superior and I bring to coastal states when I jet ski in the ocean.

 

[freegeeks]

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage

Originally posted by: freegeeks

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage
well thank you free geeks!

I was thinking...maybe we should get a dive team together?! I am not sure how to go about getting a dive set when im in say, florida, or jamaica?

you go the local dive shop / dive operator, you show them your certs, you say what gas you want (air, enriched air). They fill the bottle for you, you rent the other equipment you need (regs, ...), you go on the boat, strap the bottle on your back and jump in the water

one thing, NEVER dive alone, look for a good buddy on your diving tips

anyways, if you get certified they will explain all that stuff

btw: I would like to take you on a diving trip but I live in Belgium 🙂

They made plans for a reason! If I had a place to stay in Belgium I would come over 🙂

I think I would get my own dry suit, thats about it, because I have one for jetsking in lake superior and I bring to coastal states when I jet ski in the ocean.

good idea, having your own (dry)suit is the most sensible thing to do, you don't want to wear something that smells like pee 😛
also get yourself fins, mask and snorkel, all the rest can be rent on the diving location

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: freegeeks

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage

Originally posted by: freegeeks

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage
well thank you free geeks!

I was thinking...maybe we should get a dive team together?! I am not sure how to go about getting a dive set when im in say, florida, or jamaica?

you go the local dive shop / dive operator, you show them your certs, you say what gas you want (air, enriched air). They fill the bottle for you, you rent the other equipment you need (regs, ...), you go on the boat, strap the bottle on your back and jump in the water

one thing, NEVER dive alone, look for a good buddy on your diving tips

anyways, if you get certified they will explain all that stuff

btw: I would like to take you on a diving trip but I live in Belgium 🙂

They made plans for a reason! If I had a place to stay in Belgium I would come over 🙂

I think I would get my own dry suit, thats about it, because I have one for jetsking in lake superior and I bring to coastal states when I jet ski in the ocean.

good idea, having your own (dry)suit is the most sensible thing to do, you don't want to wear something that smells like pee 😛
also get yourself fins, mask and snorkel, all the rest can be rent on the diving location

well booyah 🙂. sounds pretty simple! I would love to go to belgium anyway. scuba diving or not ^_^. If you got a couch for me (maybe bring the GF) id love to come visit europe!

 

[ViviTheMage]

the place I would get my CERT has some great deals on rental equipment they are selling!

Men's 7mm Jumpsuits - New $199.95
Rental Equipment SALE $119.97

Women's SeaQuest 7mm - New $259
Rental Equipment SALE $49.97

 

[K1052]

I have my Advanced Open Water PADI cert.

My classes and certification was done inland. Certification dives in the Ozarks (ah...love the alge bloom).

I've done trips to Grand Cayman, the Flower Gardens off Texas, Belize, and numerous lake/quarry dives. It took about six or so days of three hours a day (IIRC) to get the classes done, not counting the certification dives.


It is an expensive hobby because of the gear and the general need to travel for those of us in the upper central US, however I always had a great time doing it. Lots of fun times both in and out of the water.

Never, ever dive alone. Too much can go wrong.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: K1052
I have my Advanced Open Water PADI cert.

My classes and certification was done inland. Certification dives in the Ozarks (ah...love the alge bloom).

I've done trips to Grand Cayman, the Flower Gardens off Texas, Belize, and numerous lake/quarry dives. It took about six or so days of three hours a day (IIRC) to get the classes done, not counting the certification dives.


It is an expensive hobby because of the gear and the general need to travel for those of us in the upper central US, however I always had a great time doing it. Lots of fun times both in and out of the water.

Never, ever dive alone. Too much can go wrong.

I dont plan on that! That's for sure.

I definatly see how it can get really expensive, but most likely I would just rent first, and it would be great to travel and scuba dive at the same time.

 

[rudder]

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage

I definatly see how it can get really expensive, but most likely I would just rent first, and it would be great to travel and scuba dive at the same time.

Just buy your own mask, snorkel, fins, and bcd (bouyancy vest). Tanks and weights are easy to rent anywhere. Having your own BCD is bulky, but at least you will know how it works and you can get on that is very comfortable. And if you stick to warm locales there is not need for a wetsuit. Not sure how cold those Minneapolis area lakes get.

 

[uberman]

Regarding the scuba class. I'd look for a class that wasn't connected to a dive shop. Look for a class at a college, a parks and recreation department, someplace where making money is not their objective. I've been diving for over 30 years and 600 dives. I've watched the industry evolve. It used to be an unusual sport, but now its mainstream. Shops are businesses that are in business to make money. They want to sell you things. That means courses and equipment. It used to be that you only had basic diver certification. In the 1980s there was a push to teach all these classes. Shops make money selling classes. They make better money selling you equipment. An instructor who teaches you through a shop would likely find it difficult to recomend you purchase superior equipment not available at that shop. I've dove with instructors and commercial divers. One guy, an instructor told me to just keep diving, you don't need any classes. This was in response to my inquiry if I should try some new classes. I've had friends who've taken classes through shops and complain the instruction was terrible. Try to find instruction where money is not their primary motive for teaching you.
I like cold water diving best. Its what I grew up with. Yes, I do cuss when I put on a wetsuit and question, "Am I doing this for fun?" I know all the critters in the cold water so theres no surprises. I stick my head in caves in the tropics and I get many surprises. I spearfish and the fish move slower and are easier targets in cold water.
You don't need a lot of courses, but you do need to master the basics. Learn, buddy up, seek out some dive clubs and get some experience.
Do not buy a used wet suit. It is true that the neoprene loses its insulating efficiency from the day it rolled off the manufacturing line. I give a wetsuit 2 to 3 years tops. Its important to be warm.
I've bought great house brand wetsuits from Berry's Scuba. They are now defunct. I recently bought a house brand wet suit from Joe Diver. It is cheap crap. I have bought lots of equipment from the link below. They carry name brands at 33 to 40 percent off what my local shops charge. The second link is my new toy. I can't believe propullsion vehicles are so cheap now. Have fun, its a good sport.
[http://www.leisurepro.com/catalog.aspx]

new toy
[http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.as...Ns=P_Price|1||P_SignDesc1&Sp=C&topnav=]

 

[loic2003]

you can get a temp qualification that allows you to dive in the sea for like a month or so. IIRC it was only an hour or so tutorial, you had to learn about the BCD and how to take your mask off & grab a spare regulator. I only did that, then borrowed some gear from friends who were qulaified and have been diving with them a few time since. Barbados and the Cayman Islands, I think. It's the best feeling, but I'd say only worth it in tropical seas, cold waters with dul grey fish just isn't exciting. Sewege processing plants are also poor scuba zones because of a lack of visibility...

 

[Rakkis]

Originally posted by: loic2003
you can get a temp qualification that allows you to dive in the sea for like a month or so. IIRC it was only an hour or so tutorial, you had to learn about the BCD and how to take your mask off & grab a spare regulator. I only did that, then borrowed some gear from friends who were qulaified and have been diving with them a few time since. Barbados and the Cayman Islands, I think. It's the best feeling, but I'd say only worth it in tropical seas, cold waters with dul grey fish just isn't exciting. Sewege processing plants are also poor scuba zones because of a lack of visibility...

This is both innacurate and dangerous. That's like getting a temporary driver's license. By this logic, your learning expires.

What you are refering to is a course where the very basics are taught. With it, you can only dive with a professional (Instructor or DiveMaster). Unless you are Open Water Certified, you have not learned everything to conduct a safe dive by yourself.