Scuba skills

Scuba skills are skills required to dive safely using SCUBA, an acronym for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus, known as a scuba set. Most of these skills are relevant to both open-circuit scuba and rebreather scuba, and also to surface-supplied diving. Certain scuba skills, which are critical to divers' safety, may require more practice than standard recreational training provides. Some skills are generally accepted by recreational diver certification agencies as basic and necessary in order to dive without direct supervision. Others are more advanced, although some diver certification and accreditation organizations may require these to endorse entry-level competence. Instructors assess divers on these skills during basic and advanced training. They expect divers to remain competent at each level of certification, either by practice or through formal refresher courses. Many organizations recommend one of these options if a diver has a lapse of six to twelve months without a dive, in order to qualify for more advanced activities or training. These all must be assessed within the scope of the diver's certification. Wet suit and Dry suit A certified scuba diver should be able to assess what type of diving exposure suit is preferable for the planned dive, to confirm that it is in safe, usable condition and the right size, and to put it on correctly. Entry-level skills usually include the use of wet suits, but in countries where the water and/or weather conditions are cold, beginners may need to add dry suit training. However, at the other end of the complexity spectrum, recreational divers trained in warm tropical waters may not even need to acquire any diving suit skills at all. Using a dry suit safely requires special skills, including equalizing the ears and sinuses, buoyancy control, inversion recovery, emergency venting, and blowup recovery. Divers are each personally responsible for the function of their individual equipment.