Technical Diving

The PADI Tec 40 course is where you transition from recreational scuba diving to technical diving. It’s a great place to start because it’s the first subdivision of the full PADI Tec Diver course and bridges the gap between no stop diving and full technical deep decompression diving. You gain experience and begin building the knowledge and skills you need to continue your tec diver training. You will qualify to make limited decompression dives to 40 metres/130 feet.

To enroll in the Tec 40 course, you must be:

• A PADI Advanced Open Water Diver
• A PADI Enriched Air Diver with at least 10 dives using enriched air deeper than 18 metres/60 feet
• A PADI Deep Diver or proof of at least 10 dives to 30 metres/100 feet
• At least 18 years old and have a minimum of 30 logged dives

You also need to have a Medical Statement signed by a physician within the last 12 months.
Note that qualifying certifications from other diver training organizations may apply – ask your PADI Tec Deep Instructor.

The Tec 40 course consists of three knowledge development sections, three practical application sessions and four training dives. You’ll learn about:

• Technical diving’s risks and responsibilities
• Technical diving equipment, proper rigging and set up
• Gas planning, oxygen limits and decompression planning
• Team diving techniques and emergency procedures, such as dealing with free flows, manifold leaks and out of gas situations

The PADI Tec 45 course is the second part of the full PADI Tec Deep Diver program. You’ll extend your depth limit to 45 metres/145 feet and learn to plan and execute repetitive decompression dives using a single stage/decompression cylinder. It puts you in a complete tec diving rig, which can be either backmount or sidemount. You’ll also make accelerated decompression dives using EANx or pure oxygen. This is a course where you’ll rise to the challenge and make the commitment to become a technical diver.

To enroll in the Tec 45 course, you must:

• Be a PADI Tec 40 diver
• Be a PADI Rescue Diver
• Have a minimum of 50 logged dives, with at least 12 dives on enriched air nitrox deeper than 18 metres/60 feet and 10 dives deeper than 30 metres/100 feet
• Be at least 18 years old
• Have a Medical Statement signed by a physician within the last 12 months

Your Tec 45 training consists of three knowledge development sections, three practical application sessions and four open water dives. Building on what you learned in the Tec 40 course, you focus on the function and maintenance of tec diving equipment and associated issues. You continue fine-tuning gas planning and calculating accelerated decompression stops. Plus, you learn to think like a technical diver.

The third part of the full PADI Tec Deep Diver program is Tec 50. As a Tec 50 diver, you show that you’ve developed competency as a tec diver and have the skills to dive to a maximum of 50 metres/165 feet. You know how to make extended, accelerated decompression stops using up to two gases. It’s not easy to reach this level and earning your Tec 50 certification opens the door to deeper diving expeditions.

To enroll in the Tec 50 course, you must:

• Be a PADI Tec 45 diver
• Have a minimum of 100 logged dives, with at least 20 dives on enriched air nitrox deeper than 18 metres/60 feet and 15 dives deeper than 30 metres/100 feet
• Be at least 18 years old
• Have a Medical Statement signed by a physician within the last 12 months

The Tec 50 course includes two knowledge development sections, three practical application sessions and four open water dives. A primary focus of this course is mission planning and execution. You also learn more about handling emergencies and how to think like a technical diver.