Pre-Dive Checks That Catch Real Problems

Most pre-dive checks fail the same way. Someone recites an acronym on the boat, everyone nods, and nobody actually looks at anything. Then a valve that was "on" turns out to be off, or two divers discover at 60 feet that they had different turn pressures in mind.

A team check is different. It's a short sequence, each step answers a real question, and some of it happens in the water, where problems actually show up.

The team pre-dive sequence

On land: equipment and gas

Equipment match. Walk through each diver's configuration: long hose routing, necklace backup, pressure gauge, wing inflator, lights, cutting tools, SMB and spool. The point isn't inspection for its own sake. It's that every diver knows exactly where every teammate's gear is, because in an emergency they may be the one reaching for it.

Gas check. Analyze your own gas and label it. For deco and stage bottles, UTD's rules are specific: the deco bottle carries maximum operating depth markings; a stage bottle doesn't; and an analysis label sits at the top of the cylinder. If the dive uses a stage or deco bottle, the team confirms each bottle's gas and depth limit together.

Breathe each regulator and watch the pressure gauge. A pressure drop while inhaling can indicate a restricted gas supply, including a partly closed valve. Investigate and correct the cause before starting the dive; a steady gauge alone does not prove the whole system is ready.

The plan review: GLADDDDD

UTD's plan review covers eight things:

• Goal: what the dive is for. Keep it simple, and have a plan B.
• Leader: who leads the dive, leads the ascent and deploys the SMB.
• Air/gas: gas, turn pressure and rock bottom for each diver.
• Depth: maximum and average depth.
• Duration: maximum and expected dive time.
• Deco: the ascent plan or Min Deco limits.
• Direction: headings and route.
• Distance: how far the team will go.

Everyone states their own numbers out loud. If your rock bottom and turn pressure aren't spoken, they aren't part of the team's plan. See Gas Management for Recreational Divers.

In the water: quick drills that prove the rig works

Long-hose check. A shortened version of the gas-sharing drill: each diver frees the long hose as if donating and shows it deploys cleanly, then restows it. It catches a hose trapped under a light canister, a belt or a clip.

Stage check, when applicable. Deploy the stage regulator using the trained procedure, with the team verifying function, gas mixture and MOD before use. The complete dive plan is already agreed; the pre-dive review confirms it.

Valve check. Each diver reaches back and confirms each valve is operable and fully open, then breathes the regulators. On doubles, that includes the isolator. It catches the valve that got bumped closed on the boat and the diver who can't quite reach. See The Valve Drill Explained.

Bubble check. Just after you start down, each diver hovers while a teammate looks over their valves, first stages and hose connections for bubbles. A small leak you can't hear at the surface is obvious from behind.

Front and back check. A quick look for anything dangling, unclipped or misrouted.

Why does this work better than a buddy acronym?

Because it checks the failures that actually happen, in the conditions they happen in. Valves turned off by mistake, hoses that won't deploy, slow leaks and mismatched plans are all common, and all easy to find before the dive and hard to fix during it.

It's also a team habit. When everyone does the same checks in the same order, nobody skips one because they're distracted, cold or in a hurry.

Make it automatic

The sequence takes a few minutes. Do it on every dive, including the easy ones, until it's as automatic as putting your fins on.

The pre-dive sequence, GLADDDDD and the in-water checks are part of Essentials of Recreational Diving. For how the checks fit into team diving as a whole, read Team Diving vs Buddy Diving.