This is my checklist of dive equipment I take on all my dives.
Hood
Gloves
Mask
Fins
Dry Suit
Under Suit
Buoyancy Control Device
Regs
Tanks (full)
Torch
Spare Torch
Computer
Compass
Knife
Delayed Surface Marker Buoy
Weights/Weight Belt
You might also add to that a camera.
As you can see diving is a pastime which requires a LOT of gear, much of it expensive.
However, if you are starting out diving not all of this is essential and the club can help with with much of it which we have for hire.
The biggest outlay and probably the most important thing to get, as the club do not have them, is your own dry suit and under suit. There are numerous options available. You can buy a new made to measure, a new off the peg or a second hand suit. It it obviously makes sense to shop around. There are many makes of dry suit and they vary in cost quite widely. Our advice is to chose your budget, ask your instructors and other members for advice and then shop around. The most important thing about a dry suit is that it fits and does not leak!
My first purchase when I began diving was the mask, fins, hood and gloves. These are personalised items regarding fit, are relatively inexpensive and get you started.
I hired a suit for two or three dives but quickly realised if I wished to take up diving as a regular hobby a dry suit purchase was essential. Whilst the initial outlay was a lot – around £600 – it has now lasted 10 years and many dives.
The club can hire low cost BCDs, regs and cylinders. However many buy their own over time (or all at once if you win the lottery!). A good set of a BCD, regs and cylinders will set you back close to £600 minimum, but again shop around and second hand items (if in good condition) are a good option.
The flashy bit of kit is a dive computer. There is probably no other piece of equipment which can vary in cost, but a decent second hand one can be picked up for around £200 if you shop around. They are a very useful piece of kit, particularly as you start to dive deeper.
So I hope that is useful. Remember, whilst kit can be expensive, you do not need to buy it all at once and most of it will last many years and many happy, safe dives.
The club has a number of yearly outgoings which have to be met each year. These are principally in regards to the running of our boat and the Jeep used to tow it.
They include –
Boat Insurance
Boat Storage
Jeep Insurance
Jeep Road Tax
Jeep MOT
RHIB and Equipment Maintenance
The costs of these items vary from year to year, particularly the MOT as that depends upon the work needing to be done for it to pass, but I would estimate that the average costs of these five outgoings over the last five years would be £1,500.
The next large cost for the club is the servicing of our equipment.
We have ten cylinders which all have to be serviced biannually at a cost of around £100 a time so that is £500 a year.
Others costs involve administrative things like hall hire for meetings and lectures.
What income does the club have?
Our membership fees are of course our biggest source of income. However, we do not as a club stand still and simply rely on membership fees. The more diving the club does the more income it generates. This is because we charge members £10 to go out on the boat and for rental of equipment.
We also try to find raise through grant applications and we have a tombolla stall at Kirkintilloch Gala Day.
COVID has proven to be financially challenging for everybody, but our club will go from strength to strength financially when all our divers go out on dives. That is how we grow as a club, both financially and in experience and making fun memories.
