Any questions you have regarding this material should be directed to your instructor or our Training Department at training@diveaai.com. This material is not appropriate for anyone who is not enrolled in the PADI Tec 40 course and should not be used in place of formal technical dive training.

Course Description

PADI Tec 40 is an entry level technical diving course designed to teach gas switches and extended no decompression diving using air or enriched air up to depths as deep as 40 metres/130 feet. In this course, you will learn to make decompression stops up to 10 minutes in length and how to prepare for and respond to foreseeable emergencies that may occur in technical diving.

Course Prerequisites

Student divers must meet the following training prerequisites before starting the PADI Tec 40 course:

1. Certified as a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver or qualifying certification from another training organization. For this course, a qualifying certification is proof of training beyond entry level with experience in deep diving and underwater navigation.
2. Certified as a PADI Enriched Air Diver or qualifying certification from another training organization. For this course, a qualifying certification is proof of training in enriched air nitrox diving with training that includes gas analysis cylinder labeling, oxygen toxicity, oxygen exposure, determining maximum depth limits, and planning enriched air dives with different enriched air blends (not just EAN32 and EAN36).
3. Certified as a PADI Deep Diver or show proof of at least 10 dives to 30 metres/100 feet.
4. Minimum age: 18 years.
5. Have a minimum of 30 logged dives, of which at least 10 dives were made with enriched air nitrox deeper than 18 meters/60 feet.

Tec 40 Equipment Requirements

Student divers should assure that they have the following equipment for all training dives for the PADI Tec 40 course:

• Any one of the following appropriately labeled and marked options:
  • A single cylinder with a dual valve (e.g., H valve or Y valve)
  • A single cylinder with single outlet valve and a pony bottle. Pony bottle should have same gas as main cylinder, or be breathable at the deepest planned dive depth. The minimum size cylinder is one with a free gas capacity of 30 cubic feet.
  • Back mounted doubles with dual isolator manifold
  • Two side mounted cylinders (sidemount configuration)
  • Two complete regulators, one with a 2 meter/7 foot hose for air sharing and one with SPG. Where two, unmanifolded cylinders are used (sidemount or pony bottle), each regulator must have an SPG, carried and/or marked in such a way as to avoid confusion between them.
• Stage/deco cylinder with attachment hardware and a single second stage regulator and SPG.
• BCD with D-rings or other attachment points for a stage/deco cylinder.
• Two dive computers, or one computer with a backup timer and depth gauge with dive tables.
• Exposure suit appropriate for environment and dive duration. If student will use dry suits, they should be trained/experienced in their use in recreational diving prior to using them for Tec training or diving.
• Weight system. Students should weight for the contingency of decompressing with near-empty cylinders.
• Jon line (as needed for environment)
• Inflatable signal tube, whistle and/or other visual and audible surface signaling devices. Note that a sausage type DSMB may double for the inflatable signal tube.
• Reel and lift bag or DSMB. A suitable DSMB has sufficient buoyancy to help steady a diver during a drifting decompression, and is unlikely to spill when deployed from the underwater.
• Knife/cutting device and back up
• Slate
• Back up mask (optional)
• Compass
• Lights
• Backup buoyancy control. The student must have a reliable means for controlling buoyancy and maintaining decompression stops in midwater with a failed primary BCD. This is usually accomplished with a backup BCD (double wings) or, when using light weight cylinders, the use of a dry suit is permitted.

For additional information, see the PADI TechRec Equipment Checklist.

Required Paperwork

• Liability Release and Assumption of Risk for Technical Diving
• Standard Safe Technical Diving Practices Statement of Understanding
• Technical Diver Statement of Understanding and Learning Agreement
• PADI Medical Statement (must be completed by your physician)

Course Material

Tec 40 Knowledge Development Session 1

• Study Assignment Session 1
• Tec 40 Handout 1
• Tec 40 Handout 2
• Tec 40 Handout 3

Tec 40 Knowledge Development Session 2

• Study Assignment Session 2
• Tec 40 Handout 4
• Tec 40 Handout 5

Tec 40 Knowledge Development Session 3

• Study Assignment Session 3
• Tec 40 Handout 6
• Tec 40 Handout 7

Practical Application

• Tec 40 Practical Application 1
• Tec 40 Practical Application 2
• Tec 40 Practical Application 3

Training Dives

• Tec 40 Training Dive 1
• Tec 40 Training Dive 2
• Tec 40 Training Dive 3
• Tec 40 Training Dive 4

Tec 40 Training Dive 1

Key Standards

Environment: Confined water or limited open water with ready access to water shallow enough in which to stand
Minimum Depth: 2.5 metres/8 feet
Maximum Depth: 10 metres/30 feet
Decompression: No stop only
Gases: Air, EANx up to EANx50
Ratios: 6:1, 8:1 with one or more certified assistants

Skills

To successfully complete this training dive, students must be able to:

1. Assemble and inspect the basic technical diving rig.
2. Demonstrate the proper weight required for the dive.
3. Demonstrate neutral buoyancy while wearing the basic technical dive rig by hovering for 1 minute without sculling or kicking.
4. Within 30 seconds, independently close the cylinder valve to a regulator that is experiencing a simulated free flow.
5. Assist a team mate by closing the correct valve to a regulator that is experiencing a simulated free flow.
6. Within 30 seconds, independently close the isolator valve in response to a simulated manifold leak.
7. Respond to a simulated out of gas emergency by signaling a team mate, switching to the team mate’s long hose second stage, then swimming 30 metres/100 feet using the long hose regulator and maintaining contact with the team mate.
8. Respond to a team mate’s simulated out of gas emergency by, on signal, proving the team mate with the long hose second stage, switching to the short hose secondary, then swimming 30 metres/100 feet as the team mate uses the long hose regulator, maintaining contact.
9. Working in a team, perform a bubble check, descent check and S-drill.
10. Independently don, remove and re-don a stage/deco cylinder on the bottom.
11. Perform gas switches to a stage/deco cylinder correctly following the NO TOX procedure.
12. Shut down both manifold valves and the isolator valve, and switch second stages to maintain a breathing supply, beginning with any valve chosen by the instructor, within 60 seconds (or within 40 seconds if there is no isolator valve).
13. Deploy a lift bag or DSMB from the bottom in water too deep in which to stand.
14. Swim at a steady pace at a constant depth for sufficient time to determine the SAC rate.
15. Using only neutral buoyancy, maintain a simulated decompression stop for eight minutes.
16. Remove and replace stage/deco cylinder at the surface in water too deep in which to stand.

Tec 40 Training Dive 2

Key Standards

Environment: Open water
Minimum Depth: 10 metres/30 feet
Maximum Depth: 18 metres/60 feet
Decompression: No stop only
Gases: Air, EANx up to EANx50
Ratios: 6:1, 8:1 with one or more certified assistants

Skills

To successfully complete this training dive, students must be able to:

1. Working in a team, plan the dive following the A Good Diver’s Main Objective Is To Live procedure, and perform predive checks following the Being Wary Reduces All Failures procedure.
2. Independently don and remove a single deco cylinder at the surface.
3. Descend along a line to the bottom, maintaining control of depth and descent speed by adjusting buoyancy.
4. Working as a team, perform appropriate bubble checks and descent checks.
5. While continuously swimming, independently stage a deco cylinder, swim at least 10 metres/30 feet from it, return to it, and don it.
6. Swim at least two minutes and a distance of 18 metres/60 feet sharing gas with the long hose as both the donor and the receiver.
7. Perform the gas shutdown drill within 60 seconds (40 seconds if not wearing isolator doubles).
8. Perform a working rate SAC swim by swimming for approximately five minutes at a level depth, recording the appropriate information for later calculation.
9. Demonstrate time/depth and gas supply awareness by writing the depth and time at each 35 bar/500 psi of back gas consumed.
10. Demonstrate turn pressure and time limit awareness by signaling the instructor upon reaching the turn pressure or time limit the team had planned were this really a decompression dive.
11. As a team, deploy a lift bag/DSMB from the bottom.
12. As a team, simulate a partially failed lift bag/DSMB by deploying a second lift bag/DSMB up the line of the first lift bag.
13. Use primarily proper buoyancy control to ascend along a line at a controlled rate not to exceed 10 metres/30 feet per minute, or slower if specified by a dive computer, to stop at a simulated decompression stop at 5 metres/15 feet, without ascending past it.
14. Record the appropriate information for later calculation of a deco rate SAC by simulating a 10 minute required decompression stop at 5 metres/15 feet.
15. While neutrally buoyant at a simulated decompression stop, with a team mate, NO TOX gas switch to decompression cylinder while maintaining depth within 1 metre/3 feet of the stop depth.
16. Throughout the dive, respond appropriately to simulated emergencies prompted by the instructor.
17. Post dive, use desktop decompression software to determine the oxygen exposure (OTUs and CNS “clock”) of the dive as it was actually made.

Tec 40 Training Dive 3

Key Standards

Environment: Open water
Minimum Depth: 15 metres/50 feet
Maximum Depth: 27 metres/90 feet
Decompression: No stop only
Gases: Air, EANx up to EANx50
Ratios: 4:1, 6:1 with one or more certified assistants

Skills

To successfully complete this training dive, students must be able to:

1. Working in a team, plan the dive following the A Good Diver’s Main Objective Is To Live procedure, and perform predive checks following the Being Wary Reduces All Failures procedure.
2. Complete a simulated decompression dive based within Tec 40 limits (40metres/130 feet max depth, 10 minutes max deco. EANx50 max oxygen content).
3. Descend along a line to the bottom, maintaining control at depth and descent speed by adjusting buoyancy.
4. Working as a team, perform appropriate bubble checks and descent checks.
5. Perform the gas shutdown drill within 45 seconds (30 seconds if not wearing isolator doubles).
6. Demonstrate turn time/depth and gas supply awareness by writing the cylinder pressure at each 10 minutes of dive time.
7. Demonstrate turn pressure and time limit awareness by signaling the instructor upon reaching the turn pressure or time limit the team had planned were this really a decompression dive.
8. As a team, deploy a lift bag/DSMB from the bottom.
9. Ascend the lift bag/DSMB line and complete the simulated decompression, staying together with the team, remaining neutrally buoyant and staying within plus or minus .5 metres/1.5 feet of stop depth by controlling buoyancy.
10. Throughout the dive, respond appropriately to simulated emergencies prompted by the instructor.

Tec 40 Training Dive 4

Key Standards

Environment: Open water
Minimum Depth: 26 metres/85 feet
Maximum Depth: 40 metres/130 feet
Decompression: Up to 10 minutes total decompression time based on breathing bottom gas throughout the dive (no accelerated decompression)
Gases: Air, EANx up to EANx50
Ratios: 3:1, 4:1 with one or more certified assistants

Skills

To successfully complete this training dive, students must be able to:

1. Working in a team, plan the dive following the A Good Diver’s Main Objective Is To Live procedure, and perform predive checks following the Being Wary Reduces All Failures procedure.
2. Complete an actual decompression dive within Tec 40 limits (40 metres/130 feet max depth, 10 minutes max deco, EANx50 max oxygen content).
3. Descend along a line to the bottom, maintaining control at depth and descent speed by adjusting buoyancy.
4. Working as a team, perform appropriate bubble checks and descent checks.
5. As part of a team, demonstrate time/depth and gas supply awareness and turn pressure and time limit awareness by turning the dive at the planned time, when any team mate’s computer shows the planned decompression time or when any team mate reaches turn pressure.
6. Ascend at a safe rate not to exceed 10 metres/30 feet per minute, or slower if prompted by a dive computer, and complete the required decompression as a team.
7. Throughout the dive, respond appropriately to actual or simulated problems or emergencies.