Frequently Asked Questions: Your Diving Queries Answered
Have questions about diving with us? Find answers to common queries regarding our services, safety measures, and more.
What is the price to dive with you?
How may dives a day can we expect?
That is totally dependent on the tides of the day. Slack water is calculated each side of high water. A lunchtime high water will eastly give one dive in the morning in winter, but it will be too dark for an afternoon dive. A winter morning high water will easily give one dive in the afternoon and ditto, an afternoon high water will easily give one dive in the morning. In the summer and with longer daylight hours, two dives a day are the norm and on the odd occasions, three!
Do I have to come up the shotline?
Off-shore Wrecks
The SS Cuvier and HMS Flirt by example are off-shore wrecks in the shipping lanes. These and some other wreck sites are within or close to the shipping lanes and cross channel ferries where diving operations are carried out within legislation and maritime guidance. All diving operations are reported to Coastguard when divers are in the water. Both Maverick and Renegade dive vessels maintain cover to divers in the water, liaising with Coastguard and any oncoming shipping if needed. In these instances, all divers are required to ascend the shotline as a flotilla of DSMBs cannot be covered. In poor visibility, divers are recommended to reel-out and/or deploy a strobe for easy navigation back to the shot. For longer technical dives, then a trapeze can be deployed – so back to the shot or trapeze please.
All divers are mandated to carry a DSMB and only in case of emergency should a DSMB be used when a shot/trapeze ascent is required.
In-shore Wrecks
A different story with out in-shore. Historically with our RHIB, we would require a shot ascent, but it is not the case these days with the hardboats of Maverick and Renegade. So long as it is agreed with the skipper how you intend to ascend, then use of the shot or DSMB is your choice. There are three points to note:
1. Whether ascending the shot or DSMB, the shot will remain in the wreck until all divers are back on board.
2. If ascending a DSMB, then this is one ‘blob’ per diver. Whether that is a reel and blob per diver, or a buddy pair shooting a second blob up the same line, you must send one blob to the surface per diver.
3. Think of the skipper. The brighter and taller the blob, the better. Orange or yellow, your choice – Just not black! Reels? Ratchet preferred over a spool.
Can an individual diver join and what about buddies?
Many of the divers tend to be self sufficient and are qualified as solo divers. But that does not mean that you can join us as an individual diver. If you are not suitable qualified, then join the Mutiny Divers Facebook Group and ask there.
Can I rent some kit?
Where do we board and where do we park?
What do I take on board?
As little as possible. We come back to port after each dive, so bring only what you need for the dive. Gear Gulpers are a “no-no” as they take too much space. If it’s a cold day, then you may wish to board with thermals and drysuit. If a warm day, then you can bring thermals and drysuite on board. Your cylinder and BCD or CCR will need to be tied securely to the vessel and all other accessories such as fins, mask, weight belt, reel and DSMB, torch should come on board in a net bag.
Refreshments
If the kettle is not on the blink, then we will always provide a hot drink after the dive—Hot Lumumbas are a firm favoutite at the moment. If we’re lucky, then maybe a hot sausage roll. But as we rely on the weather gods as much as the Greggs gods, savoury delights may not always be on the menu. Therefore, please bring a cold drink and if you a likely to need muchies after a dive, bring some nibbles too.
I'm a Lady - Don't you know
While most gents will take the pee over the stern, there is a sea toilet on both Maverick and Renegade. Probably not enough room to change into and out of your drysuite in private, but ample room for ladies to have a squat. Our only request is that you tell us before, so we can remove the various jumble of junk that accumulates beforehand and ensure ample supplies of bog roll.
What gas mixes do you recommend?
We always publish the depth range of each dive to the seabed. With the high tidal range in the Dover Strait, the variance can be up to 7 metres on spring tide. Some wrecks sit upright and some flat. While HMS Flirt is quite flat, UB-55 sits upright with some 5 metre differential between the lights on the coning tower and last remaining prop. We cannot advise what gasses you should breathe for obvious reasons of liability.
That said, industry standard recommendation for recreational open circuit diving is based on a partial pressure of oxygen (PO2) of 1.4. You will have learned that in your Nitrox course. A mix of EAN30 is a good choice as it will give you a maximum operating depth (MOD) of 36.66 metres salt water (MSW) at a PO2 of 1.4 and a contingency depth of 43.33 MSW with a PO2 of 1.6.
For some of the inshore wrecks, EAN32 is a popular choice with our divers with a MOD of 33.75 MSW at PO2 1.4 and contingency to 40 MSW PO2 1.6.
The tidal range at the aforementioned HMS Flirt can indeed be 7 metres and normally advertised at 38 metres in depth. Our divers would normally opt for an EAN28 mix, delivering a MOD of 40 MSW at POS 1.4 and contingency 47.14 MSW at PO2 1.6.
The overall caveat here is that we can advise you of the depth ranges for your gas planning, but we cannot recommend or advise what gas divers should breathe.
Where do I get gas refills?
We recommend that divers arrive for their first dive with full cyliners. We do not have time to refill on the day. Under special circumstances, we may fill the night before, but never on the morning before a dive. As we come back to port between dives, we can top up or refill cyliners in the surface interval. Gas is available from our Whitfield workshop.
What if I find something on a wreck, can I keep it?
There is strict legislation that surrounds the retrival of artefacts and finds from shipwrecks and the seabed. In short, recreational divers can retrieve items found on shipwrecks so long as they are recovered by hand – that is, not mechianical aid. All items and artefacts recovered must be reported to the Receiver of Wreck.
Where shall I stay?
Most divers will stay at the local Premier Inn or Travelodge. For a little luxury, the Best Western Premier Dover Marina Hotel & Spa is a good choice and on the other end of the spectrum, a shared dormitory at the Les Fleurs Accommodation is a cost effective option. During the summer, a number of divers stay at the near Coxhill Camping site. It is worth noting like any coastal resport, prices do vary in line with seasonal trends. Prices fluctuate and vary throughout the year and some divers opt to stay a little further afield like Folkestone, Ramsgate and Canterbury – All an easy commute.
Is there a hotel or guest house that would offer a kit washing and drying area for visiting divers?
Most divers come down for a day or two and kit wash when they get home. There is fresh water in the marina and either do it yourself, or sometimes we can rinse kit left on the boat overnight when we wash down the vessels at the end of the day. You can rinse at the workshop, but most don’t. Regular divers who do not live local, will stay at one of the local hotels and from what I hear, none have found a hotel with kit washing facilities. Never done a B&B, so cannot help there. Some bring a litre of water to rinse second stages overnight if staying two or three days, but drysuits are fine as there is no real salt build up over a few days. A good rinse and zip lubrication is fine when you get back home.