Diving without bubbles
We teach closed-circuit rebreather (CCR) diving. A rebreather does not release exhaled gas into the water: the carbon dioxide is removed and the oxygen used is replaced. So there are no bubbles and no noise, and fish and other animals are not scared away. This makes it ideal for underwater photography, filming and watching wildlife.
A constant oxygen partial pressure allows longer and deeper dives, and the breathing gas is warm and moist. But rebreather diving needs more attention, care and good theoretical and practical preparation.
Who rebreather courses are for
Rebreather courses are for experienced divers aged 18 and over. The first PADI level requires Open Water Diver and nitrox (Enriched Air Diver) certificates and at least 25 logged dives; TDI Air Diluent CCR requires a nitrox certificate and at least 20 logged dives. If you do not have a nitrox certificate yet, you can earn it without dives: the course is theory and a practical session.
PADI: three levels
The rebreather course has three PADI levels, each building on the one before.
- PADI Rebreather Diver: the first level, on a recreational (Type R) rebreather. You learn to prepare the unit, do a bubble check, switch to open circuit and control buoyancy on closed circuit. Dives to 18 m. Choose it for quiet recreational dives.
- PADI Advanced Rebreather Diver: still on a Type R rebreather, but to 40 m within no-decompression limits. You learn to use a bailout cylinder for emergencies.
- PADI Tec 40 CCR: the technical level, on the AP Diving Vision, a technical (Type T) rebreather: decompression dives to 40 m and manual control of the rebreather.
TDI: from Air Diluent to Helitrox
TDI rebreather courses are taught on one specific rebreather model, and the certificate is valid for the model you trained on.
- Air Diluent CCR: the entry level, dives without decompression to 30 m with air or nitrox as the diluent.
- Air Diluent CCR Decompression Procedures: decompression dives to 40 m. Also open to open-circuit technical divers with TDI Advanced Nitrox and Decompression Procedures certificates.
- Helitrox CCR: decompression dives to 45 m with a helium-based diluent that reduces nitrogen narcosis.
How to prepare
Each level has its own requirements. On the Advanced Rebreather Diver level you can only go deeper than 30 m with the Deep Diver certificate. Tec 40 CCR requires Advanced Open Water Diver, Enriched Air Diver and Deep Diver certificates (or 10 dives to 30 m), 30 logged dives including 10 nitrox dives deeper than 18 m, the Rescue Diver certificate before the fifth training dive and 50 logged dives before certification.
What comes next
Tec 40 CCR and the TDI rebreather decompression courses are technical diving on a rebreather. The open-circuit technical courses, from TDI Intro to Tech to Tec 50 and TDI Extended Range, are on the technical diving courses page.
Frequently asked questions
Who are rebreather courses for?
Experienced divers aged 18 and over. The first PADI level requires Open Water Diver and nitrox (Enriched Air Diver) certificates and at least 25 logged dives; TDI Air Diluent CCR requires a nitrox certificate and 20 logged dives. The exact requirements for each level are on the course page.
Which rebreather do we use?
On the technical Tec 40 CCR level we train on the AP Diving Vision rebreather. The first two levels use a recreational (Type R) rebreather. TDI courses are taught on one specific rebreather model, and the certificate is valid only for it.
How long do the courses take?
PADI Rebreather Diver takes 4 days, Advanced Rebreather Diver 3 days and Tec 40 CCR 6 days. A full TDI rebreather course takes at least 5 days.