Hey Ace I was in the exact same situation as you. Did my course in Nautical studies in year 12 about 10 ago. Never had any buddies to dive with so never gave it much thought. Now a few of my friends & nearly everyone I work with dives.

I just called padi for a new card & didn't bother with the refresher, I figured it was like riding a bike. It wasn't until I was kitted up ready to head into the water that I thought that might not have been the best idea. I'd recommend starting with an easy dive like off the rocco shore. We pretty much just let out the air & crawled along the bottom till we were 15 meters. We also did a few off point perron where you’re only down 8meters at the most. So we haven’t had to mess with decompression stops much yet.

A refresher after 10yrs would definitely be handy & a little safer, but not as if they won’t hire you the gear. When I was on the dive training boat over in Thailand I was peeking over the shoulder of a few trainees. They were going thru stuff like weight belt recovery & how to stop a blowing regulator. I’d forgotten all of that shit… so hopefully I don’t drop my weight belt any time soon.


Now that I’ve racked a few more up I want to do my advanced, maybe up exmouth. Which will hopefully fill me in on everything else I've forgotten.

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