Can You Dive 50 Meters?

If you are new to scuba diving you may be wondering if you can dive to 50 metres (164 feet). For most recreational divers, a depth of 50 meters (about 164 feet) is considered a very deep dive, which requires proper training and equipment to dive this deep.

It is possible for a person to dive to a depth of 50 meters (164 feet) with the appropriate training, equipment, and safety measures in place. Diving to this depth is considered a deep dive and typically requires advanced diving certification and experience.

I have dived to 50 metres and beyond, on a number of occasions. I know it can be dived safely, but here are some key considerations for diving to 50 meters:

• Training for diving to 50 metres: Specialty training beyond open water certification is highly recommended to dive to 50 metres, which is for recreational dives beyond 18-40 meters. To dive to 50 metres, technical dive training, deep dive certifications, and experience with deep wrecks or caves helps prepare you for the greater challenges that deep diving presents.
• Equipment for diving to 50 metres: Most standard recreational scuba gear is adequate for diving to 50 metres. But you will need additional scuba diving equipment to stay safe at these depths. Technical diving equipment you will need in addition to the scuba equipment you already have includes; multiple dive tanks or a rebreather, mixed gases, bottom gas with lower oxygen content, decompression tanks, redundant regulators, delayed surface marker buoy, secondary depth gauges and a drysuit if you are diving in cold waters.
• Safety for diving to 50 metres: Having a plan is key when doing any dive, but this becomes even more important when you're planning to dive to 50 metres. The deeper the dive, the more important the planning becomes. Also, diving with a buddy is recommended for all recreational diving, but a dive buddy at depth is even more important for safety reasons. Allow ample time for safety stops on your ascent and enough air for the time it takes to ascend from a depth of 50 metres. Carry extra gas supplies for emergencies, as air consumption increases with depth. Know your emergency procedures for problems at depth and don’t take the risks for granted.
• Physiology diving to 50 metres: Effects like nitrogen narcosis, oxygen toxicity, the risk of decompression sickness, and High Pressure Nervous Syndrome (HPNS) become greater risks. Breathing gas at depth is higher which means you need to take this into account when planning your dive, and as the important saying goes “Plan The Dive and Dive the Plan“. Exertion harder. at depth and will result in the consumption of more air, so take things slowly on a deep dive to a depth of 50 metres (164 feet), which is why careful gas planning is important. You are also advised to acclimatise yourself to deeper dives by doing a few dives to around 30-40 metres 99-131 feet) leading up to a dive to 50 metres, which will help manage the effects of a deep dive.
• Conditions when diving to 50 metres: Visibility may decrease sharply beyond 30 meters (99 feet), so prepare yourself for a low visibility dive and make sure you take a dive torch with you, along with a backup torch. Temperatures can drop rapidly at depth, which is why I recommend you add a drysuit to your equipment for a dive to 50 metres. Currents may strengthen during the dive, which can make a very deep dive dangerous, so make sure you understand the tides and currents in the area, which should be part of your dive plan. Therefore, you should plan for poor conditions on deep dives.
• Be prepared for a dive to 50 metres: Things can begin to go wrong very quickly on a dive to 50 metres, your air will be used much more quickly, the deeper you dive. You don’t have much time before your dive turns into a no-stop decompression dive. Once you pass the no-decompression-stop ascent threshold, the amount of decompression and stop times increase rapidly,. Be vigilant and check your air and dive computer often. Also, keep a regular check on your dive buddy's air consumption too.

Pro tip diving to 50 metres: On a deep wreck dive to around 50 metres off Dartmouth in the UK, at the end of the dive I struggled for a few seconds to deploy my delayed SMB. This short delay added a further 10 minutes to my and my dive buddy's decompression stop time. This mistake demonstrated to me how quickly things can change on a dive to 50 metres, which taught me a valuable lesson. Fortunately, we had planned for enough air to last us through this additional stop time on our way to the surface.

With the right training, scuba gear, planning and buddy support, an experienced technical diver in good health can safely dive to 50 meters.

Other thoughts about a dive to 50 metres:

Here are some other important considerations for planning and conducting a dive to 50 meters (164 feet):

• Air consumption on a 50 metre dive: Air consumption is greatly increased at 50 metres when compared to diving to shallower depths, so plan ample gas supplies. Use larger tanks, twin tanks or a rebreather. Have backup/decompression tanks ready, and monitor consumption on a regular basis. Plan your air supply to last for your descent, bottom time and your ascent to include decompression stops.
• No-decompression limits on dives to 50 metres: For a dive to 50 metres no-stop decompression time is only a few minutes compared to hours at say a 10 metres dive. Follow dive tables and your dive computer closely to avoid decompression sickness.
• Emergency procedures for 50 metre dives: Review your training and responses before you dive to 50 metres for situations like mask flooding, regulator failure, dropped weight belt, etc. Practice skills at depth in advance. Have cutting tools and a delayed surface marker buoy.
• Entanglement hazards at 50 metres: Plan to take cutting tools and use caution around wrecks, kelp, fishing lines etc. on a dive to 50 metres, which can trap you at depth. Scooters may help navigate complex sites and help conserve energy to reduce air consumption. An emergency situtation can arise very quickly on a dive to 50 metres.
• Light requirements on a dive to 50 metres: On a dive to 50 metres, always carry dive torches, including a backup and prepare for low light affects and poor visibility.
• First aid supplies for 50 metres dives: When you are planninb to dive to 50 metres, make sure you have a supply of oxygen on the dive boat, decompression sickness medications, and an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) available on site for emergency treatment just in case. You should also have an evacuation plan in place too.
• Surface support for 50 metres dives: For dives to 50 metres, use a tether line, especially if you penetrate a wreck or when currents are present. Have a surface support team for additional monitoring and assistance. Rescue divers should be ready.
• Physical conditioning for dives to 50 metres: Fitness is important for deep dives to 50 metres and previous deep dive experience builds your body’s physical preparation. Build up gradually to this depth. Do not dive to 50 metres as your first dive of the season.

Proper deep dive training, planning, gear, and support is critical to manage the greater risks inherent at 50 meters. Conservative gas management, contingency preparation, caution and teamwork help maximise safety.

Pro tip for diving on wrecks at 50 metres: When you plan your dive on a deep wreck to 50 metres, be aware in locations where currents are common that a scour pit may form on one side of the wreck. On a dive to around 44 metres in Dartmouth in the UK, my dive buddy and I descended on the dive to what we thought would be around 44 metres. But our descent didn't stop until we reached around 46 metres, as we had dropped into the scour pit. It was dark and the visibility was terrible, but fortunately we had taken a compass bearing and swam to the wreck, which was at 44 metres.

It’s important to conclude that a dive to 50 metres is considered an advanced dive that requires thorough preparation. If you are already a recreational diver, it’s advisable to gradually work up to a dive depth of 50 metres, through specialty training and incremental experience.

Pro tip for 50 metre dives: When you dive to 50 metres, be prepared for experiencing symptoms of nitrogen narcosis. For most divers, nitrogen narcosis normally kicks in when you dive beyond around 30 metres. I've had two experiences of noticeable nitrogen narcosis on dives beyond 30 metres, one experience was funny, whilst the other was more serious. You can read more about both my narcosis experiences in this article: How Does a Diver Feel When Narked.

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