Lesson 100
We will talk about other types of gear
By the end of this section, I should be able to answer these questions:
1. What would I use a dive light for? Why might I use one during the day?
2. What options can I choose from when selecting dive lights?
Dive Lights
Dive lights are designed specifically to be both watertight and to withstand pressure. As a recreational diver, you will use a dive light if you go night diving, but you also might use one during the day.
When you take the PADI Night Diver course, you learn night diving techniques, including handling and using a dive light (two, actually). But many divers carry a compact light during the day so they can look into holes and cracks where shy organisms hide.
Dive Light Options and Accessories
Your main choices in choosing dive lights are size, brightness and power source.
Size and brightness. There’s a trade between brightness, beam width, and size. Compact lights stow easily, making them good choices for day use, and as spare lights when night diving. But they are not as bright and have narrower beams than larger lights, used as main lights for night diving, which are brighter and cover a wider area.
There are also specialized lights used in technical diving, lighting underwater video, etc. Your dive retailer can provide guidance in choosing lights. As technology advances, size versus brightness/beam width is becoming less and less of an issue. Modern LED lights are making powerful, wide beam lights available in smaller packages. Today’s “large” lights are smaller than many of the “compact” dive lights available 10 years ago.
Power source. Larger, more powerful lights usually have dedicated rechargeable battery systems, though many use disposables. Compact lights usually take disposables, with AA cells the most common. You can also use rechargeable NiMH AAs in most newer lights that take disposable AAs (check the manufacturer literature).
Accessories for your light. Most divers attach a clip on their light to secure it when not in use. Especially for larger lights, a wrist lanyard helps avoid loss, plus allows you to release the light without losing it.
Quick quiz
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