Double Tank Diving, Why Is Wearing Two Tanks Worth It?

Double tank diving and a two-tank dive are common expressions, which tell us about duplicity in the scuba world, but they do not mean the same thing for all of us. While double tank diving for many people means diving with two tanks on you. Others understand it as diving twice in a row during one single boat trip. Of course, in the latter case, the diver uses a single-tank each time. You can enjoy this in Cozumel with Dressel Divers every day. That is fantastic, we know! However, in this article we will look into the origin of the twinset and sidemount and what benefits these systems bring. Are you intrigued? Keep reading!

What Is Double Tank Diving?

Many people think that double tank diving is something that only technical divers do. However, more and more recreational divers are choosing this option for their dives.

Did you know that double tank diving was practiced before diving with a single tank? In fact, Jacques Cousteau dove with 3 tanks of 6-liters/202,884 oz in 1944. Remember that the original objective of diving was professional or military. Double tank diving gave them enough time to do the work they had to do underwater.

When tables to control the entrance to decompression appeared, it became obvious recreational divers had enough gas for their needs diving with a single tank.

Different Mounts for Double Tank Diving

There are different mounts for double tank diving. The most common are the twinset and the sidemount. In fact, in technical diving, both are combined. It’s not hard to see one of these experts carrying more than two tanks in the sidemount configuration. These extra tanks are called stage bottles. It is necessary to take specific technical diving courses, like the ones offered by Dressel Divers, to know how to use them properly.

Using a twinset or back-mount, the diver has access to all the gas through one regulator, useful if the second regulator has a problem. Besides, this system also allows us to isolate the tanks using a valve. In this way, in case of emergency, there is always, at least, one tank working.

However, this system presented a problem when the diver wanted to access narrow spaces. With the double tank on the back he or she moved with difficulty. Sidemount appeared to solve this problem. In fact, it was born thanks to cave diving, where the spaces are very narrow.

As usually happens, so much technical creativity implies improvements, which soon extend to the rest of the divers. Double tank diving using the sidemount configuration is a good example and day after day there are more and more the recreational divers that practice it.

The reason for double tank diving in recreational diving is to increase safety. By practicing it, you will also have two or more regulators at your disposal (the tanks are not connected to each other and each one has its own regulator), more air, and more reaction time.

Sidemount is a recreational diving specialty. During the course, you learn to use the configuration that places the tanks on the sides of the diver. Also, you learn how to do drift dive, how to handle more underwater tasks, how to control two gauges at once, or to be a more independent as a diver. The Sidemount Diver course consists of one confined water session and four open water training dives. During these dives, you progress from two cylinders to at least four or even six tanks.

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