Buddy Checks: Why They're As Important Now As Ever

During open water classes, you learned about the importance of buddy checks, and if you’re like many, you and your dive buddies are probably good about conducting these checks pre-dive. You check to ensure breathing gas supplies are adequate, you ensure all necessary equipment is present and in good working order, and you take your time doing it. Every so often, most of us come across someone who is lax about buddy checks, or who doesn’t believe that they’re necessary at all. Here, we explain why buddy checks are of vital importance, in case you ever need to convince someone else of the fact.

Safety is in the Balance

The original purpose of buddy checks was to make it easy for divers to ensure that equipment had been assembled correctly, and to ensure that each diver was familiar with his or her buddy’s setup for mutual safety. That was super-simple back in the days before so many types of equipment were available. Though the goal of safety remains the same, these checks allow you to familiarize yourself with items that may be much different from your own. Buddy checks almost always cover the following aspects:

• Check breathing apparatus for proper function, and check to ensure breathing gas supply is both suitable and adequate

• Check weighting and buoyancy equipment

• Check quick release functions, connection points, and harness security

• Check hose routing and attachment

• Check for appropriate auxiliary equipment and functionality including mask, knife, dive computer, light, and so forth

In addition, buddy checks may include certain aspects of dive planning, though in group settings the following components are typically considered to be part of the dive briefing process: 

• Risk assessment

• Contingency planning

• Emergency planning

• Dive plan, including route, planned activities, decompression, and who will lead

• Communications planning, particularly when diving with an unfamiliar buddy

If you’ve been diving for a while, you know that people use all sorts of different gear configurations, and you are well aware that there are many different scuba gear brands that have features that operate differently from the gear you carry yourself. People are diving with sidemounts and rebreathers now more than ever, and even though BCDs can be set up simply, there are many different configurations. Keeping this in mind, imagine what would happen if you were required to help your buddy if you weren’t familiar with his or her gear. Assisting someone else, particularly in an emergency, can be challenging even when that diver is wearing a standard jacket-style BCD and a single tank; now, just imagine what would happen if that same person were using a recreational sidemount configuration.  

When diving in a group, consider taking a moment to see how others have configured their equipment in the event an emergency occurs. Though the likelihood is usually quite low, it’s possible that you may need to assist any one of the other divers you’re spending time with. At the same time, be sure that you are paying close attention to your buddy’s kit, particularly if he or she is an “insta-buddy.” 

Taking your time with buddy checks might seem like a hassle, but in case of emergency, you’ll be glad that you spent a few minutes familiarizing yourself with your buddy’s setup, and that you allowed your buddy to do the same with your own gear.