Confined & Open Water Skills Flashcards
7 cards from real PADI practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Confined & Open Water Skills flashcards as text
During open water training, students must demonstrate a surface swim of at least how far without scuba equipment?
Answer: 200 meters/600 feet
The PADI Open Water Diver course requires students to complete a 200-meter/656-foot surface swim or a 300-meter snorkel swim as a swimming prerequisite.
What skill is a student demonstrating when they remove their BCD and scuba unit underwater and replace it?
Answer: Ditch and recovery
Ditch and recovery involves removing the scuba unit underwater and then replacing and securing it, building familiarity and confidence with equipment.
When a student performs a controlled emergency swimming ascent (CESA), which breathing behavior is critical?
Answer: Exhale continuously and audibly throughout the ascent
During a CESA, the diver must exhale continuously to prevent lung overexpansion injury as the surrounding pressure decreases during ascent.
Which of the following is NOT a standard PADI Open Water confined water skill?
Answer: Decompression stop at 5 meters
Decompression stops are not part of Open Water Diver training; OWD divers plan no-decompression dives and ascend within no-stop limits.
A student surfaces from an open water dive and appears exhausted and barely keeping their head above water. The first action the rescuer should take is:
Answer: Establish positive buoyancy for the diver by inflating their BCD or directing them to inflate it
Establishing positive buoyancy is the immediate priority for a distressed surface diver to prevent drowning while further assessment occurs.
Why must divers make a 3-minute safety stop at 5 meters/15 feet at the end of open water dives?
Answer: To allow additional off-gassing of nitrogen and provide a buffer against decompression sickness
The safety stop allows extra time for dissolved nitrogen to off-gas, providing a safety margin even on no-decompression dives.
During confined water training, a student's regulator free-flows. Which skill should they immediately apply?
Answer: Breathe from the free-flowing regulator by holding it at the corner of the mouth to control airflow
A diver can breathe from a free-flowing regulator by positioning it at the corner of the mouth and allowing excess air to escape, providing time for a controlled ascent.