DiveCast

Technical Diving Guides

Reference articles on the planning concepts DiveCast calculates automatically - written to stand on their own, whether or not you ever open the app.

What Is Turn Pressure and Ascent Pressure in Technical Diving?

The turn point isn't a feeling or a flat fraction of your gas - it's two specific numbers you can calculate before you're ever in the water.

Gradient Factors Explained: GF Low vs. GF High

Two numbers that shape every decompression stop in your plan - what they mean, and why one pair rarely fits every dive.

How to Plan CCR Bailout Gas

A worked example of solving backward from "how much gas am I carrying" to "how long can I actually survive a loop failure."

Why Your Real SAC Rate Under Stress Is Higher Than You Think

A calm-water SAC rate is a baseline, not a guarantee - here's what actually happens to gas consumption when a dive goes sideways.

SMB Deployment Timing: How Far Can You Actually Drift?

Deploy too early and you spend unnecessary time at depth, where deco obligations climb quickly. Deploy too late and the boat may not find you. Here's how to calculate the window in between.

OC vs. CCR Dive Planning: What Actually Changes

Same depth, same decompression theory underneath - but the numbers that actually drive the plan shift in specific, predictable ways.

Why Your No-Fly Time Isn't the 12/18/24-Hour Rule

Agency guidelines are simple and conservative on purpose. Here's what a no-fly time calculated from your actual tissue loading looks like instead.

Altitude Diving: Why Modern Computers Don't Need a Separate Altitude Setting

Surface pressure already contains everything a decompression algorithm needs to know about altitude - if it's built to use it directly.

Isobaric Counterdiffusion (ICD): When a Gas Switch Alone Can Hurt You

No depth change, no obvious trigger - just a gas switch that can still cause decompression sickness. Here's why.