Thinking About Buying Diving Gear on the Internet?

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On the internet, you will be able to find a lot of information about scuba diving training, adventures and gear.  In that respect, we hope that www.TotalDiving.com will become one of your favorite sources of information on scuba diving related topics.  Please give us your feedback about this website so that we can continue to improve it.

The internet is a great tool for transmitting information at very little cost.  That is why there is so much information as well as misinformation on the internet!  So, first and foremost, when "shopping online", you better not believe everything your read!

The Dive Manufacturers & The Internet

Let's start by reading a warning from Aqualung about buying on the internet.  Aqualung's family of products include Apeks, AquaSphere, DeepSee, Dräger, Gates, PrincetonTec, SeaQuest, Suunto, Technisub, US Divers.  In fact, Aqualung is the single largest manufacturer & distributor of scuba diving gear in the World.  So why don't we first check Aqualung's position on internet sales of scuba diving gear?

 In brief, Aqualung's position is simple: Nobody, anywhere, is authorized to sell any of Aqualung's products on the internet.  If they do so, they are not an authorized Aqualung dealer and there is, therefore, no warranty on the products you have purchased. 

Since most of Aqualung's products come with a lifetime warranty, loosing your warranty would have a significant financial impact after a few years of diving, especially since the warranty doesn't just cover defects. The "lifetime warranty" from Aqualung gives you, FREE, all the parts normally replaced in the routine annual maintenance of your diving gear, for as long as you own your diving gear. That's a lot of money!

So, whether we like it or not...  Whether you like it or not...  We have to follow these directives from Aqualung because we want to make sure that we will remain an official Aqualung dealer for the next 100 years (at least) and that we will be able to supply you with all your needs in service, maintenance, warranty recalls and replacement parts.

Why Buy From An Authorized Dealer?

 Some online store replaces the manufacturer's warranty with their own in-house warranty.  Do you really trust that online store?  And if so, do you really want to pay shipping back and forth (across Canadian customs) every time your regulator needs service?!

Furthermore, what will you do when you are in Australia, ready to go diving on the Great Barrier Reef and you can't get your regulator serviced at a local authorized dealer?  Will you get any help from your "online friend" who took your money and ran?  I don't think so...  You will be a YOYO: You're On Your Own!

Is The Internet Really Cheaper?

 With all of the issues listed above (the costs of annual service parts for a lifetime & the help from an international network of authorized dealers), you could pay a little bit more from your local dive center and still save on the long run.

 But even at the time of purchase, will you get all the professional help that Total Diving can give you?  Do you really want to receive a regulator unassembled and not properly tested?  Is your life really worth so little to you? 

The online stores are not dumb - they know how important safety is to you.  That's why most of them are advertising that "dive instructors" will review and assemble your order.  This statement, in itself, is quite funny!  What does a dive instructor have to do with properly assembling and testing diving gear? Would you ask an Air Canada pilot to go work at Bombardier to assemble a plane?!? Would you get into that plane?

So, if you take into consideration all of the above issues plus the cost of shipping back and forth and the exchange rate, you will find that your local Total Diving dive center is actually very much price competitive. 

This is not just in the diving world - it is everywhere in the retail world.  In its February 2004 edition, The Canadian Retailer, the official magazine of the Retail Council of Canada, explained that although the number of Canadian consumers using the internet to research information is growing fast, the actual number of dollars spent online has dropped!  In other words, we use the internet as a giant library to research information but, then, we purchase face to face from somebody we trust.

 What About Supporting Your Local Dive Community?

As divers, we all benefit in one way or another from supporting a healthy local dive community.

Your Total Diving center provides professional support, travel opportunities, local diving information, advanced training and, most importantly, a place for divers to meet.  It's like a yacht club!  Even if we do not have the time nor the money to go sailing every day, we can still meet and talk about it!

 Have you ever seen the online store supporting local activities?  Do they support your dive club?  Do they help finance the annual Colloque organized by Les diables des mers?  Do they finance the money-loosing local air compressor?  Do they come running to help you when you realize on Friday night that your regulator is leaking or that the hydro on your cylinder is passed due?

Why Should I Buy From Total Diving?

 On top of all the reasons explained above, Total Diving has grown with the diving industry for over 30 years.  Over these years, we have gained tremendous knowledge and experience.  So much that nowadays, we can even train you to become a professional dive technician.

We know how to assess your needs as a diver and we take the time to match your needs with a good selection of diving gear. Even when buying fins, you need to think about the type of performance you want to get out of them.  We also try the equipment with you to ensure a perfect fit which will ensure your comfort and your safety while diving.  You can even try your new gear in our on-site indoor pool.

Price alone is not a good measure of suitability. Often, more expensive equipment is not necessarily better for your needs. On the other hand, it is sometimes less expensive to select a better model immediately than to upgrade 3 months later.

Why Did We Bother Preparing this "Warning about internet sales"?

 We came up with the content of this page after a few divers like you actually asked us why we had not warned them beforehand - usually after they realize that they will have to buy their annual service parts from Aqualung, Apeks, Zeagle and others, every year, because they purchased their regulator from a non-authorized dealer. 

Furthermore, at least once a month, we serve a diver who is coming to us to bail him out of a bad internet deal: An OMS light that came with a dead battery, a regulator missing its high pressure seat, a scuba cylinder that is illegal in Canada, a Suunto computer that had been reported stolen and then sold on eBay, a Stinger watch that had missing parts - and the list goes on.

 Think about it!  And let us know what you think...