re: Dive tips

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$5/tank unless they are good then I may tip $10 or more.

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Glad you were never on my boat. You should tip the crew 10% of the cost of your trip.

Most crew members work their asses off. When I was a crew Divemaster on a live aboard, my day started an hour before you got up, and ended several hours after you went to bed. Not only did I run dives and fill tanks, I cleaned the heads, was a deckhand, worked in the engine room, helped in the galley, kept cold fresh water out for folks to drink, and distracted the customers when something went wrong. I worried about all the things that could go wrong while folks were diving, and kept dive lines tight so divers didn't bump their heads going under the boat. I took out the trash and cleaned up the vomit from seasick customers.

When I crewed on a 6 pack boat, I hauled tanks from the shop to the boat, loaded them on the racks before folks arrived early in the morning, and filled up the fresh water rinse. After the day was done, I cleaned the boat and the head, loaded up the tanks to go back to the shop, and had the boat fueled up for the next trip. Oh, and if the engine intake sucked up Sargassum when we were under way, guess who had to go under the boat and clean it out, sometimes in rough seas.

Most people have no idea how hard the dive crew works. I have a white collar job and I crewed on my spare time because I love the sport. It isn't for the money, I assure you.

So treat your crew right.