Dubai's Dive Garage in Al Quoz has generated a Dh250,000 diving pool from shipping
09 March, 2021
People in Dubai seeking to practise their diving expertise won’t have to venture much to make the leap.
Dive Garage - the retail branch of Divers Straight down diving centre in Fujairah - has recently opened a flagship retailer in Al Quoz Industrial Location 4. Its main appeal is a bespoke training pool that is developed by welding two transport containers together.
The pool is filled with 100,000 litres of fresh water and features Plexiglas windows. Additionally it is being fitted with a temperature control system.
The key attraction is its dual level. The shallower region has a depth of just one 1.4 metres, while the other section falls to 2.75 metres, which is far deeper than your average community pool.
“Joining the two shipping containers to make those amounts, that was the hard bit, because you had to do the job out the stress issues,” says director Dave Griffiths.
The pool also needed to be reinforced and the water filled in stages to make sure there have been no leaks. “Those were the most stressful nights for me personally. I kept envisioning arriving at the store and getting it filled with normal water,” he says with a laugh.
Despite the issues, and the hefty value of putting it alongside one another - which ran up to nearly Dh250,000 - he says he's happy with the final outcome.
“The shallow end is ideal for beginners because it’s easy for most of the people to just operate and have their brain above the water. Whereas for anyone who is training, you will need even more depth to acquire that important experience, and it’s difficult to find that in a pool area here. This is why that is simply perfect for all levels.”
Diving is an activity that has boomed through the pandemic, while more people took to the seas when they weren’t able to travelling. Griffiths says 2020 features been their best time, as applications for certifications soared.
Besides the training pool area, Dive Garage’s new flagship retail outlet sells diving equipment and includes a servicing workshop for devices maintenance and repair.
For those attempting to try the increasingly popular leisure activity, Dive Garage offers Padi leisure courses, Tec courses and Padi professional courses.
The purchase price for a swimming pool experience is Dh290. A complete Padi Open Normal water Diver certification costs Dh1,995, like the training materials and four dives from the east coast of UAE.
Source: www.thenationalnews.com
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