SDI Full Face Mask Diver Course

A standard scuba mask covers your eyes and nose and holds a regulator in your mouth. A full face mask does something different: it seals around your entire face, integrates the regulator inside the mask, and lets you breathe naturally through your nose and mouth both. No regulator to hold. No bite to maintain. Just a sealed, protected face and a clear field of view.

The SDI Full Face Mask Diver course trains you to use one correctly. You will learn how full face masks work, what the real tradeoffs are, how to select the right mask for your diving, and how to handle the skills and emergency procedures that are specific to this type of equipment. Dive Arizona provides Ocean Technology Systems (OTS) Guardian and Spectrum masks and Ocean Reef masks for the course. If you already own a full face mask, bring it along.

What a Full Face Mask Gives You

Full face masks offer three advantages that a standard mask and regulator setup cannot match.

Increased Diver Safety

Because the mask seals around the entire face, an unconscious or incapacitated diver continues to breathe as long as the air supply is open, without needing to hold a regulator in place. This is one of the primary reasons full face masks are standard equipment in public safety diving and surface-supplied operations.

Underwater Communication

Full face masks are compatible with underwater communication systems that integrate directly into the mask. Diver-to-diver and diver-to-surface communication becomes possible in a way that a standard mask and regulator setup does not allow. The course covers the types of communication equipment available and how they are used.

Corrective Lenses

Divers who need vision correction have limited options with a standard mask. Many full face masks accommodate prescription lens inserts or corrective lenses within the mask itself, giving divers with significant vision needs a clearer view underwater than a standard mask can typically provide.

The Tradeoffs Worth Knowing Before You Enroll

Full face masks are not a straight upgrade from a standard mask. The course covers the disadvantages honestly, and understanding them before you get in the water is part of diving one safely.

• Air consumption tends to be higher with a full face mask than with a standard regulator. The larger dead space inside the mask means you are re-breathing a small amount of exhaled air, which increases your breathing workload slightly over a standard setup.
• Buoyancy is affected. Full face masks are bulkier than standard masks and add positive buoyancy at your face, which changes your trim in the water and may require weighting adjustment.
• The masks are physically larger and more complex than standard equipment, which makes them harder to travel with and requires more maintenance.

What the Course Covers

Mask Types and Selection

The course covers the main categories of full face masks used in recreational diving, including scuba quick-connect and disconnect configurations and surface-supplied setups. You will learn what makes a mask appropriate or inappropriate for a given dive environment and how to evaluate different models against your intended use.

Techniques, Procedures, and Maintenance

Donning a full face mask correctly is more involved than putting on a standard mask. The course covers proper donning and adjustment, switching from open to closed configuration on the surface, equalization techniques specific to full face masks, and how to care for and maintain the mask after each dive. Authorized servicing intervals and preventive maintenance are also covered.

In-Water Skills

The in-water component is where the most important skills are built. Full face mask diving introduces emergency scenarios that do not exist with a standard mask setup, and the course trains you to handle each one. Required skills include:

• Equipment setup and proper donning with adjustment before entry
• Proper weighting and buoyancy establishment with the full face mask
• Equalization techniques underwater
• Clearing a partially flooded mask
• Removing and replacing the full face mask underwater
• Managing a free-flowing full face mask
• Switching to a backup mask underwater
• Removing the mask and using an alternate air source
• Alternate air source ascent
• Controlled ascent, exit, and dive log

Masks Available for the Course

Dive Arizona provides the following full face masks for student use during the course:

• Ocean Technology Systems (OTS) Guardian & Spectrum
• Ocean Reef mask

If you already own a full face mask and want to use it for the course, bring it. Training on your own equipment is always a good option. If you are considering purchasing one before or after the course, stop by the shop and we can walk you through the options we carry.

Who Can Enroll

The SDI Full Face Mask Diver course is open to certified SDI Open Water Scuba Divers or equivalent. Minimum age is 15 with parental consent, 18 without.

Gear and Equipment

Students are required to own their own mask, fins, boots, and snorkel for this course. Dive gear rental such as BCD, regulator, computer, tanks, weights, and wetsuit is included in the course. Full face masks are provided by Dive Arizona as listed above, or you may bring your own. If you'd like to purchase any of your own equipment, we carry a full selection in the shop and all students enrolled in a course receive a discount on purchases during enrollment.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a full face mask in scuba diving?

A full face mask is a diving mask that seals around the entire face rather than just the eyes and nose. It integrates the regulator inside the mask so you breathe through the mask itself, through both your nose and mouth, without holding a separate regulator mouthpiece. Full face masks are used in recreational diving, public safety diving, and surface-supplied operations.

What are the advantages of a full face mask for diving?

The three main advantages are increased diver safety (an unconscious diver continues breathing without needing to hold a regulator), underwater communication capability through integrated communication systems, and accommodation of corrective lens inserts for divers who need vision correction.

Is full face mask diving harder than regular diving?

The biggest adjustments are buoyancy and air consumption. Full face masks are bulkier than standard masks, which affects your trim, and the larger internal volume increases air consumption slightly compared to a standard setup. The donning procedure is more involved, and emergency skills like mask removal and alternate air source switching require specific practice. The course covers all of these directly.

What masks are used in the SDI Full Face Mask course at Dive Arizona?

Dive Arizona provides Ocean Technology Systems (OTS) Guardian and Spectrum masks and Ocean Reef masks for student use. Students who already own a full face mask are welcome to bring their own.

Can I use a full face mask if I wear glasses or contacts?

Many full face masks accommodate prescription lens inserts, which is one of their advantages over standard masks. Contact lenses can be worn under a standard scuba mask, but a full face mask with corrective lenses may give clearer vision for divers with significant prescriptions. Call us at (480) 881-4013 before the course and we can talk through the options based on your specific prescription.

Does the Full Face Mask Diver certification count toward SDI Advanced Diver?

The SDI Full Face Mask Diver certification counts as one specialty credit toward the SDI Advanced Diver Development Program.

Ready to Try a Full Face Mask?

Contact us to schedule the SDI Full Face Mask Diver course. Call us at (480) 881-4013 or stop by the shop. We are open Monday through Saturday 11am to 6pm and Sunday 11am to 5pm, at 18618 S 186th Way, Queen Creek, inside The Shooting Range.

For more information and to see course standards, click here!