Sidemount has gone from niche technical trick to one of the most popular ways to dive: tanks sit at your sides instead of on your back, for a lower profile and genuine redundancy from two independent air sources. Over two days you'll learn to configure and trim your rig properly, then focus on fine trim control and efficient finning suited to the profile. It pairs especially well with wreck and cavern diving.

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In detail

About This Course

Sidemount diving has moved from a niche technical technique to a genuinely popular way of diving for recreational and technical divers alike. Instead of a single cylinder on your back, tanks are mounted at your sides, giving a lower profile in the water, easier gear handling on land, and built-in redundancy from carrying two independent air sources.

The PADI Sidemount Diver course, run over two days, takes you through the full process of configuring and trimming sidemount equipment correctly, since proper setup is the foundation of comfortable sidemount diving. You will spend time adjusting cylinder position, hose routing and buoyancy until the whole rig feels balanced and unobtrusive.

In the water, the focus shifts to the technique itself: fine control of trim and buoyancy, efficient finning that suits the sidemount profile, and the small adjustments that keep two cylinders working with you rather than against you. Many divers find sidemount noticeably more comfortable than back mounted twin sets once the technique clicks.

Sidemount pairs particularly well with wreck and cavern style diving, where a lower profile and easy cylinder removal are real advantages, making this specialty a smart addition for divers heading toward more advanced or technical diving in the future.

The process

How The Course Works

Step 1
Sidemount Setup
You'll learn how a sidemount rig actually goes together, from clipping the cylinders at your sides to routing the hoses, and why the lower profile gives you genuine redundancy from two independent air supplies instead of just one. It's a completely different way of thinking about your gear.
Step 2
Trim and Balance in Confined Water
Getting a sidemount rig to sit right takes practice, so you'll spend time working on trim and weighting until you're balanced and streamlined rather than lopsided. This is where the muscle memory for smooth, controlled cylinder handling gets built.
Step 3
Open Water Sidemount Dives
You take everything into open water, managing gas across two independent cylinders and handling the small adjustments sidemount demands on a real dive. Most divers who try it end up preferring the comfort and flexibility over a traditional back-mounted rig.
PADI states: minimum age 15, PADI Open Water Diver or higher required

Course curriculum

What You'll Learn

Learning Outcomes

sidemount equipment configuration
balance and efficiency of sidemount scuba diving

Getting ready

Before You Start & What's Next

Prerequisites

PADI Open Water Diver certification

Next Steps

PADI Wreck Diver Specialty, where a sidemount profile is a real advantage
PADI Cavern Diver Specialty
Tec Sidemount Diver for technical divers wanting to go further

Upcoming training

Dates & Booking

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Quick facts

Duration

2 days of structured training

Location

Unit 4, Bellman Court, Great Knollys Street, Reading, RG1 7HD

Certification

Recognised PADI qualification on completion

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Sidemount Diver

What to expect