SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) Safety & Sanitation Protocol
for Steiner Scuba programs

With Covid-19 one might be apprehensive about scuba diving. While any sport has inherent risks as does scuba, the novel corona virus caused by SARS-CoV-2 is also of great concern given the nature of scuba diving and the ease of transfer of the virus from person to person with uncleaned scuba equipment.

Here at Steiner Scuba we take great caution to ensure that our scuba gear remains clean and free of any contaminants including the Covid-19 virus.

So how do we accomplish this? We follow the CDC guidlines established for disinfecting equipment that may have been exposed to contaminants, specifically the SARS-CoV-2 virus known for causing (and commonly referred to as) Covid-19. See the article from Divers Alert Network regarding this very subject.

Steps we take to ensure our gear remains free from contaminants including SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19).

  • All gear is cleaned after each use and before it is stored with other cleaned equipment. All gear that has (or has potentially) come into contact with a participant's saliva is cleaned by submerging in a 2% Bleach solution for a minimum of 8 minutes. This will ensure all contact points have been exposed to the bleach solution which inactivates the SARS-CoV-2 virus after 5 minutes of contact (according to the CDC published disinfecting recomendations). This cleaning includes all regulators and the oral inflator of our BCDs.
  • All gear handlers must wash their hands both before and after cleaning any scuba gear to reduce the risk of transmission of any contaminants.
  • All regulator mouthpiences used by Steiner Scuba are removed (before being submerged in the bleach solution) and replaced with new or disinfected mouthpieces before any gear is returned to the cleaned gear storage location.
  • To disinfect the regulator mouthpieces Steiner Scuba submerges used mouthpieces in a 2% bleach solution for a minimum of 8 minutes. Then all used mouthpieces are placed in boiling water for a minimum of 10 minutes after being cleaned by bleach. These mouthpiences are then individually stored in clean plastic bags until needed. This reduces the risk of mouthpieces becoming contaminated between uses.
  • Participants may opt to purchase (as part of their scuba experience or class) a NEW replacement mouthpiece that is theirs and has NEVER been used, which may be attached to any of the scuba regulators we use here at Steiner Scuba. Instructors & Divemasters conducting Steiner Scuba clases and experiences will assist in attaching these mouthpieces to any equipment used by our participants. Once the experience/class is over, the mouthpieces will be removed and returned to the customer for future use. At the next session, the customer simply brings their mouthpiece back to class for us to attach to our gear. A simple process that only takes a few seconds to complete.

Should anyone have any concerns or wish to discuss our cleaning procedures with us, please dont hesitate to let us know.

Thank you for taking the time to review our Covid-19 cleaning protocol as your safety and health are our top concerns.