Hi, I'm Mike
As an enthusiastic diver, I'm regularly found underwater in Dutch waters. Alongside that passion for the underwater world, I have a strong affinity with web development. And what's better than combining those two worlds? That's how the idea for Duiken Centraal came about.
Strengthening the diving community
Diving is a wonderful sport, but finding reliable, clear information can sometimes be quite a hunt. With Duiken Centraal I want to build one place for and by divers.
My goal: to use smart technology to support and connect the Dutch diving community, and provide it with tools that genuinely make your diving day easier and more enjoyable.
Where the data comes from
Sources and data
Duiken Centraal combines several public data sources to put together forecasts for diving conditions.
The forecast current speed and current direction come from the Scaldis-Oost model of Rijkswaterstaat (the Dutch national water authority). High and low tide predictions are based on Rijkswaterstaat's water level forecast, including the effect of wind setup. Water temperature is based on Rijkswaterstaat's measurement series. The wind forecast comes from Open-Meteo.
The conditions shown are therefore a combination of model and measurement data. The data isn't measured directly at every dive site. A forecast can therefore differ from what is actually experienced at a specific location.
Accuracy and limitations
A forecast remains a forecast. The actual conditions can differ from the calculated or predicted values. That applies among other things to current, current direction, water level and the visible effects of wind and other local conditions.
Duiken Centraal uses the available data and calculations as carefully as possible, but gives no guarantee that a forecast exactly matches reality at every moment and every location.
Important when planning a dive
Duiken Centraal has been developed with great care, but data, calculations and forecasts can contain errors, deviations or outdated information. The tide planner is therefore not 100% authoritative.
Wind, water level, current and other conditions can change locally and can differ from the forecast. Always check the conditions on site and use your own knowledge, experience and training when planning and carrying out a dive.
Duiken Centraal doesn't replace professional dive training, local knowledge or your own assessment of conditions. You remain responsible yourself for your own safety and that of others.
To the extent permitted by law, the creator of Duiken Centraal accepts no liability for damage arising from errors, imperfections, deviations or outdated data on the website or in the planner.
Privacy
Duiken Centraal tries to count visitors in the most privacy-friendly way possible. For visitor statistics, no cookies are placed and no information is stored in the browser. IP addresses are anonymised and visitors aren't profiled.
For more information about the processing of personal data and the measurement services used, see the privacy policy.
Copyright
The texts, design, software, calculations and other original content of Duiken Centraal are protected by copyright, unless stated otherwise.
It's not permitted to fully copy or commercially use original texts, images, calculations or other content from Duiken Centraal without permission. The underlying measurement and model data from Rijkswaterstaat and Open-Meteo are open data and fall under the terms of those sources.
Spotted something that could be better?
A dive site that's missing, a slack that looked different in real life, or an idea you'd like to see. I'd love to hear about it.