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You can't rent tanks or get your own tanks filled without some sort of certification.

You can, however, buy your own compressor.

They're not cheap, but they're also not all that expensive.

You just need a PADI Open Water certification or equivalent to rent tanks or get air fills. You don't need to be some fancy technical cave diver. The most basic license will suffice.

Those who have that certification are not "uncertified divers".

You aren't supposed to be able to dive at all without a certification. So the term "uncertified divers" makes zero sense.

So, if you're "uncertified" and you somehow managed to get yourself a filled air tank, then my point still stands: you can go down to however deep you want.

And the basic open water certification is not much more than a rubber stamp. Anyone can get it as long as they pay their $100 to PADI or whoever else.

How do you think people go about getting a certification? Uncertified people have to be able to dive with an instructor or there would be a chicken and egg problem becoming certified.

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