Drysuit cold water divers.....How much weight?

[Jaksonbrown]

How much weight do you carry when diving a drysuit? The standard formula I have been taught is to take your weight, divide it by 10 and then add 10-12lbs....

Lately I have been hearing that that is a HUGE amount of weight,.. So Im currious,... How much weight do you pack?

Personally I pack 35lbs and weigh in at 220lbs.......

Thanks,...

Samson-

 

[SteveAD]

You need what you need, based on a proper weight check. There is no formula based on weight. Fat floats, muscle and bone sink. What kind of suit? What kind of undies? Start with whatever you use in a wetsuit under similar conditions. Get in the water and fine tune it.

 

[J.R.]

You need what you need, based on a proper weight check. There is no formula based on weight. Fat floats, muscle and bone sink. What kind of suit? What kind of undies? Start with whatever you use in a wetsuit under similar conditions. Get in the water and fine tune it.

YUP... what he said.

 

[dannobee]

Ten percent of your body weight plus 5-10 lbs is a decent starting point if you don't have a clue. Different underwear, backplate/BC, and tank(s) are the main variables.

Personally, I dive with a Stainless backplate, DUI CF200 with 400 gm thinsulate, a Faber HP100 tank and use 12 lbs. That heavy Faber allows me to take off at least 10 lbs.

 

[spectrum]

Ten percent of your body weight plus 5-10 lbs is a decent starting point if you don't have a clue. Different underwear, backplate/BC, and tank(s) are the main variables.

Personally, I dive with a Stainless backplate, DUI CF200 with 400 gm thinsulate, a Faber HP100 tank and use 12 lbs. That heavy Faber allows me to take off at least 10 lbs.

I'd add fresh/salt and specific cylinder to the list of what-ifs.

Pete

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I am 5'9" tall and about 210 and dive with either double LP 95's or double HP 100's and a 6 lb SS plate with no added weight.

When I switch to double 72's I have to add an 8 lb v-weight to makeup for the difference in bouyancy of the tanks.

That is for water temps down to about 45 degrees. For colder dives with heavier undergarments I will use the 8 lb v-weight with the larger/more negatively buoyant tanks.

You need to be neutrally buoyant at the end of the dive at about 15 ft with 300-500 psi in the tank(s). That is no different that with a wet suit. However you also need enough weight to allow you to have enough gas in the suit to loft the underwear enough to let it be effective and keep you warm. Some divers who dive try in warm to cool water make the mistake of diving with the suit excessively squeezed when the water gets really cold and weight themselves accordingly. They are usually the ones who complain that their undergarments are not warm enough in circumstances where they should be.

As stated above there is no magic formula as it depends on body type, body composition, the specific dry suit, the undergarments being used and the other items in the configuration such as tanks, plates, lights, etc. So...add maybe 5 lbs over what you wore with a 7mm wet suit and go from there and adjust as needed over a few dives until you get it dialed in.

 

[NudeDiver]

Last time I went, I used 34 pounds with a steel tank and crushed neoprene suit, in saltwater.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

With double 85's none. With my 72's 4 lbs. Single lp95's 6lbs. That's with a stainless plate.- In freshwater. I'm 5'7" 163lbs. Trimlam suit. In Monterey I dove single steel 85 with the DSS add on 8lb plates and was perfect.The last time I dove with al80 dry was my instructor exam. Had 12 lbs on the belt and felt a little heavy with same BPW setup. No add ons used.

 

[JMcD]

I'm 5' 5", ~145Lbs, dive a single aluminum 80 with a Whites Catalyst Dry Suit in Fresh Water. Depending on undergarments, etc I wear 22-24 Lbs.

... let's see 10% is 14.5 + 5-6 Lbs.. seems to be close for me..., but I agree with the opinion that you really need to get a starting amount and fine tune. Everyone is different and different gear can make a big difference. If you're not 100% sure how to do a proper weight check, check with your LDS. I'm sure you can search this board for a number of descriptions as well... FIne tune at the end of your dive with 500PSI at 15Ft holding your safety stop with very little air in your BC...

 

[msg]

I dive with a 7mm neoprene drysuit, steel lp95, and use about 26#s of lead. I am 5-11 and 220#. I sometimes feel like I am over weighted, but most of the time it feels right. Depends on what undergarments I use in conjunction with the suit and the amount of air that I have in the suit. Nothing will tell you what you need until you do a buoyancy check. There are just too many variables to the equation.
Good luck in getting it dialed in.