5 MM Shorty - too warm?

[jscheier]

I have been using the Lavacore full length since they came out. I like the ease of using it, but found after multiple dives (even in warmer water) I start to get a little chill. Is going to a 5 mm shorty going to be too much? I will be diving in Cozumel in August (I was told water will be about 80/82). Should a 3 mm shorty be sufficient or would you go with a 5 mm?

Thanks

J

 

[guruboy]

I would use a 3mm full instead of a 5mm shorty.

You can also try wearing a 3mm shorty over the lavacore.

 

[boulderjohn]

I have been using the Lavacore full length since they came out. I like the ease of using it, but found after multiple dives (even in warmer water) I start to get a little chill. Is going to a 5 mm shorty going to be too much? I will be diving in Cozumel in August (I was told water will be about 80/82). Should a 3 mm shorty be sufficient or would you go with a 5 mm?

Different people have different tolerances, so what works for one person will not work for another. If it's me, I would use a full 3mm suit--a full 5mm suit would be too warm for me.

Notice I did not say "shorty." I don't use a shorty in the ocean--anywhere.

On my OW training dives, we used shorties. On one of the dives, i was near the bottom, getting my buoyancy under control, when one of the other student crashed down on top of me. I only brushed the coral below, but the wound took a very unpleasant month to heal. I have brushed my hand on stinging hydroids in Cozumel and had a very unpleasant experience. No, I like to have my body pretty much covered.

 

[jodylynn007]

I tend to get chilled easily and used to dive with a 3mm. I also own the lavacore full suit, it's simply not warm enough. For me though, a 3mm is 82F isn't warm enough. I would comfortably choose a full 5mm. I own all of these suits, in addition to two drysuits, you can't pay enough for comfort doing what we love.

PS - I also have a 3mm shorty that I bought as an early diver... it sits not being used EVER in my closet.

 

[tridacna]

Who makes a 5mm true shorty? Besides Pinnacle which is really a layer for a 3mm underneath. I've never seen a real 5mm shorty.

 

[kelemvor]

I would use a 3mm full instead of a 5mm shorty.

You can also try wearing a 3mm shorty over the lavacore.

This.

You can't make the 5mm thinner if it ends up being too warm. However if the 3mm shorty is not quite warm enough you can wear it over the top of your lavacore. I did 50 or so dives in a 3mm shorty + lavacore at my local aquarium a few years ago.

Or, the 3mm shorty might be enough on its own.

 

[stuartv]

I would use a 3mm full instead of a 5mm shorty.

You can also try wearing a 3mm shorty over the lavacore.

Ditto. 3mm full instead of any shorty.

If that isn't warm enough, then 3mm full over Lavacore - which, with mine anyway, is about the same as wearing a 5mm full.

 

[NYCNaiad]

I'm all about the layering. A vest or adding a 3mm shorty/full could work. I have a 5mm which I break out now as well towards the end of a long series of dives...but I start with the layering first.

 

[jscheier]

Thanks for the replies. I will go with a 3 mm full.

J

 

[mi000ke]

You can only decide based on your own tolerance for the water temp. I regularly dive a full 5mm in low 80s water and that's just about right - maybe a slight chill by the end of the second dive. I was on a boat dive recently in the Caribbean (82 degree water) where the divers ranged from just bathing suits, to 3 mm shorties, to my 5 mm full, to one diver in a dry suit! To each, his/her own.