7mm Wetsuit In A Indoor Pool?

[Fogest]

Hey, I'm still going through my open water training in a pool and I'm wondering if it is a good idea to get a wetsuit now so that I can start getting used to the buoyancy while wearing a wetsuit, rather than having to try and figure that out later during the open water checkout weekend?

My only worry is that since I would be getting a 7mm wetsuit (Canada temperatures) that I may get too hot wearing it in an older warm pool?

Bad idea?

 

[diver0008]

You can leave it partially unzipped in the pool to let some water in and cool you down.

 

[Fogest]

Thanks, I may do that then. Are the wetsuits okay in the chlorine pools?

 

[elgoog]

It'll be fine - I've done training dives in an 85F pool in my drysuit and super thick undergarments that are meant for 50F water. Don't wear your hood or gloves and just pull the neck down a bit once in a while to get some water circulating through.
Definitely a good idea to get a feel for the thick wetsuit and all your gear in the safety of the pool. Chlorine shouldn't cause any issues in the amount of time you'll be in there. Just rinse it out after you're done.

 

[Fogest]

It'll be fine - I've done training dives in an 85F pool in my drysuit and super thick undergarments that are meant for 50F water. Don't wear your hood or gloves and just pull the neck down a bit once in a while to get some water circulating through.
Definitely a good idea to get a feel for the thick wetsuit and all your gear in the safety of the pool. Chlorine shouldn't cause any issues in the amount of time you'll be in there. Just rinse it out after you're done.

Thanks for the advice! I definitely want to get comfortable in a thick wetsuit and used to it. I am assuming the idea of rinsing off gear goes for all the equipment especially after being in a chlorine pool; not necessarily just the wetsuit?

 

[elgoog]

Yeah, rinsing everything after a pool session is a good idea. If the pool is used for SCUBA training, they may even have rinse tanks already set up. In my open water class, they walked us through how to rinse everything (don't purge de-pressurized regs under water, drain BC, etc)

 

[elgoog]

Are you buying a wetsuit before your class? I'd suggest doing some rentals before you spend any significant amount of money on it and see what you're comfortable in. You might end up being too cold in a 7mm and need a farmer john style suit. Or maybe even a drysuit (??) Not sure what kind of water temps you're looking at up there.

 

[kafkaland]

Are you buying a wetsuit before your class? I'd suggest doing some rentals before you spend any significant amount of money on it and see what you're comfortable in. You might end up being too cold in a 7mm and need a farmer john style suit. Or maybe even a drysuit (??) Not sure what kind of water temps you're looking at up there.

I fully agree with this. After my OW class, at first I wasn't cold even in a thin wetsuit in cold water. As I got calmer over the next fifty dives or so, I needed increasingly more insulation to stay warm, and ended up getting a drysuit for local (Great Lakes) diving.

 

[Fogest]

Yeah, rinsing everything after a pool session is a good idea. If the pool is used for SCUBA training, they may even have rinse tanks already set up. In my open water class, they walked us through how to rinse everything (don't purge de-pressurized regs under water, drain BC, etc)

I don't believe we have rinse tanks, unless that is just a different name for a shower area? We just have a shower area and I have seen people rinsing gear under the showers.

Are you buying a wetsuit before your class? I'd suggest doing some rentals before you spend any significant amount of money on it and see what you're comfortable in. You might end up being too cold in a 7mm and need a farmer john style suit. Or maybe even a drysuit (??) Not sure what kind of water temps you're looking at up there.

Well I have about 8 class sessions and total and I am about 1/4 done the lessons so far. I was going to wait until we started the scuba aspect and had done a couple lessons with scuba gear and then consider getting a wetsuit. But I am open to advice on whether that is a good idea. I am with a club and they told us that most people are fine with the 7mm wetsuits, however some people do of course use drysuits mostly I think so that the comfort level is a little higher with regard to temperature, and can go out in the colder winter days.

I am a student looking to spend my money efficiently and want to avoiding doing a lot of renting as that as using a lot of the money I have dedicated to getting gear. I have seen that a lot of the drysuits are at least $1000 CDN and I am not in the position to get one of those for a while, and I would need the training for it. So I will likely just go with a 7mm. I am okay with being a little cold.

As a side note: I will be primarily be diving in Canada, Ontario.

 

[Fogest]

I fully agree with this. After my OW class, at first I wasn't cold even in a thin wetsuit in cold water. As I got calmer over the next fifty dives or so, I needed increasingly more insulation to stay warm, and ended up getting a drysuit for local (Great Lakes) diving.

I am likely going to be diving in similar areas that you were diving, but as a student with not the most disposable income I don't know if I can justify spending at least double the cost of a wetsuit to get a drysuit rather than dealing with being cold? It may be a thing I go out and get for next year, or the year after kind of thing.