Advice Needed RE Weights for Snorkeling

[kelpforest7]

Can anyone help RE Weights for Snorkeling ?......Dont Laugh !......

Me and a friend are relatively recent but serious Snorkelers in UK waters.

We want to get weightbelts sorted for Snorkel Only Diving.

Can anyone tell us approximately, the amount of weights we will each need, using winter wetsuits, with snorkel gear only.

I am about 82.5 kgs, my friend is 70 kgs approx.

If we can get a rough idea, we can then finely adjust it
in the water.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Frazer.

 

[Walter]

You'll need to do more than fine tune it in the water. You need to determine it in the water. There are two ways to determine how much weight you'll need - both involve getting wet. The easiest is simply trial and error having your buddy hand you more weight until you float at eye level with a full breath.

How deep will you be diving? You need to remember if you start neutrally buoyant at the surface wet suit compression will make you negatively buoyant at depth. You might wish to remain positively buoyant at the surface to dive you a little lift as you ascend.

 

[pescador775]

You will need 18 pounds of lead. My calculator shows that as 8.2 kilos. Your friend should try about 7.0 kg.

Can anyone tell us approximately, the amount of weights we will each need, using winter wetsuits, with snorkel gear only.

 

[Walter]

pescador775,

There is no way to tell how much lead a person will need just from knowing their weight. The person could have a very high or very low % of body fat. With a very high % of body fat they will need a great deal of lead (as you seem to think they do), but if they have very low % of body fat it is possible they won't need any lead. Most of us fit somewhere in between.

 

[Zept]

Following on from Walter's comment, an experienced instructor or divemaster might be able to eyeball you and make a reasonable guess, based on your build.

Zept

 

[rcohn]

The floating level at the surface level isn't really a precise way to determine freediving weight. I would just start out slightly light then freedive down and look for the depth where you become neutral, no tendency to sink or float up. You then will add weight until you are neutral at the desired depth usually around 15 to 20 ft.

To set for twenty feet I would start light, then dive to twenty, relax and see if I float up. If I'm floating up, I'll add a pound or two (kgs outside the USA) and try it again. In a few dives you will have the weight nailed. If you're using a new wetsuit, be aware you may need to remove lead as the suit ages and loses buoyancy.

Freediving doesn't use one precise weight. You should be lighter for deep dives and heavier for shallow dives. I usually set my belt for a neutral depth between 15 to 20 ft. I carry light ankle weights on my float and add them for shallow diving (8 - 15 ft) so I don't need to fight to stay down.

Ralph

 

[pescador775]

.

With a very high % of body fat they will need a great deal of lead (as you seem to think they do), but if they have very low % of body fat it is possible they won't need any lead. Most of us fit somewhere in between.

Walter, can you name a freediver who wears a winter wetsuit and doesn't require a weight belt?

 

[Walter]

Me.

 

[pescador775]

Walter, you once said that in 65 deg water:

I'd wear a ¼" full suit with a hood. I wouldn't concern myself with gloves.

Have you ever freedived below a foot depth with a winter wet suit and without a lead belt? That must be quite a sight.

 

[Walter]

Yes. I'm not a particularly good free diver, but with a full suit and no belt I can dive to 30 ft and spend a little time exploring before coming up.