Question Always cold! 5mm vs 3mm with extra warmth gear

[TNEngineer]

You don't mention a hood. Start with that, either a standalone hood (my preference) or one integrated into a vest or top. Made a WORLD of difference for me. I now wear a shorty 3/2mm and by just adding the hood, I never think about the water temp even with multiple dives per day ending with a night dive.

Edited to add: I've noticed that most DM's wear hoods even if they don't wear any other neoprene. Those folks are in the water for hours a day, every day, and like us (but more so) the cumulative heat loss is very real. There's a reason hoods work for them, and once I paid attention I understood. Highly recommended.

 

[sea_ledford]

Hooded vest is the key. I still don't understand why they are so hard to find.

Another option would be to switch to freediving/spearfishing suits. Open cell on the inside means more stretch, better fit, and close to no water in the suit. You do need to lube the suits to put them on, but I still find that faster than putting on a standard wetsuit (especially a wet wetsuit).

Mako makes great suits at good prices, not sure how shipping would affect that for you though.

 

[Saboteur]

Also consider peeling off the top half of your wetsuit between dives, towel off and put a sweatshirt, fleece or similar and perhaps a windbreaker and a beanie on between dives. It is a hassle to put on a cold damp wetsuit for the second dive but you will reduce the heat loss from evaporative cooling during the SI.

 

[wlecyt40]

My wife lost 120lbs and now gets cold even in water that is 82F! so she dives with SharkSkin T2 and a 3mm Aqualung suit. She also biught a Shark skin beanie to cut back on the loss of heat from her head. Oddly enough, weighting has not been an issue. I have lost 77lbs and I don't get cold hardly at all. I do have a boat jacket or a sweatshirt on the boat in case the wind is kicking just a little more than usual. Anything below 80F and she is in 5mm with the sharkskin! She ain't a cold water diver!!!

 

[Searcaigh]

Have a look at WaterProof W7 5mm and get the neck seal, it's almost as good as a semidry.

Add a hood or hooded vest and you'll be good.

I'm currently diving in 23C water with a WaterProof W7 7mm, 2mm vest and 5mm hood, and very comfortable, I can't wait to get back to the flexibility of my 5mm though.

 

[macado]

3 dives a day will significantly lower your core body temperature. While everyone is different I personally could not do those dives in 3mm. I would come out of the water shivering. It's also important to try to warm up during surface interval, starting the dives colder is just going to make things worse. A good boat coat can help tremendously.

I'm wearing an older full 7mm when temperatures are in the 78f-80f (~25-27c) range. My suggestion would be buy a full 5mm and/or hooded vest. For skinner people or divers who are working and doing 3-4 dives a day for weeks at a time a 7mm is not unreasonable although most would consider that overkill.

Keep in mind, wetsuits get compressed relatively quickly especially if you're diving regularly and doing deeper dives. I replace wetsuits every couple seasons but my suits see a lot of dives. My brand new 7mm this year is probably now closer to a 4-5mm. I don't understand how people can dive wetsuits that are 5+ years old.

 

[MB NZ]

Another option would be to switch to freediving/spearfishing suits. Open cell on the inside means more stretch, better fit, and close to no water in the suit. You do need to lube the suits to put them on, but I still find that faster than putting on a standard wetsuit (especially a wet wetsuit).

The gold standard! I don't know why SCUBA divers haven't worked out that freedivers do it better. Warmer than a "semi-dry" for sure!

A compromise would be a closed cell freediving-style suit. I have one (Beuchat Espadon BIFO) and it's awesome, although this type of suit is hard to track down.

 

[Sascha314]

You may also to consider drinking a hot beverage in between the dives.

Do you have a particular area where yo freeze most?
For instance for the belly you could use a kidney belt, which motorcycle drivers use. For feet you can put neoprene socks additionally. And of course hood and gloves.

But to have multiple layers is a hazzle...

 

[greatwhite1]

You may also to consider drinking a hot beverage in between the dives.

Do you have a particular area where yo freeze most?
For instance for the belly you could use a kidney belt, which motorcycle drivers use. For feet you can put neoprene socks additionally. And of course hood and gloves.

But to have multiple layers is a hazzle...

Drinking hot drinks between dives to try and generate body warmth would just make me pee during the dive. Wear the right insulation for the dive!

 

[MB NZ]

Drinking hot drinks between dives to try and generate body warmth would just make me pee during the dive. Wear the right insulation for the dive!

Peeing is the only good thing about wetsuit diving!