Ankle dumps?

[OE2X]

I've been doing a lot of reading on this forum about different types of valves and their placement. I'm looking at ordering a custom drysuit so I can do any options.

Is it advisable to get dump valves placed just above the ankles on both feet?

Since I'm a newbie to diving dry, I'm curious if this is a reasonable safety option of if it's not needed.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Bob3]

Nope, not needed. Stay away from them.
It's really not that hard to keep yourself from floating to the surface feet first, it adds extra cost to the suit & there are 2 more places for a leak to start.
Persons that can't control themselves to the point of NEEDING ankle dumps should really stay in shallow water & practice, practice, practice 'till they get the suit control down.

 

[Brian Gilpin]

I've been doing a lot of reading on this forum about different types of valves and their placement. I'm looking at ordering a custom drysuit so I can do any options.

Is it advisable to get dump valves placed just above the ankles on both feet?

Since I'm a newbie to diving dry, I'm curious if this is a reasonable safety option of if it's not needed.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Probably not (unless you will be diving in an upside down position). Best bet is to take a drysuit class and learn how to do a roll. If you have good trim and manage your air in suit properly they should not be needed.

 

[spurtill]

defintely no. If you have the dumps there then every time your feet go up at all you are going to loose your air out them, which mean you are going to be continuously topping up your air to stay neutrally buoyant.

Remeber even if you invert in your dry suit, you should still be neutrally buoyant (providing you were before you inverted). Inverting will not cause the air to expand in your suit, so if you stay calm you should be able to just hang there The problem is that people start to hyper ventilate when they invert and that causes them to rise as they breathe in more air.

I imagine (and i'm guessing here) that if you inverted with ankle dumps you would find yourself plunging to the bottom and find it VERy hard to stop your self, as you add air its just going to pour out the dumps in your ankles. By the time you get right way up you could be a fair way down

Remeber you are going to be looking under rocks and so forth and every time you do you are going find your feet drift up, you dump all your air and you and no longer neutrally buoyant

no need for them

 

[bnelson]

As everyone else said, you don't need them. (at least i don't) Sometimes it's nice to invert to warm up your feet a little bit..

I've been doing a lot of reading on this forum about different types of valves and their placement. I'm looking at ordering a custom drysuit so I can do any options.

Is it advisable to get dump valves placed just above the ankles on both feet?

Since I'm a newbie to diving dry, I'm curious if this is a reasonable safety option of if it's not needed.

Any advice would be appreciated.