Are dry gloves kosher?

[Rainer]

I *do* think it's nice having a full seal underneath the dry glove, using some sort of bungee/tubing/etc to allow for equalization. It means if you tear the glove (which definitely *can* happen), you'll flood the suit much more slowly (or not at all if you remove the item breaking the seal) as compared to setups that directly connect the glove to the suit's wrist without anything intermediate. I've flooded a glove on a dive, pulled it off, pulled out the bungee, and reattached the (now wet) glove and finished the dive. Sure, my hand was cold, but it didn't compromise my decompression like a full suit flood would have.

 

[PfcAJ]

---------- Post added March 13th, 2015 at 02:45 PM ----------



The problem with zip seals ... with respect to drygloves ... is that it leaves you with two less than optimal options. First option is to use zip gloves ... which stay on the suit all the time, and therefore you put your drygloves on when you get into the suit. That makes gearing up a bit more of an annoyance than if you have the option of gearing up, and then putting on your gloves. The second option is to put standard dryglove rings on the zip seal. This works ... but because of the placement of the seals on the suit it usually means your rings will sit further down on your hands than normal ... which tends to make them get in the way when you're trying to do things with your hands. I had zip seals on my first DUI suit. Sent the suit back and asked them to take them off and put regular seals on the suit. Never regretted that decision.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Agreed. But they're an ok solution if you have one suit IMO. I don't do that kind of diving though.

I used to have zip seals. Cut them off and went to normal ones.

 

[TSandM]

I have to admit, I am constantly befuddled by the people who will do staged decompression dives in the PNW with ZipGloves. I HAVE had a glove tear on a dive. Because I had seals underneath it, all I had was wet, colder-than-usual hand, that was easily tolerated. 30 minutes of a progressively flooded suit would be an entirely different story.

Dry gloves, wet gloves . . . if you have an intact seal, the difference is that the dry hands, if they stay dry, will be warmer.

 

[kdupreez]

I Use dry gloves all the time.. 250 ft wrecks or 40 ft honeybear.. I've torn zero dry gloves during a dive.. I've cut them before the dive accidentally and replaced out fix them and same with seals. I think you run a higher risk of zip, suit or seal failure than gloves in my opinion and experience... Of you are worried, wear wet gloves.

Also if you are not prepared to complete the dive flooded, you should probably not do that dive... Sheet happens.

 

[Ouvea]

I don't know about you guys and deco obligations, as I don't have the training to perform extensive deco. My R3 training allows very limited deco. However, I regularly perform dives in length of two hours in 50-60 degree waters. I absolutely need dry gloves to tolerate the environmental exposure. I cannot do dives of that length in wet gloves.

I was at DUI demo day, last year, using 4-5mm Fourth Element wet gloves. With very limited bottom time, my hands froze. At least for me, they are necessity. I'm fine at the surface when I spearfish, but at depth I need the additional protection afforded with dry-gloves.

C.

 

[kr2y5]

Thanks, guys! So sorry for the poor fella who dispensed this advice... Sounds from the replies, though, like a regular silicone seal + a dry glove + a piece of cord under the seal that you can quickly yank out is the very best of both worlds, and is as DIR-approved as anything else (?). This is the setup I dive right now, and I like it, although my hands do get rather cold, as it does not seem to equalize all that well...

Also if you are not prepared to complete the dive flooded, you should probably not do that dive... Sheet happens.

I was wondering about that, actually... could you tell me a bit about how you approach that? According to a random site, in our 50F water, if submerged, I'd be expecting to get unconscious within 0.5 to 1 hours and I'd survive for about 1 to 3 hours. So, one thing I imagine one can do is, to make sure one does not incur an obligation longer than that, and have a team ready to help. What are some of the other options?

 

[TSandM]

Top end undergarments. I've survived 30 minutes swimming in a fully flooded suit, and I was very cold and miserable but nowhere near unconscious. But I do know people who consider thermal risk in their decisions of how much decompression obligation they are willing to incur, and I find that wise, myself.

 

[Belce]

There is a difference being in open water naked and being in a flooded suit. The suit will limit the water exchange next to you so it will actually warm and postpone ill effects of hypothermia. Also good thermals as mentioned will continue to provide benefit in a worst case scenario.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

I've had more than my share of dryglove failures. All have been user error. My only real concern when using the smurf gloves is a puncture, which I had on a sharp metal bolt on a wreck. My backup suit has ZipSeals on it, so I decided to go with the kevlar gloves.

As NWGratefulDiver mentioned, it's a hassle gearing up with gloves on, but I've gotten used to it when wearing my backup suit. I prefer the smurf gloves on my primary suit, but not worrying about punctures is pretty cool.

 

[andrewy]

i use old Viking rings attached to suit, then seals attach to those rings. if i get water in my dry gloves, all i get is a really warm wet ones if u have zip seals, u are done
to equalize DO NOT use anything breaking seal (tubin, bungee, etc) ust make a pinch with all 5 fingers, it will break a seal and equilize.