Black vs Clear Skirt

[Arkman]

I see that some people prefer black skirts and others clear. Is there a reason for this other than looks? Does it serve a purpose one way or another?

 

[Peter_C]

Black has the benefit of keeping side light off the mask. Much better for snorkeling. Most find they are able to focus on an object in front of them better for things like photography. Cave divers prefer black.

Open water we find with our poor vis a clear skirt works better to signal our dive buddies. Sometimes he vis chews up our canister lights potential quickly and being able to see thru the skirt helps with noticing their light signals.

I own both and diving local keep my black skirt in my pocket as a backup. In the tropics I prefer a black skirt.

Put a light on in the room from behind, and with your mask on you will see the reflection in the mask window. Cup you hand over the side of the mask and watch it disappear.

 

[deeper thoughts]

Black has the benefit of keeping side light off the mask. Much better for snorkeling. Most find they are able to focus on an object in front of them better for things like photography. Cave divers prefer black.

Open water we find with our poor vis a clear skirt works better to signal our dive buddies. Sometimes he vis chews up our canister lights potential quickly and being able to see thru the skirt helps with noticing their light signals.

I own both and diving local keep my black skirt in my pocket as a backup. In the tropics I prefer a black skirt.

Put a light on in the room from behind, and with your mask on you will see the reflection in the mask window. Cup you hand over the side of the mask and watch it disappear.

Did you have any trouble cleaning the mask so it would not fog before using?(black skirt)

I own 2 scubapro spectras one clear one black. The black one consistently is foggy?

Sounds nuts right? lol

 

[fencingfish]

I own a black skirt mask and have never had a fogging issue. Re-toothpaste scrub it?

I used a clear skirt for the first time on a spontaneous vacation dive and was excited to try it out because I'd only ever used black skirted masks before. Maybe it was the poor vis or the fading light, but I found it much harder to see from the glare coming through the sides of the mask and reflecting off the plate into my eyes. I'm glad I had the opportunity to try it out, but I probably wouldn't buy a clear skirted mask after that experience.

 

[theduckguru]

I see that some people prefer black skirts and others clear. Is there a reason for this other than looks? Does it serve a purpose one way or another?

I seldom wear a skirt, but when I do I prefer black. Clear skirts let folks see your undies.

 

[scubapro50]

depends on what the skirt is made of ... I own several back skirts made from rubber and they have dryrotted after many years ...... but at least they didn't turn yellow with age

 

[Arkman]

I seldom wear a skirt, but when I do I prefer black. Clear skirts let folks see your undies.

Thanks for the input everyone.

 

[Charlie99]

Some people prefer the clear skirt because it makes them feel less claustrophobic.

Other prefer the clear skirt because it adds a bit of peripheral vision. You can't necessarily make out the details, but through the skirt you can sense movement as the shark, or manta ray, or buddy glides by.

The disadantage of a clear skirt in bright tropical waters is that it makes looking into dark holes much harder. You need to shield the bright sun out of your eyes. Similarly, many photographers pefer a black skirt so that bright sunlit tropical waters don't interfere as much with seeing the camera viewfinder.

I've used both in the past, and have a very slight preference for the black skirt.

 

[Peter_C]

Did you have any trouble cleaning the mask so it would not fog before using?(black skirt)

I own 2 scubapro spectras one clear one black. The black one consistently is foggy?

Sounds nuts right? lol

Fogging masks has more to do with cleaning the glass. Definitely not color of skirt related.

The point brought up above about the clear turning yellow is a reason many people are driven to black masks. Fortunately for me, my Liquid Vision mask is not yellowing much at all. I do my best to keep it out of my fin pocket though. Plus most of my gear is worn, faded, beat up, and proudly shows use!

 

[DevonDiver]

I prefer a black skirt for 2 reasons; it reduces ambient light from the side of the mask which is distracting and black latex does not 'yelllow' and discolor like clear latex does.