Don't you all just love newbie questions?

[creamofwheat]

I've been doing searches on weighting and whatnot, because it is still a concept that I don't really understand totally.

I am a small, 5'5", 115lb woman. I dove in a neoprene dry suit, in salt water, for my OW dives. I did a weight check and turned out to be neutral at the surface with just under 40 lbs, but being new, I had to add a few extra pounds to get down. From the threads that I have read, this seems like a LOT of weight for someone of my size. Does this seem excessive to you, or am I just really buoyant? Oh, nevermind the fact that I was also wearing weights around my feet as they keep popping up on me...damn buoyant feet.

EDIT: crap, I acidentally hit the post button without finishing typing my title. I am brilliant. Any way to change that? It was supposed to read "Don't you all just love newbie questions?" Whoops

 

[alcina]

There you go

 

[creamofwheat]

Thanks!!

 

[jeckyll]

40 lbs seems excessive.

I'm 6'1" and 195 lbs. I wear a bag drysuit with a 200 weight thinsulate 'underwear' and I wear 34 lbs. And I'm in the process of taking another pound off. I'm able to hold my depth in water as shallow as 7 feet at the end of a dive(did it last Wednesday on a night dive).

If I had to guess I'd say you are at least 10 lbs overweighted, probably more like 15 or more.

On our night dive tonight one guy had grabbed the wrong weight belt so he ended up diving with 27 lbs instead of 32 lbs. He's 6'1 and 185 lbs and he managed to get down.

Not sure if any of the helps, but try to see if you can get some weight from the shop to 'play with' and do a few buoyancy checks to see just how much you can get rid of. You'll probably have alot more fun with less weight. And use less air. And be less tired from dragging weight around. And have better trim. (you get the idea )

Bjorn

 

[dougaldiver]

Certainly sounds like a lot of weight and I suspect you will find that you will be able to reduce it with experience.

As a matter of interest did you do the bouyancy check at the start of the dive, if so you may have had excess air on the dry suit which made you more bouyant. I always squat down and scrunch up while holding the neck seal slightly open once I am in the suit. Once I have squeezed out all of the air possible I let the neck seal go and I'm shrink wrapped in the suit.

Also once I get into the water I always make sure that i dump all of the air out of the suit before I prepare to descend.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

As you get more experience with the drysuit you'll be able to drop weight. I'm 5'7" and was 120 lb this summer (up to 135 now--doggone sit-down job) and I would dive with 38lbs and could have used 2 more when diving with all of my underwear layers under my trilam (in FRESH water). I've finally dropped to 26 pounds with my heavy undies now that I've figured out how to get most of the extra air out of the suit. I burp it on the surface and vent it as soon as I get in the water and that's helped.
Ber :lilbunny:

 

[drbill]

I never dive dry (at least not until I visit Antarctica) so I can't speak with experience on this. I'm 6' 1" and somewhere between 230 and 250 (depending on which scale I stand on). I use 26 pounds which is slightly overweighted for me (I dive steel) so I can remain stable on the bottom.

As for newbie questions, one of the reasons this site exists is for newbies to gain information and experience about diving from some of us old salts. Unless the question is really stupid (and I mean REALLY stupid), I don't anyone minds it being asked. I know I don't.

 

[The Kraken]

It's a whole lot easier and much less expensive to answer questions than it is to send flowers.

the K

 

[RonFrank]

I've been doing searches on weighting and whatnot, because it is still a concept that I don't really understand totally.

I am a small, 5'5", 115lb woman. I dove in a neoprene dry suit, in salt water, for my OW dives. I did a weight check and turned out to be neutral at the surface with just under 40 lbs, but being new, I had to add a few extra pounds to get down. From the threads that I have read, this seems like a LOT of weight for someone of my size. Does this seem excessive to you, or am I just really buoyant? Oh, nevermind the fact that I was also wearing weights around my feet as they keep popping up on me...damn buoyant feet.

EDIT: crap, I acidentally hit the post button without finishing typing my title. I am brilliant. Any way to change that? It was supposed to read "Don't you all just love newbie questions?" Whoops

I'm 5'9" and weight around 190lbs. Diving Dry (NexGen) using a medium (BARE T100) underlayer, I use 24lbs of weights (fresh). That would put me at about 30# salt based on weighing with other suits.

You MUST have some air in that suit somewhere, or maybe your not comfortable sinking? We were diving with a guy who could NOT sink, even with a LOT more weight then we thought he should be using. I dropped below him to decend, and he was finning? I went back to the surface (low vis, or we could have seen his feet from above), and he was not aware he was doing it.

In any event, for someone SO much smaller than I (and likely less body fat as well) 40lbs seems like a LOT. Have you worked with your instructor or Dive buddies on this?

 

[piikki]

Does this seem excessive to you, or am I just really buoyant?

I can't find the link right now but once I saw this interesting piece of info on what is the range of buoyancy differences between 'sinkers' and 'floaters'. At best the 'floaters' were around 8-10lbs positive to start with (on their on devices) if I recall right. Even the 'sinkers' were slightly positive. So the differences between people are still inside 10lbs according to THAT source.

IMHO, your pounds sound way too high even if you are a 'floater' (it takes 8lbs to sink me in a bikini in a de-chlorinated pool, I've tested, so I am definately a floater too). You'll soon notice you will drop drastically if you just concentrate on what you are doing and let it come to you. Happy experimenting!