Dry Suit Certification

[rhwestfall]

Many OW West Coast classes are taught in a DS... Great Lakes should do it too. Too many are turned off by how miserably cold the diving is up here....

 

[FreqFlier]

No need to wait to move to a dry suit... I'd also recommend getting with a local shop and spending pool time with the suit until it warms up.

+1

Thank you everyone for all the helpful responses! I'll start looking into places to get certified.

It's cold to dive LM. Thermoclines get you one way or another. Even 7mm does not cut it.

Give Nick @ Berry Dive Center a call

 

[Konrad harmon]

One personal opinion from someone who bought and repaired numerous used suits. Get well fitting trilam or crushed neoprene so you can layer up and still have mobility.

 

[Marie13]

+1



It's cold to dive LM. Thermoclines get you one way or another. Even 7mm does not cut it.

Give Nick @ Berry Dive Center a call

I know Nick from chatting with him out at Haigh. He’s a really nice guy.

 

[SpeedyJ]

Thank you everyone for all the helpful responses! I'll start looking into places to get certified.

Dive Right In Scuba is one of the largest drysuit dealers in the USA. They carry a swath of brands and have repairs at the Plainfield location. They have the biggest drysuit rental department in the area as well. The sister company Double Action Dive Charters is one of two charter operations in the Chicago area. Mike and crew are huge boosters to the local diving community, and are one of the few shops in the area to support technical diving.

If you venture to Detroit at all, I'll give @Tracy & Below the Grade Scuba a shoutout as a great DUI dealer to work with.

 

[formernuke]

I prefer trilam suits personally.

 

[grantmac]

Dry from day 1 here

 

[Nosmosis]

New diver here, I finished my open water certification late last summer and a huge limiting factor I have right now for getting more experience is my location/the weather (I live in Chicago). I'd like to be able to dive Lake Michigan but I think a lot of people locally here use dry suits and it seems like it would probably be the best option for me too because I get cold easily. How much experience should I get before moving forward with a dry suit certification? Does anyone dive Lake Michigan with a wet suit in the summer?

I am an instructor teaching dry suit. I also am crew on a dive charter in Lake Michigan.

As others have said, we do teach dry suit with open water students (and although I don’t love this approach) it is common in the Midwest. So in short, you are Open Water certified you can start dry suit. I think the better question is do you need it. If you would like to dive in Lake Michigan more regularly, then a drysuit is a good investment. Otherwise if you plan on just diving Haigh Quarry and taking some trips to Mexico or Florida, no drysuit needed.

As far as the second question. On the south end of Lake Michigan I see more divers in wetsuits than dry. Many 5mm. Lots of 7mm although I would personally never recommend this much neoprene and would suggest instead a dry suit. There are plenty of wrecks in the 40-50ft range to
see. As you go North, near Milwaukee for
example, wrecks are deeper and depth means cold. Usually 40 at 100 feet year round. So this is drysuit territory for sure.

If you are interested in some local diving or instruction in the Chicago area. Let me know. Happy to answer questions anytime.

 

[OceanApricot]

I am an instructor teaching dry suit. I also am crew on a dive charter in Lake Michigan.

As others have said, we do teach dry suit with open water students (and although I don’t love this approach) it is common in the Midwest. So in short, you are Open Water certified you can start dry suit. I think the better question is do you need it. If you would like to dive in Lake Michigan more regularly, then a drysuit is a good investment. Otherwise if you plan on just diving Haigh Quarry and taking some trips to Mexico or Florida, no drysuit needed.

As far as the second question. On the south end of Lake Michigan I see more divers in wetsuits than dry. Many 5mm. Lots of 7mm although I would personally never recommend this much neoprene and would suggest instead a dry suit. There are plenty of wrecks in the 40-50ft range to
see. As you go North, near Milwaukee for
example, wrecks are deeper and depth means cold. Usually 40 at 100 feet year round. So this is drysuit territory for sure.

If you are interested in some local diving or instruction in the Chicago area. Let me know. Happy to answer questions anytime.

Thank you! I want to dive Lake Michigan regularly (and potentially the other Great Lakes), there are so many cool wrecks and I don't want to have to fly all the time or be limited to Haigh Quarry just to dive. I'm open to any suggestions for an instructor and what are the most important things to consider when choosing one.

 

[SpeedyJ]

Thank you! I want to dive Lake Michigan regularly (and potentially the other Great Lakes), there are so many cool wrecks and I don't want to have to fly all the time or be limited to Haigh Quarry just to dive. I'm open to any suggestions for an instructor and what are the most important things to consider when choosing one.

@Nosmosis (Richard) is a solid instructor choice, and someone who is participating in a variety of different diving communities in the area as well.

Getting the right gear and training is the first step, but to really enjoy the Lakes, finding community to help get you out on charters is key.