Dry suit conflict

[Thalassamania]

As you can see it is personal preference. I use BC and remove squeeze with suit only.

Here's my question, if your remove squeeze by using the suit, what's left to have to use the BC for?

Lots of commercial divers just use the suit as they don't bother with a BC. What ever works for you. Practice your style.

When I dive on a hose I wear a Fenzy for emergency floatation. I never "use" it.

 

[MikeFerrara]

Here's my question, if your remove squeeze by using the suit, what's left to have to use the BC for?

To buoy your breathing gas and any other ditcheable negative equipment that you might be carrying.

 

[Thalassamania]

To buoy your breathing gas and any other ditcheable negative equipment that you might be carrying.

Yes to float your gas, that's been addressed. What other ditchable equipment would you add gas to a BC for rather than either make neutral by adding non-compressible flotation to the item or incorporating it into your ballast (e.g., I have a very expensive weight belt that is entirely composed of batteries that we used on a Nat'l Geo shoot, hell of a thing to have to ditch).

 

[altitudemike]

If you ever go to Argon for your drysuit you will want to only use it to relieve squeeze. So if you ice or cold water dive with argon it may be a good idea to practice both

 

[String]

Get a drysuit that fits and get the weighting correct.

Then its no issue, squeeze off and just about neutral in a single tank.

Overweight and using suit is a recipe for disaster, as is a poor fitting suit.

 

[3-Ring Octopus]

I agree with Thal on this one. It's been my experience that when diving dry, except when diving to greater depths (my average depth around here is the 50-60' range...greater depth would be around 100' in this instance), adding enough air to my suit to relieve squeeze also comes very close to making me neutral. So for me, the BC works for fine-tuning (offsetting breathing gas near end of dive), but the majority of the time, simply adding air to my suit (enough to make me comfortable/relieve squeeze) is enough to also make me neutral.

Cheers,
Austin

 

[DBailey]

I think it really comes down to the type of diving that you are doing.

For me, with a single tank, recreational diving, the air added to my suit for squeeze solves about 99% of bouyancy issues at depth. The situations are rare that I need more air in my BCD/Wing for bouyancy.

For me with doubles or stage bottles, I don't want to add that much air to my suit for bouyancy. I stick with the amount needed for squeeze to the suit and the balance to the BCD/Wing.

Remember that the scope of the PADI drysuit specailty/adventure dive, is related to the single tank, recreation diving. If you are properly weighted, then the air to your suit for squeeze should take care of most of your bouyancy issues. Once you move on to other realms of diving where more bouyancy is required, you'll want to use other sources to provide that bouyancy instead of relying just on your drysuit.

 

[Thalassamania]

I think it really comes down to the type of diving that you are doing.

For me, with a single tank, recreational diving, the air added to my suit for squeeze solves about 99% of bouyancy issues at depth. The situations are rare that I need more air in my BCD/Wing for bouyancy.

For me with doubles or stage bottles, I don't want to add that much air to my suit for bouyancy. I stick with the amount needed for squeeze to the suit and the balance to the BCD/Wing.

Remember that the scope of the PADI drysuit specailty/adventure dive, is related to the single tank, recreation diving. If you are properly weighted, then the air to your suit for squeeze should take care of most of your bouyancy issues. Once you move on to other realms of diving where more bouyancy is required, you'll want to use other sources to provide that bouyancy instead of relying just on your drysuit.

Exactly! Wait a minute, PADI got it right? I need another cup of coffee.

 

[MikeFerrara]

Remember that the scope of the PADI drysuit specailty/adventure dive, is related to the single tank, recreation diving.

Dispite having taught the PADI dry suit class quit a few times, I don't remember that at all. I don't ever remember seeing anything in either the student or the instructor materials that stated any such scope for the techniques being taught.

If you are properly weighted, then the air to your suit for squeeze should take care of most of your bouyancy issues. Once you move on to other realms of diving where more bouyancy is required, you'll want to use other sources to provide that bouyancy instead of relying just on your drysuit.

So...does PADI tell you that? Is there a another dry suit certification for divers who wear doubles?

Using the suit for buoyancy is a technique that onlyu works in a narrow set of conditions. If you're lucky enough to neutral once you leviate suit squeeze, great, you're done. If not, PADI would have you pumping more gas into the suit instead of the BC where it belongs. Sorry that's fubar. LOL

 

[Thalassamania]

Dispite having taught the PADI dry suit class quit a few times, I don't remember that at all. I don't ever remember seeing anything in either the student or the instructor materials that stated any such scope for the techniques being taught.

So...does PADI tell you that? Is there a another dry suit certification for divers who wear doubles?

Using the suit for buoyancy is a technique that onlyu works in a narrow set of conditions. If you're lucky enough to neutral once you leviate suit squeeze, great, you're done. If not, PADI would have you pumping more gas into the suit instead of the BC where it belongs. Sorry that's fubar. LOL

Thanks Mike, I was worried there for a minute.