Dry suit learning curve

[bolantej]

dive as much as you can with it before you go, then take it with you. don't take pictures until you get your buoyancy and whatnot (like possible floaty feet) under control.

 

[Lock Down]

Take the Camera, Leave the Suit. Learn the skills needed for "Good" diving in a DS near home. Rent a wetsuit in S. Cal. I know renting is not usually prefered but it will save you some money and also allow you to get those great shots. As a fellow underwater photographer I know how hard it is to leave the camera at home, so don't. Compromise on the suit not the shots.

 

[Rob9000]

I just returned from a 3 day trip on the Vision where I used a dry suit for the first time. I took the class before the trip and brought my wetsuit with me on the trip so I could switch back to wet if going dry was too much of a pain without additional pool work (and in case I tore a seal). This was my third livaboard in the Channel Islands. I left the camera housing at home so I could focus on the suit. Overall it all went OK and I did all dives dry. I dove the dives as planned, completed all safety stops (including those w/o an anchor line) and didn't have any run-away ascents or descents.

I figured I'd need more weight than when wet. I was using a new undergarment that I didn't use in the pool. For my first dive, I talked with my buddy before the dive to let him know I am going to have weight issues and I'll need a little time on the surface to get it figured out. I packed a little less weight than I thought I'd need in the BC and prepared a weight belt on deck for the crew to hand me if I needed more. Instead of doing the stride off the side gate, I sat down on the rear swim platform and lowered myself in to the water....did a buoyancy check and needed more weight. I got the weight belt from the crew, put it on in the water and then had enough to do the dive. I think I used the swim platform for entry on the second dive and then the stern and bow gates for the other dives after that.

The weighting and trim took some time to dial in. I brought two sets of ankle weights I had collected over the years (one heavier than the other). I am tall so I used a weight belt to help with trim in order to get some weight lower on my body. I went from the heavier ankle weight to the lighter ones to no ankle weights. I also experimented with moving weights around between the belt, the BC pockets and the BC trim pockets. I didn't have decent trim until day 3 of the trip. The diving up to day 3 was still good diving, it was just more work underwater correcting for trim issues.

In terms of controlling buoyancy, I used both the BC and the suit...that way I could dump the BC air to catch a run-away ascent.

Overall I am glad I had a liveaboard trip to learn the dry suit - I was able to do a bunch of dives in a short period of time to get things better dialed in. I also liked that on a liveaboard there is less pressure to get in the water and complete a dive by a certain time...it is more like the gates are open for an hour and a half, and whatever you do in that time is up to you.

I think trying to mix photography with the new dry suit would have been too much...like the dives would have been too much work and I would have gone through air faster.

So if you are going to do a SoCal liveaboard and go dry for the first time, I recommend:
- Bring a lot more weight than you think you need...and even more than what people tell you that you need.
- Bring ankle weights
- Bring your wetsuit - don't forget the booties and hooded vest (if any) you use with your wetsuit.
- Bring a weight belt in case your BC can't hold all that you need, or you need trim below or behind the BC

One thing to keep in mind about buying a used dry suit is the latex seals were cut and stretched to the previous owner's neck and wrists - they may be too big for you or at the end of their life.....so make sure you are OK with doing the trip wet if that is the case and there isn't enough time to get new seals, and make sure you get in the pool for at least a pool session of a dry suit class.

 

[AUTiger]

Rob9000

What type of drysuit were you using and what type of insulation? I just got my new DUI TLS350 and I'm heading up for a Vision trip in September. I've got the DUI Stretchliner and the 200g Thinsulate jumpsuit. I figure that the 200g will be fine, but I can layer it with the Stretchliner if necessary. I'll also have drygloves if I feel like a total wimp.

Did you go to the north islands or south islands/oil rig? What were the water temperatures?

Thanks
David

I just returned from a 3 day trip on the Vision where I used a dry suit for the first time. I took the class before the trip and brought my wetsuit with me on the trip so I could switch back to wet if going dry was too much of a pain without additional pool work (and in case I tore a seal). This was my third livaboard in the Channel Islands. I left the camera housing at home so I could focus on the suit. Overall it all went OK and I did all dives dry. I dove the dives as planned, completed all safety stops (including those w/o an anchor line) and didn't have any run-away ascents or descents.

So if you are going to do a SoCal liveaboard and go dry for the first time, I recommend:
- Bring a lot more weight than you think you need...and even more than what people tell you that you need.
- Bring ankle weights
- Bring your wetsuit - don't forget the booties and hooded vest (if any) you use with your wetsuit.
- Bring a weight belt in case your BC can't hold all that you need, or you need trim below or behind the BC

One thing to keep in mind about buying a used dry suit is the latex seals were cut and stretched to the previous owner's neck and wrists - they may be too big for you or at the end of their life.....so make sure you are OK with doing the trip wet if that is the case and there isn't enough time to get new seals, and make sure you get in the pool for at least a pool session of a dry suit class.

 

[Rob9000]

Rob9000

What type of drysuit were you using and what type of insulation? I just got my new DUI TLS350 and I'm heading up for a Vision trip in September. I've got the DUI Stretchliner and the 200g Thinsulate jumpsuit. I figure that the 200g will be fine, but I can layer it with the Stretchliner if necessary. I'll also have drygloves if I feel like a total wimp.

Did you go to the north islands or south islands/oil rig? What were the water temperatures?

Thanks
David

I used the DUI TLS SE - so the most basic trilam they have....it is a shoulder entry made from the same material as the 350. I used the Pinnacle Temperate fleece undergarment. It says it is 500g on the website, but it feels more like 300g when I compared it to some fleece stuff at REI. Water temps were around 65 for most of the trip. We did San Clemente, Catalina and Santa Cruz. Some dives had parts that felt below 60, and others where at 70 deg F. I could feel the cold of the water, but I wasn't feeling too chilled. I also tried layering a Primaloft vest underneath - that made a big difference. With the Primaloft my chest felt hot when I got out of the water and took off the layers. I also tried not using the Pinnacle and using some layers instead - I used REI middleweight long undies, then with polyester sweat pants for the bottoms, and for the top over the middleweight I used a REI heavyweight shirt (fleece) and the Primaloft vest. I felt the same as the Pinnacle but with a lot less bulk. I think you'll be fine in the 200g Thinsulate since it should be more efficient than fleece, and it should respond more to air in the suit for insulation more than fleece will. You might also bring some long undies to layer under just in case the water is colder or you get chilled. Overall I tend to get cold easy, so I tend to be wearing more stuff than other people. I don't have dry gloves, and most of my dives were with 3mm gloves and a 5mm hood. I did use 5mm gloves on a couple of dives - it made a big difference in warmth, but I was able to get by with 3mm for the added dexterity.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

If you go with your "new" drysuit, I hope that your dive buddy is patient. Weighting and trim issues are paramount to a positive drysuit experience. It took me about 10 dives to feel comfortable with the shoulder exhaust valve and dealing with 2 buoyancy systems on a dive. I recommend just adding enough air to keep the squeeze off and to offset depth-compression of your drysuit (given its neoprene composition) -- not using the drysuit as your primary buoyancy device throughout the dive (although others may disagree). The floaty feet phenomenon can manifest itself depending on your trim and how well the suit fits. If you do find that you're getting floaty feet, I would consider gaiters instead of ankle weights. In my 60+ drysuit dives, I've found that my shell drysuit creates much more drag than a wetsuit and putting additional weight on my feet was less than ideal. You may not experience this as much since your suit is made of the more form-fitting neoprene. Also, be prepared to leave your camera on the boat since the extra task-loading may not be a good idea.
All things considered, I would recommend renting a 7mm wetsuit for the trip or possibly buying one and then re-selling it in the future. Repetitive wetsuit diving on a liveaboard is pretty tolerable in Southern California this time of year. Moreover, you won't have to worry about ripping a latex neck/wrist seal. Since you've got a Bare suit, I'd be willing to bet that it probably isn't retrofitted with DUI zip seals. Enjoy the diving. Seeing the sunlight filter through the kelp is a sight to behold!
One more tip: save a little extra air in your tank when surfacing. It's possible that there may be some kelp between you and the boat. Your options will be: (1) dive down, swim through the kelp, and check out the fish or (2) do the kelp-crawl at the surface. I prefer option #1.
Happy diving!

 

[*Floater*]

If it was me I'd take the suit on the trip simply because I would be so psyched to try out a major new piece of dive equipment. Careful with the boots though, loose fit = floaty feet.

 

[PrincessOfPower]

Dunno if this has been said or not, but be mindful of your buddy - I would be pretty annoyed if I ended up paired off with "new drysuit guy who also wants to take pictures" on a charter where I was a paying customer because it could mean "gong show of a dive ahead".

So my advice? Get a few drysuit dives in first. Make this a priority before your trip. You'll have better dives on your trip then, and plus, then you get to dive more! That's really an all round win-win solution

 

[Tim Greaves]

Hi all,

I found a Bare Supra-Dry 7mm neoprene dry suit on ebay and it looks pretty nice. Haven't tried it yet, but it fits great and I would love to use it on a 3-day liveaboard trip in the SoCal kelp forest over labor day. Since I have never used a dry suit before and I want to focus on photography on that trip, not spend all the time practicing, I am wondering whether diving dry at this point would be a bad idea. I am well aware of what "the rules" say (don't combine new environment AND a new piece of equipment), but I consider myself probably a little more coordinated and quicker-learning than average when it comes to things like these. That said, I obviously don't want to take unnecessary risks. What is your experience: If I have my LDS inspect the suit, explain it to me and then go practice in the pool a couple of afternoons before my trip, what are my chances of being able to use it safely during my trip and, while certainly paying more attention to it than I would to my wetsuit, still be able to focus on photography? Is this a bad idea?

I'm mainly asking this question because otherwise I would have to buy a brand-new 7mm wetsuit that will most likely end up on the shelf after just this one trip.
Any comments appreciated.

hehe.. I have the same exact drysuit and it took me about 15 mintutes to get used to it even though I never dove a drysuit before and didnt take a class on it.. Just do some reading on the internet about drysuit useage and you should be good to go.. Dunno about using it on your trip but if you have someone explaining it and get to use it in a pool then im sure you would be fine.. Do whatever makes you more comfortable..

 

[AUTiger]

Rob9000,

One of your lessons was bring more weight than you think you need. I'm curious as to how your weighting changed.

• What is your normal wetsuit type and how much lead do you carry?
• With your Pinnacle undergarments, how much lead did you settle on for drysuit diving?

I am used to diving with a smallish amount of lead for my wetsuit. For my 5/7 full plus hooded vest, I carry 20-22 lbs. In my last drysuit dive, with 200g thinsulate, I took 26 pounds and was underweighted by a bit (at the end of the dive). I think that I am going to start with 30lbs next time. I'm hoping to do a 3-tank boat outing Friday so that I can get some more practice time.

Thanks again
David

I used the DUI TLS SE - so the most basic trilam they have....it is a shoulder entry made from the same material as the 350. I used the Pinnacle Temperate fleece undergarment. It says it is 500g on the website, but it feels more like 300g when I compared it to some fleece stuff at REI. Water temps were around 65 for most of the trip. We did San Clemente, Catalina and Santa Cruz. Some dives had parts that felt below 60, and others where at 70 deg F. I could feel the cold of the water, but I wasn't feeling too chilled. I also tried layering a Primaloft vest underneath - that made a big difference. With the Primaloft my chest felt hot when I got out of the water and took off the layers. I also tried not using the Pinnacle and using some layers instead - I used REI middleweight long undies, then with polyester sweat pants for the bottoms, and for the top over the middleweight I used a REI heavyweight shirt (fleece) and the Primaloft vest. I felt the same as the Pinnacle but with a lot less bulk. I think you'll be fine in the 200g Thinsulate since it should be more efficient than fleece, and it should respond more to air in the suit for insulation more than fleece will. You might also bring some long undies to layer under just in case the water is colder or you get chilled. Overall I tend to get cold easy, so I tend to be wearing more stuff than other people. I don't have dry gloves, and most of my dives were with 3mm gloves and a 5mm hood. I did use 5mm gloves on a couple of dives - it made a big difference in warmth, but I was able to get by with 3mm for the added dexterity.