My problem is. I want to get a dry suit. Just no local training and also no local dealers to help with service. It would all have to be UPS involved along with e-mails.
Dry suit questions
- Thread starter Lee Taylor
- Start date
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Hi Lee
A drysuit is a great investment if you want to be warm and comfortable when you dive. I put on the drysuit if the water temp is 75 degrees or less. People giggle at me, that is, until they skip the second dive because they're cold and shivering. A trilaminate suit allows you to vary the thickness of your insulation depending on the water temp. It's really nice being warm throughout the dive and not shivering during the surface interval.
Good luck!
A drysuit is a great investment if you want to be warm and comfortable when you dive. I put on the drysuit if the water temp is 75 degrees or less. People giggle at me, that is, until they skip the second dive because they're cold and shivering. A trilaminate suit allows you to vary the thickness of your insulation depending on the water temp. It's really nice being warm throughout the dive and not shivering during the surface interval.
Good luck!
piikki
Contributor
Like others have said drysuit is definitely an investment, not only financial but it will take some time and effort as it is not the same as diving in wetsuit. I personally know several divers who invested in drysuit and then decided to stick to wetsuit because they preferred wetsuit diving (or just never got comfortable in drysuit). If you are only doing some diving in 60-70F and do not get chilled easily you are certainly on the right track to look at all the angles before hopping into the drysuit track.
That said, after I made the move to drysuit, I have not looked back. I will dive it in 75F happily. I don’t think you said you are particularly considering used suit but I would agree with posters who said that as a diver who has no experience with drysuits, I would certainly get a (demo) dive in a drysuit, preferably with a experienced drysuit diver before ever considering a used suit. When choosing between brands and types, that would also be a great way to see the differences. Nothing will tell you the difference between neoprene suit and trilaminate better than walking out of water in them. If you mostly dive warmer water, you should start your search from the trilaminate end because it might be that you end up using the suit in the warmer waters too. Neoprene suits would be totally deadly then. Laminate suits would give you the flexibility to dive them in heat too by just changing to thinner undergarments (down to t-shirt like some do).
If you get good drysuit, take care of it and don carefully, you don’t necessarily ever have to experience full drysuit flood barring some catastrophic event. Everyone will have some leakage issues now and then but most of them are, like said, due to user error (seal misplacement, zipper open a little, uncleaned valves) or wear issues (pinholes and little tears). Drysuit course or good mentoring from experienced drysuit diver is recommended so you can avoid the typical frustrations most people have early on with drysuit diving.
That said, after I made the move to drysuit, I have not looked back. I will dive it in 75F happily. I don’t think you said you are particularly considering used suit but I would agree with posters who said that as a diver who has no experience with drysuits, I would certainly get a (demo) dive in a drysuit, preferably with a experienced drysuit diver before ever considering a used suit. When choosing between brands and types, that would also be a great way to see the differences. Nothing will tell you the difference between neoprene suit and trilaminate better than walking out of water in them. If you mostly dive warmer water, you should start your search from the trilaminate end because it might be that you end up using the suit in the warmer waters too. Neoprene suits would be totally deadly then. Laminate suits would give you the flexibility to dive them in heat too by just changing to thinner undergarments (down to t-shirt like some do).
If you get good drysuit, take care of it and don carefully, you don’t necessarily ever have to experience full drysuit flood barring some catastrophic event. Everyone will have some leakage issues now and then but most of them are, like said, due to user error (seal misplacement, zipper open a little, uncleaned valves) or wear issues (pinholes and little tears). Drysuit course or good mentoring from experienced drysuit diver is recommended so you can avoid the typical frustrations most people have early on with drysuit diving.
Bogie
Contributor
I buy online all the time with excellent results. DUI has excellent customer service and you can actually talk to someone on the phone that knows what the are taking about. Buy from a reputable site and you should't have a problem. If you do they solve it.
If you buy a quality product it should not need service.
Any how, I feel confident buying stuff online and have got some great deals.
Good luck.
elan
Contributor
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Thanks to everyone. I feel enlightened. When I go dry it sounds like the trilam is the ticket for me. I have always thought of dry suits as suits for colded water so the idea of diving a dry suit in warmer water has opened my eyes a bit. It also sounds like a little leakage is unavoidable. No one spoke of catastropic problems so it sounds like usage is down to a fine science. I have been diving and repairing scuba gear long enough that parts wearing down and breaking is pretty much standard procedure. Repairing gear is part of the hobby for me. It also sounds like a knowledgeable and experienced dry suit instructor will be well worth the money.
Skull
Contributor
As for catastrophic problems there are two ... flooding and a stuck inflation valve.
First is no big deal until you try to exit the water for obvious reasons. Happened to me two autums ago while diving for bugs. Neck seal had a tear in it...couldn't tell till I was about 4 ft deep then the flooding really started. Water was relatively warm so I continued the dive ... caught a couple keepers and surfaced. Swam to my boat clipped off my catch to my tag line and began the attempt at climbing back on board via my ladder. You can imagine how much water a drysuit will hold .. well as I made my way up the ladder it became very apparent .. I looked and felt like a Willy Wonka Umpa Lumpa ...+ the undergarments hold seriously large amounts of water... I eventually got back on without hurting my self and dumped out quite a bit of water.
The second is a bit more dangerous ... if the valve sticks you can have a serious buoyancy problem immediately depending on where you are in the drive profile you have to resolve that problem immediately. The inflation hose is a quick release just like your BC so abating the inflation is easy. Releasing the excessive gas from your suit is another skill set to remember. there is an over inflate valve on the suit that will begin the process ... also one can just release the gas from your suit by sticking your finger into the neck seal between the seal and your skin ...anyway you get the picture.
goaliemn
Registered
I was going to say the same thing.. go with a 7mm wetsuit.. I've dove in 42F water with a 7mm and it was tolerable. My usual diving temperatures are 55-70F and the 7mm does a great job.
kanonfodr
Contributor
I can speak for diving a drysuit in warmer water, and knowledgeable and experienced instruction.
1. Diving a drysuit in warmer water (like here in Hawaii) is really nice. Once you learn how. I wear an insulated shirt and polypro pants under my Fusion so while my undies don't trap much air at all, the learning curve is still present. That being said, it's so nice to come out of the water and still be nice and warm and dry. The pee reflex is still there however. Need to find a solution to that...
2. A local diver here has some good experience in drysuits and he offered to help me out with mine. Also, when I visited California and dove with those guys (wet, but they were all diving dry) I caught lots of crosstalk about how to handle the drysuit, since one of the divers was still relatively new to drysuits and thus asking questions. Now it's just a matter of putting it all into practice
.Peace,
Greg
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