Dry suits for all occasions

[Braunbehrens]

It's unfortunate, because he is right in what he says.

For recreational diving a wetsuit will do, but for anything technical a drysuit is pretty much necessary.

I'd be happy to discuss the pros and cons of wet vs. dry diving for TEK diving only.

However, I think we need a new thread if we're going to do this.

 

[Rick Murchison]

Braunbehrens once bubbled...
It's unfortunate, because he is right in what he says.

For recreational diving a wetsuit will do, but for anything technical a drysuit is pretty much necessary.

I'd be happy to discuss the pros and cons of wet vs. dry diving for TEK diving only.

However, I think we need a new thread if we're going to do this.

Curious... if the water's warm enough to not require a lot of thermal protection does that make the dive non-technical? Last month I completed (quite comfortably, by the way) a non-technical 1+20 deco schedule in a 3mm shorty then. It must have really been a non-tech deco schedule for my buddy in his bathing suit.
Rick

 

[Doc Intrepid]

needs a nice tall glass of Kool-Aid!

And to think, it was only last summer at the BAUE lecture that George Irvine gave, where ole George was talking about diving in the ocean with a wetsuit and twin 80s. He's such a non-TEK weenie, that George...

Someone should clue him in. How about you guys do it, ok?

 

[Braunbehrens]

Like I said, you guys wanna discuss it, let's start a thread. GI dives in 70+ degree water but wears a drysuit. Drysuits have many advantages over wetsuits. Of course you CAN dive wet and do a deco dive. Heck, there is a girl who can dive to 400 ft on a breath of air in a wetsuit. No one is talking about what is possible. I'm sure I CAN dive to 250 ft on air. Doesn't mean it's a great idea, nor that I would do it.

Not interested in a pissing match at all, but we can discuss the pros and cons if anyone is interested.

 

[Former FLL Now MSP Diver]

Well unless these old eyes are failing me, I don't see any arm or chest dumps on this suit that says SeaQuest across the chest.

The caption reads "Michael Kane returns to the Wakulla Beach".

What's that about Rule #6 again?

Where's all the real DIR folks to set these guys straight?

Marc

 

[bwerb]

Guess I'm gonna have to burn my copy of "Doing it Right"...far too many wetsuits in the photos...guess I didn't get the new revised copy with the color photos.

Sorry guys...your argument is bunk...FISH ON!!!

 

[Braunbehrens]

for a good analysis of why wetsuits aren't suited for technical diving, read the thread entitled steel tank wetsuit diving.

http://www.scubaboard.com/t9107/s.html

 

[Genesis]

No, it does not. You can do a deco dive in anything over roughly 30' of water!

Nor does it necessarily equal cold.

If you are diving in 70F water or above, a wetsuit is fine. It cannot be holed catastrophically, it will keep you warm enough, and it will be thin enough not to have a massive buoyancy shift and thus be trouble for you.

I dive wet in water of 70F or above, roughly.

If its colder, I dive dry. Why? Because I can, and I don't get cold that way. That's enough reasons for me.

But diving dry does come with added complexity, more things to break, and more consequences if they do. A catastrophic holing of your drysuit is bad news in cold water. Very bad news. And not just due to the buoyancy issues it can raise - but rather, the hypothemia issues.

If you're diving DEEP then cold becomes more likely, simply because the water tends to be colder the deeper you go. Of course in extreme cases it gets REAL cold, but even in less-extreme cases its typically colder the further down you go. So, if you dive deep, you are more likely to want to dive dry, all other things being equal.

 

[Rick Murchison]

Braunbehrens once bubbled...
for a good analysis of why wetsuits aren't suited for technical diving, read the thread entitled steel tank wetsuit diving.
http://www.scubaboard.com/t9107/s.html

So now we can't be "TEK" unless we're using steel tanks! My, my... that makes my warm water 3 mil shorty dive mentioned above positively ineligible for "TEK" status on yet another count! What shall I ever doooooo???? It's not the planning... not the site... not the depth... not the gasses... not the deco... no... not even the dive itself! It's the suit and the tanks!
Rick the recreational wetsuit and AL tanks tropical guy...
---------
Think I should open a dry suit store on Bonaire? You'll front the money, right?

 

[Braunbehrens]

I don't mean to be rude, but just because many people say something does not make it true. Most people think that divers use "oxygen tanks". Does that make diving "oxygen tanks" a good idea?

If you are going to do short exposures in shallow water in warm conditions, fine, then a wet suit is ok. However, this is just a nonsense argument. Most tech diving will include depth, and long exposures.

Genesis, why the contradiction? I was mostly referring to your post when I directed people to that thread. Here is the relevant part:

3. For "deep divers" (beyond rec depths) this works out pretty well since in general as you go deeper the water gets colder, and your exposure time increases (since you have deco to take care of). As such drysuits and technical diving work well together, even in what would otherwise be "warm" (at the surface) water. You can become hypothermic in 80 degree water, and you can become dangerously so in 70 degree water. Below 70F water dry suit protection for any deco dive is pretty much mandatory simply due to hypothermia issues.

Rick, no one said anything about needing to dive steel tanks to be tek. I don't know where you get that from. All I'm saying is "dive a balanced rig", and that basically means a drysuit, especially for long or deep exposures. If you can use AL tanks, balance your rig, and maintain proper trim, I don't see a problem with it.