Drysuit dumping problem

[gerryw]

I have a White's with a cuff dump. I keep the valve wide open but it will never dump by itself. I have to raise my arm quite high and roll to starboard a bit because the valve in on the inside of my arm.

I have a buddy here who has the valve on the upper arm, near the bicep and I like my setup way better than his. He has to do some contortions to get the valve to be the highest point. I think his would be better on the tricep side.

Mine seems ok, but I think I would like it better on the outside of my arm, not the inside. I think it would dump easier. I am not sure enough about this to slash my suit yet.

When people say forearm or cuff dump, do they mean inside (palm side) or outside the arm? Would it be more in the way outside the arm?

Gerry

 

[dvas]

i can't see it, since it is a standard shoulder valve.... but when the air gets out, my suit is squeezing, especially in the legs area... is it supposed to be like that??

sasha

 

[pdoege]

Hey Sasha -

I only put enough air in the suit to keep the squeeze from hurting.

Too much air really screws with my bouyancy. Not impossible to deal with, but a pain.

Comfy though.

I've been known to empty my BC and fill my suit at the safety stop. Mmmm!

Peter

 

[dvas]

hi pdoege,
but as soon as i am in slightly vertical position, all the air from the legs goes up... so it is impossible to have 'little' air there.... what am i missing?!?

sasha

 

[pdoege]

The air will move to the highest point.

Squeeze is normal. Put in air until the squeeze isn't painful. If you put in more air, you typically need to dump from the BC to compensate.

I do not add air to offset squeeze until I hit around 80 feet (25m). I only add a bit, just until the squeeze is livable.

The problem with too much air is that you then have to manage the bouyancy of the suit and the BC. That can get tricky fast. Especially when the suit air is screwing with your trim.

Peter

 

[Dryglove]

pdoege once bubbled...

I do not add air to offset squeeze until I hit around 80 feet (25m). I only add a bit, just until the squeeze is livable.

Peter

Are you saying that you dont add any air to your drysuit till you reach 80ft. If so you must have a high tolerance for pain I start adding small bursts around 30 ft before my body turns into one huge hickey. I'll continue adding small bursts on the way down to equalize the suit kind of like when you exhale in a mask on the way down to reduce the pressure inside the mask. It gives me the chills just thinking about going to 80 ft and not adding air to my suit.Talk about shrink wrapped

 

[pdoege]

I seem to just ignore the squeeze.

I do seem to use less air in my suit than most.

Peter

 

[dvas]

i only have 5 dives in a dry suit from the last weekend, and i am adding small amounts of air... from your posts, i understand that squeeze is normal.
hardly waiting for the next dry round in the water.
sasha

 

[diveski01]

Uncle Pug once bubbled...
It is unfortunate... but DUI places the exhaust valve in the wrong location... somewhat toward the bicep... and this makes it difficult to dump air when horizontal prone.

You definitely need to stay ahead of the gas expansion in the suit and be prepared to do some acrobatics to orient the valve at the highest point.

You will probably need to get a little vertical every once in a while to eliminate gas from the suit.

Another option (which I have yet to exercise myself) is to relocate the dump valve.

The DUI valve is also very SLOW. UP's suggestions are dead on. Learning to dump EARLY and continually is very important - especially with a slow valve that isn't in ideal location.

I moved mine to forearm but still must anticipate early dumping and make very gradual ascents gated by exhaust valve dump rate. I won't go more shallow until all air is out at a depth. It's still a constant issue, but no more flapping around like a one-winged chicken on a bad hit of crack!!

Next move is to modify the springs to increase the dumping rate.

 

[Scubadent]

sounds like the general preference, but does it interfere with the use of a slate and/or compass worn on the left arm. Anyone able to use an arm slate and compass with this style of dump?