Drysuit leaking around neck

[lexvil]

I think mostly the front but it's hard to say exacly. It seems like after 1.5 hours worth of diving (2 to 3 dives) I'm the wetest by my neck and dryer as you go down, but it seems like I'm wetter down my front that back.

Ok, if you have a pool available put on some light gray sweats, get in the water for a few minutes, vent the suit of as much air as possible without touching the neck seal, use the wrist seal if you can get enough out through the dump. Dip under the water several times, get out, towel off as much water as you can around the neck and zip, quickly remove the suit and check for wet spots, the grey is great for showing this.

while it may be the neck seal I have a feeling it’s something else.

 

[Imla]

Make sure to check that the in-valve on your chest is properly tightened.

 

[runsongas]

it sounds like a leak coming from the front. could be neck seal, chest inflator valve, or even front chest zip. if you have one of the sitech neck rings, double check the seal is seated correctly.

 

[Arkman]

I just finished doing a leak test. I went around the whole suit a few times with soapy water with it inflated. My wife and I found one spot right by the logo patch on the arm that just has a few Tiny Bubbles. I'm not sure if that's enough to get the kind of wet I was getting but I suppose it's possible.

I'm not sure what to think but at a minimum I know I need to patch that spot. Do you think a layer of aquaseal alone is good enough or do I need to cover it with some kind of material patch too

 

[NW Dive Dawg]

If you are currently using either a neoprene or latex neck seal......I would recommend swapping to silicon.

 

[Imla]

I just finished doing a leak test. I went around the whole suit a few times with soapy water with it inflated. My wife and I found one spot right by the logo patch on the arm that just has a few Tiny Bubbles. I'm not sure if that's enough to get the kind of wet I was getting but I suppose it's possible.

I'm not sure what to think but at a minimum I know I need to patch that spot. Do you think a layer of aquaseal alone is good enough or do I need to cover it with some kind of material patch too

Did you do it with the water in an insideout suit like in the video? Or with soap on the outside?
The first method is more sensitive with regards to the small difficult holes. It is easier to see soapy water being pushed out of a hole on a dry suit, than it is seeing bubbles on a wet soapy suit.

 

[Alekseolsen]

A small hole causing just a small amount of bubbles will for sure get you wet in two hours. Just fixed a tiny one myself and was relieved when that resulted in completely dry dives, where before the fix I had to wring my undergarments off water

 

[Arkman]

Did you do it with the water in an insideout suit like in the video?

I didn't even see the video. For some reason it doesn't show on my phone. I had to log in on my computer to see it. I might try that tomorrow after I fix the one leak I know I have.

A small hole causing just a small amount of bubbles will for sure get you wet in two hours. Just fixed a tiny one myself and was relieved when that resulted in completely dry dives, where before the fix I had to wring my undergarments off water

That sounds promising. I have to get some aquaseal today and try to fix it. I might do that then try another leak test tomorrow.

 

[Bald Wookie]

Not sure what kind of suit you have but either way:
Repair it on the inside if you can so the outside stays nice looking. This means flipping it inside out to do the leak test.

If neoprene - carefully trim away the nylon layer on the inside of the suit about half a cm (1/8 of an inch? IDK you americans... ) either side of the pinhole in your suit before you apply aquaseal. This will prevent capillary/wicking action later on if the aquaseal does not sink into the nylon. Just be careful not to take too much of the actual neoprene away when you do this. Clean with toluene/thinner (MEK, etc). Apply the aquaseal onto the trimmed away nylon and overlap onto the nylon itself a bit so there is some strength in the repair.

If trilam/bilam - sand/dremel the surface first so there is some rough surface to bond onto. Clean with toluene/thinner (MEK, etc). Apply aquaseal. Optionally apply a patch over top of the aquaseal if you have one (not 100% necessary).

Allow to dry 24 hrs ideally, then re-test.

 

[Arkman]

Did you do it with the water in an insideout suit like in the video? Or with soap on the outside?
The first method is more sensitive with regards to the small difficult holes. It is easier to see soapy water being pushed out of a hole on a dry suit, than it is seeing bubbles on a wet soapy suit.

I redid the test tonight, using the method in the video. I spend a long time moving water around while keeping it full of air. I didn't find any leaks, including the one I found yesterday. I couldn't get it to show today. After I was confident that I couldn't see any leaks I repeated the test yesterday by spraying the suit with soapy water. This time while inside out.

So now I feel like I've done 3 leak tests, two of them pretty thoroughly.

I guess that is good and bad news. I almost wish I would have found an obvious leak, it would have made me feel like it's not my fault for being a bad dry suit diver.