Drysuit Specialty course tips?

[Scott]

Realize that some undergarments are going to allow more efficient venting than others so ascents need to be slow and controlled. You have to allow time for the gas to migrate out of the garment and to the shoulder dump.

 

[happy-diver]

practice

You know WillieJustice it's more than just about the practice it's about what's happening during the practice
where the thinking diver studies the reasons for the outcomes of any buoyancy adjustments so they without overcompensating can reduce them to only a handful per dive which results in less practice and more diving

 

[DCN]

Realize that some undergarments are going to allow more efficient venting than others so ascents need to be slow and controlled. You have to allow time for the gas to migrate out of the garment and to the shoulder dump.

Another excellent point that we'll keep in mind. Thanks

 

[DCN]

You might find this video helpful:

Very helpful, thank you!

 

[WillieJustice]

You know WillieJustice it's more than just about the practice it's about what's happening during the practice
where the thinking diver studies the reasons for the outcomes of any buoyancy adjustments so they without overcompensating can reduce them to only a handful per dive which results in less practice and more diving

I think about all that stuff and make notes for myself about what happened, why it happened, what I did to compensate if it wasn't right, you name it. It's a little like figuring out weight. I'm sneaking up on the right amount to carry so I don't overcompensate. And, as you point out, making a few adjustments that are as small as possible is the goal. It will also reduce my gas consumption, which is still on the high side.

But, more time in the water is more time in the water. I learn something new every dive. I won't consider myself proficient for quite a while, but that won't stop me from enjoying every dive. Don't let my occasional wise-ass comment throw you off.

I now have my own drysuit and undergarment. There will be a period of getting to know what it does and how it works. I have been diving with rented DUI gear, which has worked fine for me, with some nits to pick with fit. I now have a Seaskin that seems to fit very well, but I haven't been in the water with it yet. It is not the same as a rental DUI, which means adjustment. The undergarment is very different from what I'm used to and may take a bit of time to figure out. I suspect that the amount of weight I carry will go back up again for a while until it's clear what the buoyancy of the undergarment and its air retention are. As (I think it was you) has been pointed out, different undergarments let air move in different ways and at different speeds. That's all on the agenda for sorting. In the mean time, I'll be seeing what I can see in different places in this area while figuring it out. All good.

 

[Nosmosis]

Initially, we were supposed to do our OW in drysuits, and we did start out in drysuits, completing a couple of 'dives', which in retrospect must have looked absolutely ridiculous However, we feel we didn't get much info about how to properly dive a drysuit, and handling a drysuit on top of everything turned out to be too much for us at the point, so we switched to wetsuits and completed our OW.

We want to be able to dive dry, so we've signed up for a drysuit course, and having gone through the drysuit course theory (and also completed the drysuit theory section in the AOW course (not yet certified AOW), it all makes a lot more sense.

Now we're wondering which skills we have to go through, what is the hardest part of the course? Any good tips and tricks for beginners?

I'm a drysuit instructor in the Midwest and I think the hardest part for new drysuit divers is getting used to managing buoyancy. The thing is, in my opinion, the challenge is not in the class, but rather in the initial 25 or so dives you do afterwards when you are still getting used to diving with the suit. For most agencies, the standard only calls for 2-3 dives and under no circumstances will you be an expert at the end of it. You still will need lots of practice before diving the suit is second nature.

I'll be honest, most of the skills are dealing with issues that are the result of a diver being told to use the suit for primary buoyancy or adding too much gas to the suit which can result in rapid or feet-first ascent. Students that use the BCD for primary buoyancy and use the suit to eliminate the squeeze I find do not struggle much with the basic scuba skills in a dry suit, including performing controlled ascents and holding safety stops. This isn't to say they don't pop to the surface once in awhile, but generally they adapt pretty quickly and even say they like the drysuit better than the wetsuit.

Other skills are pretty straight-forward, such as disconnecting and reconnecting inflator hose. Some instructors also like students to practice using drysuits as emergency buoyancy (where you do use the suit as primary buoyancy) to simulate a wing or BCD failure.

In the end, the course is not difficult - and often the most challenging part is getting the weight right and getting the suit on. The real challenge is getting comfortable with it once the instructor goes away and you need to dive autonomously - perhaps with your own gear that wasn't rented, or another rental suit or after some time has passed since initial training. Scuba skills deteriorate scarily fast and after a Winter with little diving there can be some messy dives getting back in the water with a drysuit after a hiatus. I think I got comfortable after 25 dives or so and it became mostly second nature after 100. Even so, there are sometimes dives where I'm like, "huh I'm slightly more floaty than I wanna be on this deco stop and I must've not got as much gas out on the ascent as I thought I did." Practice, practice, practice.

 

[DCN]

I'm a drysuit instructor in the Midwest and I think the hardest part for new drysuit divers is getting used to managing buoyancy. The thing is, in my opinion, the challenge is not in the class, but rather in the initial 25 or so dives you do afterwards when you are still getting used to diving with the suit. For most agencies, the standard only calls for 2-3 dives and under no circumstances will you be an expert at the end of it. You still will need lots of practice before diving the suit is second nature.

I'll be honest, most of the skills are dealing with issues that are the result of a diver being told to use the suit for primary buoyancy or adding too much gas to the suit which can result in rapid or feet-first ascent. Students that use the BCD for primary buoyancy and use the suit to eliminate the squeeze I find do not struggle much with the basic scuba skills in a dry suit, including performing controlled ascents and holding safety stops. This isn't to say they don't pop to the surface once in awhile, but generally they adapt pretty quickly and even say they like the drysuit better than the wetsuit.

Other skills are pretty straight-forward, such as disconnecting and reconnecting inflator hose. Some instructors also like students to practice using drysuits as emergency buoyancy (where you do use the suit as primary buoyancy) to simulate a wing or BCD failure.

In the end, the course is not difficult - and often the most challenging part is getting the weight right and getting the suit on. The real challenge is getting comfortable with it once the instructor goes away and you need to dive autonomously - perhaps with your own gear that wasn't rented, or another rental suit or after some time has passed since initial training. Scuba skills deteriorate scarily fast and after a Winter with little diving there can be some messy dives getting back in the water with a drysuit after a hiatus. I think I got comfortable after 25 dives or so and it became mostly second nature after 100. Even so, there are sometimes dives where I'm like, "huh I'm slightly more floaty than I wanna be on this deco stop and I must've not got as much gas out on the ascent as I thought I did." Practice, practice, practice.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this. This is a wonderful piece of information that will help us through our course, and we will take extra care to get the weights right. As mentioned initially, we have actually had two dives already (confined dives in sea) so we are not totally unfamiliar with drysuits. At the point it was too much to handle, but we feel a lot more confident and ready to take on the challenge. We've already suspected it will take time to handle a drysuit properly, and we will go diving as much as we can to get practice. Does anyone fail this course for any reason?

 

[RobPNW]

First off, I have much less experience in a dry suit than many people here. With that said, I did the dry suit class. I was not outright encouraged to use the suit as a buoyancy tool but it basically ended up being one anyway. During the open water dives, I may have used the BC twice. The reason was obvious. If properly weighted, as you descend and compress and get negative, and then add air to the suit to relieve the squeeze, you basically neutralize buoyancy at the same time.

 

[inquis]

you basically neutralize buoyancy at the same time.

Except for that pesky 2-3 L of additional volume required to compensate for the unused gas in the tank. Obviously it *can* be done with just a suit, but corralling that gas in the BC makes more sense to me.

ETA: at the end of the dive near reserve pressure, there is no difference, since the wing should be nearly empty.

 

[passeparici]

First off, I have much less experience in a dry suit than many people here. With that said, I did the dry suit class. I was not outright encouraged to use the suit as a buoyancy tool but it basically ended up being one anyway. During the open water dives, I may have used the BC twice. The reason was obvious. If properly weighted, as you descend and compress and get negative, and then add air to the suit to relieve the squeeze, you basically neutralize buoyancy at the same time.

The difference is, as you go deeper you add just a bit for the squeeze, a tiny bit more for the cold and it might not be enough. Then instead of adding a bit more with the dry suit you add it with you BCD. Would that mean that you are not properly weighted ? Not necessarily