Drysuit undergarment for great lakes?

[macado]

For Lake Michigan deeper wrecks are always going to be ~38-40f (~4c) on the bottom. The plus side is the thermocline can be very nice in the summer. You can usually expect low 60s on deco / shallower depths. It's one of the reasons that I like the Arctics Expedition or Halo so much. It's sometimes a delicate balance of layering for the bottom temperature and not roasting on deco (although that last part is usually not a problem).

The big challenge is not overheating and sweating profusely in the heat of the summer as that is going to make you much colder on the bottom when everything is already drenched in sweat

I recommend getting all your dive gear/equipment sorted out first before putting on undergarments and zipping up into a drysuit. Your equipment should be assembled and ready.

It seems obvious but this is where I often see people struggle in thicker undergarments. By the time they get suited up they start working on some piece of gear or forget to do something and now they're assembling things in a drysuit for 40 degrees on the bottom and baking in 90 degree heat. They start feeling sick or dizzy, add in some waves and they start to get sea sick. Stay hydrated and if the boat you're diving from has an bimini top or shelter from sun, take advantage of that.

 

[LFMarm]

Is everyone diving with dry gloves or are 5mm wet gloves an option that doesn’t require surgery afterwards ?

 

[SpeedyJ]

Is everyone diving with dry gloves or are 5mm wet gloves an option that doesn’t require surgery afterwards ?

Shallower dives people dive wet gloves, but dry gloves are a necessity for long & deep dives.

 

[macado]

Dry Gloves 100% although you might be able to get away without them on shallow wrecks. I would personally not dive in the Great Lakes (any of them) without dry gloves on my suit. I would not be able to do any of these dives in wet gloves unless I never went below ~50 or 60ft.

I'd just add that I do feel like heated dry gloves can be overkill. Admittedly I have a set and I do use them occasionally but I feel like proper thick wool or thinsulate liners help a lot. Heated dry gloves bring added complexity with additional wiring and more power draw on your battery.

If you're doing early season Great Lakes dives, ice diving or even Lake Superior dives, or sufficiently longer runtimes then I'd say they are good to have. I'd go with heated socks over heated gloves if given the option.

 

[Wheeler925]

Dry Gloves 100% although you might be able to get away without them on shallow wrecks. I would personally not dive in the Great Lakes (any of them) without dry gloves on my suit. I would not be able to do any of these dives in wet gloves unless I never went below ~50 or 60ft.

I'd just add that I do feel like heated dry gloves can be overkill. Admittedly I have a set and I do use them occasionally but I feel like proper thick wool or thinsulate liners help a lot. Heated dry gloves bring added complexity with additional wiring and more power draw on your battery.

If you're doing early season Great Lakes dives, ice diving or even Lake Superior dives, or sufficiently longer runtimes then I'd say they are good to have. I'd go with heated socks over heated gloves if given the option.

Thanks, I've dove a few times down to 40F in rented gear with 7mm wet gloves and hood. The drysuit I bought used came with dry gloves system - I'm excited to try. I'm a pretty warm person, but I'm gearing up hoping to hit lake superior this summer. Also not a tech diver(yet), so extended bottom times aren't yet a concern

 

[crofrog]

One of the bigger advantages of dry gloves that people don't talk as much about is for a lot of people with prominent tendons it keeps water seeping up there arm. If it's cold enough to wear any gloves, it's cold enough to wear dry gloves imo. Why be uncomfortable if you got the stuff. I’ve tried a wide range of liners and still ended up with some non-freezing cold injuries (NFCIs) in my hands. The worst case was due to not cutting a wrist seal loose enough, which restricted circulation. As a result, my hands now have a very low tolerance for getting cold without significant pain. I'd recommend avoiding NFCI if you can.

 

[Badger7]

One of the bigger advantages of dry gloves that people don't talk as much about is for a lot of people with prominent tendons it keeps water seeping up there arm. If it's cold enough to wear any gloves, it's cold enough to wear dry gloves imo. Why be uncomfortable if you got the stuff. I’ve tried a wide range of liners and still ended up with some non-freezing cold injuries (NFCIs) in my hands. The worst case was due to not cutting a wrist seal loose enough, which restricted circulation. As a result, my hands now have a very low tolerance for getting cold without significant pain. I'd recommend avoiding NFCI if you can.

I totally concur. If you're pushing the limits on temp, hands and feet are the first to suffer. Also, I've never been able to keep my forearms completely dry with just wrist seals and wet gloves. I've tried multiple wrist seal types and composition and none are a perfect seal on my wrists. Some people have much better luck, but now I always use dry gloves when I'm diving dry, and have a pair of thin xerotherm liners and some size 9 dry gloves for shallower/warmer dives when I need the dexterity and thicker neoprene glove liners and some size 11 dry gloves for the typical 40degree trip to the bottom of a lake or quarry.

 

[Wheeler925]

One of the bigger advantages of dry gloves that people don't talk as much about is for a lot of people with prominent tendons it keeps water seeping up there arm. If it's cold enough to wear any gloves, it's cold enough to wear dry gloves imo. Why be uncomfortable if you got the stuff. I’ve tried a wide range of liners and still ended up with some non-freezing cold injuries (NFCIs) in my hands. The worst case was due to not cutting a wrist seal loose enough, which restricted circulation. As a result, my hands now have a very low tolerance for getting cold without significant pain. I'd recommend avoiding NFCI if you can.

Fun fact, I had one of the big tendons in my forearm removed for use to repair another wrist injury, so now I've only got one wrist that leaks due to tendons