Drysuits - neoprene or trilaminate

[Diveninjajim]

Hi,

I'm considering buying a drysuit and am deciding whether to get a neoprene or trilaminate. I've used a neoprene drysuit and liked it but have been told the tri's are more comfortable. Any thoughts?

Thanks for any help.

 

[SubMariner]

Hi,

I'm considering buying a drysuit and am deciding whether to get a neoprene or trilaminate. I've used a neoprene drysuit and liked it but have been told the tri's are more comfortable. Any thoughts?

Thanks for any help.

I am assuming that you are talking about regular neoprene (5 or 7 mm) vs a trilam as opposed to compressed or crushed neoprene. Based on the former, I prefer the trilam for a number of reasons:

- much less inherent buoyancy than the neoprene therefore less weight required to be neutrally buoyant.

- you can layer on as much or a little undergarments as you need, depending on the water temperature. With neoprene you don't have the range or temperature options.

- you can definitely move around easier in the trilam than in the neoprene.

FWIW I have dove temps from 1C (34F) to 25C (78F) all over the world in my drysuit.

Slan!

 

[Diveninjajim]

Hi Submariner,

Thanks for the great reply and the points to consider with the trilams.

Sorry for not being specific about the neoprene. One of the suits I looked at is 4mm high density and the other is 3mm compressed Neoprene, but,given what you have said I will definitely have to give the trilams a look.

Go raibh maith agat!

 

[iztok]

I am diving 3mm compressed neoprene (Typhoon) and like it.

Positives I see:

1. don't need to have so much undergarment for the same temperatures.
2. Less squeeze pain thus one can dive with less air in it and thus easier to maintain bubble.
3. Much easier repair of neoprene vs trilam in case of minor cuts.
4. Can take more abuse before it gets ruptured.

Cons:

1. Not so great diving warm waters. (However I've been diving in hot weather and water in mid 50s with just t-shirt and sweat pants just fine.)

 

[Crush]

Trilams dry faster and retain less water. If you plan to spend your surface interval in air that is below freezing, your neoprene suit will freeze up on you. This is a problem if you are wearing it, and even more of a problem if you took it off and are trying to put it on. You can carefully immerse parts of it in water to thaw, but that is a pain.

SumMariner is correct about the broad temperature range of trilams.

iztok is correct in that crushed neoprene is tough.

If you get a trilam, strongly consider getting rock boots (as opposed to turbo soles) as the boots can be easily replaced. Also, consider reinforced kneepads - I have fallen to my knees on rocks and shells while struggling out of the surf. The pads make it hurt less, plus they protect the integrity of the suit.

 

[lowviz]

Hi,

I'm considering buying a drysuit and am deciding whether to get a neoprene or trilaminate. I've used a neoprene drysuit and liked it but have been told the tri's are more comfortable. Any thoughts?

Thanks for any help.

In cold water with a deco obligation, I'd (meaning me) rather be in a compromised neoprene than a trilam. If this doesn't apply, then it is hard to go wrong with either choice...

 

[SubMariner]

Trilams dry faster and retain less water. If you plan to spend your surface interval in air that is below freezing, your neoprene suit will freeze up on you. This is a problem if you are wearing it, and even more of a problem if you took it off and are trying to put it on. You can carefully immerse parts of it in water to thaw, but that is a pain.

SumMariner is correct about the broad temperature range of trilams.

iztok is correct in that crushed neoprene is tough.

If you get a trilam, strongly consider getting rock boots (as opposed to turbo soles) as the boots can be easily replaced. Also, consider reinforced kneepads - I have fallen to my knees on rocks and shells while struggling out of the surf. The pads make it hurt less, plus they protect the integrity of the suit.

All very good points, especially about rock boots & kneepads; I tend to favour kevlar for the kneepads. Also, not only do I find the rock boots great for any entry, but for me they tend to act like gators, keeping air from moving into my feet.

Yes, the crushed neo is quite tough, but the extra drying time can be a bit of a pain for some. Additional initial cost is for that material also a factor but often it is outweighed by the longevity of the material.

In the end I think we all agree that you need to do your homework & decide what material type & style of drysuit best fulfills your needs & pocketbook.

Pax,

 

[Diveninjajim]

Thanks very much to all of you for your help and great advice.
Submariner is correct; it's homework time. I spoke to my local dive centre, they're going to let me dive in both to see which I prefer. Sounds like a good idea to me. Thanks again for taking the time to reply.

Jim

 

[scarefaceDM]

Neoprene drysuits, crushed or other wise is heavy, not that great in the flexibility area but a tough suit for sure. Trilam or a bilam drysuit are more flexible which allow you more comfort and dexterity. Trilam dries a lot faster as already mentioned - is a great year round suit..but I personally will not use a trilam under the ice. Even if I have the best undies ever made..I will always use a neoprene suit because it is warmer for extreme cold diving conditions. I will fore go the added dexterity the trilam offers to be more comfy in extreme cold diving conditions using a neoprene drysuit.

Having said that. I would go for the trilam suit because you use less weight, more flexibility and overall comfort.

A bilam suit has the best of both worlds where the top is a trilam material and the bottom from the waist down is crushed neoprene. ( if they still make them of course)

if you do go for either suit...make sure you have pockets and dry gloves. Plus the all important PEE valve.
also consider a front entry suit as opposed to a rear entry. The reason I mention this is due to being self sufficient. A rear entry suit you need to rely on a buddy which by all means is great...but I prefer a front entry suit because I do not need to wait for someone to zip me up or zip me out and find it more comfortable for the type of diving I do.

Drysuit diving will open up more options for you and extend your dive season or seasons....

 

[TSandM]

In our household, we have owned and dived neoprene, compressed neoprene, laminate suits and the Fusion (which is a weird one-off).

Neoprene is warm and usually cheaper, but neoprene will lose it's insulating properties over time, and the buoyancy swings are a bit more difficult. It's heavy, not as flexible as one might hope, and dries slowly.

Compressed neoprene doesn't have the issue with buoyancy and does not seem to change its insulating capacity with multiple dives over time. It's tough stuff -- my husband has yet to have ANY leaks from his four year old suit. It's significantly heavy and dries slowly. It's also hard to glue things (think pockets and p-valves) to.

Laminate material is light and dries very quickly. It is not as tough -- easy to put holes in it, and sometimes quite difficult to find them. It's easier to glue things onto, and very easy to repair if you can find the leak. Laminate does not stretch AT ALL, so buying a suit with adequate mobility for your purposes is critical. All insulation in a laminate suit comes from the undergarment, and you will need a heavier one than you will with a neoprene suit, for the same water temperature. But laminate suits are versatile, because you can dive them comfortably in a wide range of temperatures, simply by using lighter undergarments.

The Fusion is a peculiar dry suit -- a bilaminate bag with a stretchy outer covering. Because of the stretchy "skin", the bag can be cut quite large without running the risk of ballooning. This gives you the mobility of a wetsuit with the warmth of being dry. The disadvantages are the difficulty in figuring out pockets on a stretchy outer covering (there are solutions, but I'm not delighted with any of them) and figuring out footgear (but that is an issue on any suit that uses a nylon or neoprene sock instead of a boot).

Each choice has its pros and cons, and price can vary wildly (more than a factor of 2) between models and brands.