First drysuit dive... Mixed impressions

[TSandM]

Was this suit new? It IS possible for the dump valves to get gummed up and vent poorly. Soaking them overnight in distilled water, followed by more soaking in another batch of water with a few drops of Ivory soap in it, helps a great deal.

The thing about drysuit diving is that you have to use the weight you have to use. Trying to keep the ballast down, and ending up underweighted and squeezed, means you aren't comfortable AND you aren't very warm, either. This is why, at least around my neck of the woods, you see a lot of people with the Faber steel tanks (which are very negative) and using steel backplates. You want to get rid of ANYTHING with positive buoyancy that you don't absolutely have to have on you, and that includes Al80s and BCs with a lot of padding.

Drysuit fit, as somebody else has already said, is a big deal, and something most new drysuit divers don't know a great deal about (and drysuit dealers either don't, or would rather sell the suit than tell the customer it doesn't fit well). Material makes a difference, too -- My compressed neo suit, although it is warm, is a bear to get in and out of, because it's heavy and stiff. In addition, among my dive buddies, there are only a few people who can get in and out of their suits with no assistance at all. Most of us need a bit of help with a zipper, or getting an arm out of a sleeve, or something. It's just part of the dry suit deal.

But I think if you tweak your configuration a little and get enough ballast that you can run more air in the suit, you'll be far happier with it.

And don't feel bad about blowing a stop. We've all been there! The key to drysuit buoyancy is ANTICIPATION -- because it vents slowly in comparison with a BC, you have to start venting a lot earlier.

 

[Scotttyd]

I just dove in my new pinnacle evo 2 for the first time. One dive in 25 feet at the quarry e and one dive in the local pool. I had many of the same issues you did. I usually dive with 0 lbs with my HP130, I put 6 on at the quarry, (t-shirt and shorts), the squeeze was horrendous down below. At the pool I put on a pair of sweat pants and long t-shirt, 14 lbs, the squeeze not as bad, but still far from comfortable. I am hitting the quarry for round two this week. I am going to wear my undergarment, more weight, and hopefully things will be more comfortable.

1. I have the same suit as the OP, with a sitech valve, and it works great. We tested by inflating the suit with my left arm up and it dumped air as fast as the suit inflated, no not sure why the OP had those problems.

2. I am also tall 6'3" and 240 lbs. I have the king 1, which according the size chart is not the "correct size" but after trying on the XL,XXL, XXXL, and King 2, it was by far the best fit. Unlike the OP, I can get the suit on and off without assistance. Maybe their is a sizing issue.

One question I have is if I put more weight on, therefore I can add more air to the suit to reduce the squeeze, will I not then just vent more air out of the valve and sink instead of eliminating the squeeze? Do I need to close the valve slightly, or will the air not vent from the valve unless I raise my arm?

 

[Tigerman]

I just dove in my new pinnacle evo 2 for the first time. One dive in 25 feet at the quarry e and one dive in the local pool. I had many of the same issues you did. I usually dive with 0 lbs with my HP130, I put 6 on at the quarry, (t-shirt and shorts), the squeeze was horrendous down below. At the pool I put on a pair of sweat pants and long t-shirt, 14 lbs, the squeeze not as bad, but still far from comfortable. I am hitting the quarry for round two this week. I am going to wear my undergarment, more weight, and hopefully things will be more comfortable.

1. I have the same suit as the OP, with a sitech valve, and it works great. We tested by inflating the suit with my left arm up and it dumped air as fast as the suit inflated, no not sure why the OP had those problems.

2. I am also tall 6'3" and 240 lbs. I have the king 1, which according the size chart is not the "correct size" but after trying on the XL,XXL, XXXL, and King 2, it was by far the best fit. Unlike the OP, I can get the suit on and off without assistance. Maybe their is a sizing issue.

One question I have is if I put more weight on, therefore I can add more air to the suit to reduce the squeeze, will I not then just vent more air out of the valve and sink instead of eliminating the squeeze? Do I need to close the valve slightly, or will the air not vent from the valve unless I raise my arm?

The air only vent at the highest position and if that is not the valve it wont vent.
The valve is also adjustable with regards to the pressure needed to open it in order for it to vent.
Personally I usually dive with the vent almost at the max opening (lowest bouyancy/pressure) if not at it.

 

[ryssyr]

Like everyone else says... keep at it. It took me about 15 dives to get back to "normal" with a drysuit. Drysuit Dive #1 38lbs. Drysuit Dive #2 40 lbs (Thought I needed more to sink, but didnt have the air management techniques down) Now I'm diving w/ 23 lbs. I also changed my undergarments. The first set I bought were too restrictive and lofty. They were probably the reason I carried so much weight. The undergarment fit was a big reason I was so uncomfortable and couldnt move easily. You will get better, but its a little disheartening to learn to dive again after being comfortable in a wetsuit.

On the other hand, after you get good at buoyancy in the drysuit, you will be awesome in warm water gear(shorty or trunks).

 

[frankmzd]

as for getting out of the drysuit - I use one of those household cleaner spray bottles filled with baby shampoo (-> latex friendly) and spray the shampoo into the wrist seals and (sometimes) neck seal. before I needed help doffing the suit, now I can do it by myself (finally).

I second tsandm's comment that you have to vent the suit early - don't wait until you start shooting up (because then you will).

 

[micklock]

Sounds like your valve is not working right or your undergarment is blocking it. I have a Dive Rite 905 with the Si Tech automatic exhaust valve and it vents very easy. I have heard of people putting duct tape or something around their arm to keep the undergarment from blocking the valve.

 

[igoRluse]

What sort of undergarments did you have? A good under suit is just as important as a good drysuit in my opinion, and a thick padded one will limit the squeeze and assure your future reproductive success.

Using the Pinnacle Temerate undergarment. 500g/m2

Where are you diving dry - in Queensland?

I wish! No, back home in Perth now.

From your post, it sounds like you bought a drysuit before having gone diving in one. Is that correct? If so - I'm just curious why you didn't try a rental for a few dives to see what you thought before dropping cash on a suit. Rental suits, esp. drysuits do tend to suck, but still - might have been worth doing.

I bought it because I am now taking my diving in a much more tech direction. Doing deco procedures and then entry trimix this summer. I also manifolded my steels and forked out for a transpac and all the accessories at the same time. It'll all make sense by next winter when I intend to be doing long deep dives.

Sounds like your valve is not working right or your undergarment is blocking it. I have a Dive Rite 905 with the Si Tech automatic exhaust valve and it vents very easy. I have heard of people putting duct tape or something around their arm to keep the undergarment from blocking the valve.

That's interesting... I may give that a try. My impression is that there really was a problem. Seriously nothing more that a trickle of bubbles when venting. I started to vent before leaving the bottom as I was expecting the issue. All the way through the dive I was a little worried about the venting as I realised that I would not be able to vent fast enough.



For the weight issue, I guess going with the transpac and also the fact that I was just using the boat's rental AL80 for the dive wouldn't have helped. I'll do a couple more dives with an extra 6 lbs I think before I move on to the monifolded steels and then worry about dropping some weight.

Several of you are talking about using 35+ lbs of weight. This is reassuring as I thought there was something wrong with me.



Anyway, thanks for all the responses, very helpful. I'll stick at it and hope it gets better.

 

[String]

I personally hate shoulder dumps and find them far less reliable and slower than cuff dumps.

A lot of it is suit design and fit - the positioning of the shoulder valve is absolutely critical. If its an inch or 2 forward or away from ideal it dumps a lot worse.

With mine i have to roll sideways, go about 30 degrees vertical and squeeze my elbow to shoulder for example.

 

[bane51031]

Like the others said stick with it it does get better, I had the same feelings after my first couple of dives dry but, took alot of weight and felt akward to say the least, I went from 38 pounds down to 30 pounds and I think I can easily shave off another 2-4 pounds which i intend to do at 2 pound increments.Here in Iowa diving dry is essential once mother nature rears her ugly head and ices everything up, I do enjoy diving with a wetsuit also getting in and out of the suit gets easier as you develop your own system....

 

[dave4868]

Several of you are talking about using 35+ lbs of weight. This is reassuring as I thought there was something wrong with me.

The following might be even more reassuring.... and then again, maybe not....

At 5'9", 190 lbs, my "minimum" winter weighting to offset my Weezle Extreme Plus, polypropylene first layer, fleece chest pad, doubled glove liners and doubled socks is about 48 lbs with HP120 and al30 pony.

What some would call "correct" weighting doesn't "correctly" solve the problem of achieving maximum warmth for me....

On top of that "minimum", I wear about 5-8 lbs of "excess" weight with that winter setup and it's much warmer. The excess weight, and therefore excess air in the suit, makes a huge difference in warmth on long, low-activity dives in cold water (90 minutes or more in mid-30's F water temps). My maximum weighting is about 55 lbs!

With less insulation, I use proportionally less excess weight, of course.

For me, the obvious drawbacks of wearing more than the "correct" weight are minor compared to the benefit of being so much warmer.

Dave C