For Drysuits - Is there something bad about normal thermal u-wear?

[Gil57usa]

For several years I wore polypropylene thermals under my drysuit. They worked fine and kept me warm enough. I then picked up a set of DUI heavy fleece thermals. What a difference. Not in warmth, but in buoyancy. If I wear the fleece I am very light in the feet and have trim difficulties at the end of a dive. I don't want ankle weights. I dive a BP/W and Doubles with no weights and I like it that way. I think I will ditch the fleece and stick with the poly.

 

[JKSteger]

I wear a USIA Exotherm II with the Bass Pro Shop brand "RedHead" heavy poly's under the Exotherm II and Fourth Element Arctic socks. Been pretty comfy with that setup to date. I'm looking at getting the Bare CT200 which has 200gram Thinsulate"B" material as the Exotherm has fleece and I have to add more air in the suit so the fleece "puffs" up to trap heat.

I've been told not to wear cotton as it is not a wicking material. I've worn the 70% poly / 30% cotton thermals before and it didn't bother me. I think it has a lot to do with the type of diving you are doing. I only do recreational type dives, well within NDL's. If I have a suit flood I'm calling the dive and ascending right then. So in this case the cotton blend may not be as crittical as say someone who was doing tech dives and had deco obligations.

BTW, I see your in Atlanta, come out the the New Years day dive at West BAnk Park at Lake Lanier. Theres a big group of us Lake Lanier Looney Birds going to be out there Monday.

J:

 

[CompuDude]

Buy a good technical cloth (polypropylene, capilene, etc.) and you'll be ok, depending on how cold the waters are. Two piece garments have a tendency to gap or bunch up, as was pointed out, however. One piece garments have a real advantage there.

I would check out the thermal undies at Carol Davis Sportswear. Best kept secret out there, and way cheaper than Bare or DUI undergarments, and cheaper than good quality Capilene and such. I'd call it 200g+... people vary, but for me it's not quite enough in truly cold water (under 50-55 F) but makes an outstanding base layer. Pay attention to their warnings re size... I'm 6'3 ~190 lbs and wear a medium. (!!!)

http://www.cdsportswear.com

 

[ianr33]

If I wear the fleece I am very light in the feet and have trim difficulties at the end of a dive. I don't want ankle weights.

What sort of fins do you wear? I fixed my floaty feet by changing from Quattros to Jets

 

[amascuba]

I have the 200gram tilos underwear sold on divesports.com for $75. They are spandex and polyester. I also have some polyester long johns that I bought at Gander Mountain.

Polyester is one of the key fabrics used in drysuit underwear. It keeps your body heat in and it helps wicks moister away from your body, which is good in case of a drysuit flood or water seeping into your suit.

 

[CompuDude]

I have the 200gram tilos underwear sold on divesports.com for $75. They are spandex and polyester. I also have some polyester long johns that I bought at Gander Mountain.

Polyester is one of the key fabrics used in drysuit underwear. It keeps your body heat in and it helps wicks moister away from your body, which is good in case of a drysuit flood or water seeping into your suit.

I think you mean polypropylene, which admittedly is a type of polyester. Regular polyester, such as that found in leisure suits, does nothing for wicking moisture, nor is it especially warm. Although it's better than cotton, I suppose...

The Tilos 200g undergarments you bought get their warmth from the fleece lining, a lightweight polartex fabric. They're nice undergarments, but not very heavy. The Carol Davis UGs I cited earlier are a LOT warmer, and only a little more expensive.

 

[amascuba]

My thermals and Gander Mountain specials say polyester for the fabric, so that's what I'm going by.

 

[dl348]

I use underarmor, anything that has good wicking properties can be used.

 

[CompuDude]

My thermals and Gander Mountain specials say polyester for the fabric, so that's what I'm going by.

Again, Polypro is a type of polyester, so that's what they'll say on tags, because polypro IS polyester for import purposes and such, which is what the little tags cover, among other things. The list of actual materials is fairly short. The product info tags and/or packaging you toss would say polypro and discuss wicking, however. Telling someone to buy "polyester" thermals, without specifying the specific types that offer wicking and such, could lead to someone following your advice and purchasing wholly inadequate garments.

 

[ClayJar]

Okay, let me preface this by saying I have no information on what "Polypro" is. If it's a brand name for a type of polyester, the following does not apply. That said...

Polypropylene is *not* a polyester. The functional unit in polypropylene contains only three carbon atoms and six hydrogen atoms. Obviously, without any oxygen atoms involved, there is no ester.