Good general purpose wet suit thickness

[vinsanity]

I live in the Pacific NW where a dry suit or at least 6.5mm farmer john + 6.5mm long sleeve shorty is necessary, clearly neither of those would be ideal choices for when I visit the FL panhandle. I'm planning on doing the majority of my diving while travelling, so I'm thinking (if such a thing exists) about getting a good general purpose wet suit that will meet the majority of my travelling needs. Then at home, I'll rent thick wet suits until I decide I'm not serious about PNW diving or am ready to invest in a dry suit.

I expect at least annual summer trips to the FL panhandle and a winter Hawaii trip. Then add some misc places. Belize, Honduras, and the Galapagos are on the realistic planning docket.

Thoughts? 3mm? 5mm? or do those locations vary so much that there is no 1 good choice? Thanks!

 

[Marie13]

I've heard a number of people say 5mm is a good choice. You can add a 3mm hooded vest under for colder water, or even something like Sharkskin.

I was diving my 5mm in a wide range of temps this summer - from 56F on the Great Lakes to 75F at the local quarry.

 

[mark01]

I would agree with Marie13. I use my 5 mil from the low 70’s to mid 80’s. .

 

[2airishuman]

or do those locations vary so much that there is no 1 good choice? Thanks!

Hello Vinsanity

Welcome

Wetsuit style and thickness is very much a personal choice because people respond to cold so differently and because there are differences in warmth from, say, one 3mm wetsuit to another. If you dive as much as you plan to, you'll end up with multiple suits.

I generally do not get cold easily. The wetsuit I use most is a 3mm two-piece freediving suit with an integral hood. It's good down to around 65 degrees at which point I switch to a 7mm suit of identical style.

I do have a Neosport one-piece 3/2 suit which I use in warmer water however as time goes on I have found that I really prefer the 3mm freediving suit unless the water is 80 degrees or warmer. In Florida the temps vary seasonally and from year to year. Certainly a 3/2 suit would be a place you could start and will remain useful, but it probably isn't enough by itself.

My younger daughter has a one-piece 5mm suit, with no hood, which she wears in conditions similar to those where I would wear a 3mm suit.

I realize this may not quite be the answer you're looking for, but I hope it helps.

 

[Trailboss123]

I would agree with both @Marie13 and @2airishuman - both make valid points! -- and after re-reading your original post and the locations you are targeting (Fl Panhandle, Hawaii in the Winter regularly and potential Galapagos and Central America trips), I would go with a very nice 5mm wetsuit. I am that kind of guy that has something for every occasion, but if I had to choose one and only one exposure protection and given your diving destinations, I would choose a well constructed 5mm. You can add a hooded vest for additional exposure protection when warranted and if it is too warm for a 5mm, you probably are gonna be able to get away with a dive skin or shorts and a rash guard in Belize or Honduras- given the time of year. Warmer is always better than colder! By the way, where in the PNW are you located? Most of my diving life has been based up there and I still consider it home. All the best! Greg

 

[northernone]

For me, it's rare to find water that is uncomfortably warm in a full 5mm in those locations. Others prefer a 2/3mm. All depends on bioprene and dive style/ duration.

...I've done a 7mm farmer john bottom in 72-78° water. Works fine, just needs weighting adjusted and lack of fashion sense.

 

[stuartv]

I have 3, 5, and 7mm wetsuits. I have gotten to where I pretty much only wear the 5mm. If it's chilly, I add a drysuit hood. Meaning, a hood that covers the head and neck only. No bib and no vest. I like to be able to don the hood last and take it completely off as soon as I get out.

If it's too cold for the 5mm plus a hood and gloves, then I'm going to my drysuit.

I have never dived in water that was so warm as to make my 5mm uncomfortable. But, if it was that warm, I would just go in shorts and a rash guard. The warmest water I've dived was an hour on the bottom of a pool with 83F water temp. I was totally comfortable in my 5mm. The warmest open water, in my 5mm, was 78F. Still totally comfortable.

I dived the FL panhandle at the end of last May and I have dived 3 different islands in Hawaii. None of those were remotely close to warm enough to make a 5mm uncomfortable (to me). From what I understand, the Galapagos is not warm water, either.

Just make sure the suit fits well, has glued and blind stitched seams (versus flatlock stitching), and has glideskin or some other kind of seal at the wrists, ankles, and neck, and has a spine pad to seal behind the zipper. I have ScubaPro EverFlex suits and they all have all that. It is often 5 or 10 minutes into my dive before I feel the first trickle of water running down my back on the inside of the suit.

 

[boulderjohn]

When are you going to the Florida Panhandle?

A couple of years ago I was vacationing there (actually, just over the border in Alabama) the first week in March, and I was ready to dive (hopefully the Oriskany) every day. Nothing doing. Some of the dive operators were closed. Nobody was going out to the Oriskany. I talked to a shop that offered diving and other outdoor activities, and the person to whom I spoke indicated that I must be out of my mind to want to dive in water that cold (mid 60s). I told him I had my dry suit with me and would be just fine. Maybe I would be, but they would not send a boat out for one customer. The local people, he indicated, are sane enough to wait until the water warms up.

 

[scbaNE2179]

Another option in addition to the 5mm suit ideas here is to look into a semi-dry wetsuit. I believe most of them are in the 6.5-8mm thickness range. One thing to keep in mind with semi-dry suits is that the majority of them have horizontal chest zips, either in the front or the back. I once tried these suits and immediately did not like the horizontal zip-it literally felt like diving in a coat hanger. So now I just use a 1.5-3mm for travel, and a 7mm with 3mm vest for local cold-water diving. As for brands, I love the Henderson Aqualock series-my 7mm kept me warm even in the high 40s water temps.

 

[Lorenzoid]

It has been said that one's tolerance for cold decreases with the more years one has been diving. These days, a 5 mm is my go-to suit for all over the Caribbean, FL, Asia, etc.--everywhere the water is tropical or sub-tropical. A 3 mm WAS my go-to suit for a few years, but I have gotten less tolerant to cold. From my observations in the Caribbean, FL (east coast, and panhandle in summer), Asia, etc., a 3 mm is the go-to suit for the majority of tropical/sub-tropical divers. Heck, I see lots of people diving in shorties, and some in nothing but rash guards when the water is 80+. However, I suspect the majority of divers I see on those trips are newer divers (I'm excluding the occasional fancy dive resort or liveaboard I do), and I would bet they end up getting thicker suits if they stick with diving for many years.

The Galapagos is sort of out of the sub-tropical group. I haven't been there, but my understanding is that the water is more like San Diego than the sub-tropics. That is to say, chilly. As the Galapagos would be an expensive bucket-list trip for me, I wouldn't hesitate to cough up the few hundred dollars for a 7 mm suit just for that trip. Or use a drysuit.