Good undergarment for neoprene drysuit?

[Soggy_Diver]

I have a new Bare D6 neoprene (not crushed) drysuit. So far, I have been diving with it in shallow water, and love it. For deeper cold dives, I want to get an undergarment. This would be Great Lakes diving, Tobermory etc, so about 100 feet, as low as 1 C at depth. For people who dive neoprene drysuits, what kind of undergarment would you recommend?

Thanks,
Soggy-Diver.

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

I have a new Bare D6 neoprene (not crushed) drysuit. So far, I have been diving with it in shallow water, and love it. For deeper cold dives, I want to get an undergarment. This would be Great Lakes diving, Tobermory etc, so about 100 feet, as low as 1 C at depth. For people who dive neoprene drysuits, what kind of undergarment would you recommend?

Thanks,
Soggy-Diver.

Inferno

Inferno V-skin Fullsuit - Dive Right in Scuba

Lighweight, warm, tight fitting....a great combo with any neoprene drysuit!

 

[OkByMe]

how do you solve the neck and wrist seal issue wearing the V-skin... short of bunching the material up at the seals?

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

how do you solve the neck and wrist seal issue wearing the V-skin... short of bunching the material up at the seals?

Neck is no issue, it fills in nicely. THe wrists, you can bunch it up, or more preferably use drygloves That system then acts as a wrist warmer and allows air to travel to the dry gloves

 

[Stoo]

Soggy (hopefully not a reference to your new suit!) you won't need much under your suit if it's a 7mm (just looked at the bare site, and it doesn't seem to specify the material thickness...)

It's rare for temps at the bottom to be less that 4° or 5°C. (40° - 42°F). On rare occasions it will dip to 39F or so, but likely you will only be in this for a few minutes. Two days after the ice went out this spring, we had 33°F top to bottom and that was unpleasant.

So if you're suit is 7mm, I suspect that you would be fine in some kind if wicking undies... Typical of what you would wear as a base layer skiing. If you are inclined to be chilly, add a fleece layer. If the suit is 5mm or less, then you'll want perhaps a 200 weight layer as well. In either case, make sure it lets moisture pass. I wear a rubber Viking and was suiting up in hot temps on the weekend, then dove to about 170'. It was amazing how damp the inside of my suit was, just from condensation.

That fancy outfit from our friends at Pinnacle might be just the ticket, it not a tad fancy!

 

[Soggy_Diver]

Soggy (hopefully not a reference to your new suit!) you won't need much under your suit if it's a 7mm (just looked at the bare site, and it doesn't seem to specify the material thickness...)

It's rare for temps at the bottom to be less that 4° or 5°C. (40° - 42°F). On rare occasions it will dip to 39F or so, but likely you will only be in this for a few minutes. Two days after the ice went out this spring, we had 33°F top to bottom and that was unpleasant.

So if you're suit is 7mm, I suspect that you would be fine in some kind if wicking undies... Typical of what you would wear as a base layer skiing. If you are inclined to be chilly, add a fleece layer. If the suit is 5mm or less, then you'll want perhaps a 200 weight layer as well. In either case, make sure it lets moisture pass. I wear a rubber Viking and was suiting up in hot temps on the weekend, then dove to about 170'. It was amazing how damp the inside of my suit was, just from condensation.

That fancy outfit from our friends at Pinnacle might be just the ticket, it not a tad fancy!

Thanks for this advice. I am going to try the base layer I use for cross-country skiing. Its breathable and has some insulation, but it is not very thick. I will see how that goes, and then if its not warm enough, I will try something techier.

 

[Trailboss123]

I'm very interested in the Inferno. I dive cold water in the NW, USA- temps 45-55 degrees. I dive in a Whites Fusion Dry Suit. Will the inferno keep me warm enough as an undergarment? Also, how about as a warm water wetsuit? Is it similar to the Sharkskin, providing 2.5 to 3mm of exposure protection or is it just a warm skin? Hoping to have 1 multi functional undergarment/tropical wetsuit. THX!

Neck is no issue, it fills in nicely. THe wrists, you can bunch it up, or more preferably use drygloves That system then acts as a wrist warmer and allows air to travel to the dry gloves

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

I'm very interested in the Inferno. I dive cold water in the NW, USA- temps 45-55 degrees. I dive in a Whites Fusion Dry Suit. Will the inferno keep me warm enough as an undergarment? Also, how about as a warm water wetsuit? Is it similar to the Sharkskin, providing 2.5 to 3mm of exposure protection or is it just a warm skin? Hoping to have 1 multi functional undergarment/tropical wetsuit. THX!

Probably not...it would be a good layer with another undergarment though. The Fusion doesn't give any warmth from the drysuit...the Inferno by itself is PERFECT with a neoprene drysuit because that thickness of the suit provides warmth.

As a warm water wetsuit, it's PERFECT!! I think it might be a perfect layer choice for you...great for travel diving, and pair it with a vest or Arctic top for the colder drysuit stuff and it should be perfect. It all depends on your tolerance to cold though

 

[jbb]

It all depends on your metabolism really. I am 6 ft and 210 lbs. I apparently have a slow metabolism at least when I am immersed in water and it is worse if you are a very slow moving UW photographer. I use a 5mm in tropics. So i have used synthetic underwear, wool underwear, 4th element and my USIA fleece undergarment with my neoprene Apollo dry suit and various combinations of these making it difficult to zip the suit shut at times. I think the USIA has been the best at slowing down the relentless creeping cold factor. I recently purchased a used Santi Thinsulate undergarment to see if that will be a better combination. I even tried Argon but only tech divers really need that. Argon does not provide enough of an advantage over regular air to make it worth the investment. I could have better spent the money on something that could provide some heat (electric vest or suit) for those cold water dives, not that it is a cure all but it might make a second dive a bit more comfortable. I would also recommend the thickest hood you can find. I have a 12mm Otterbay, custom made (you give her your measurements) by a nice lady in Oregon. I can say this was significant improvement. I have heard folks exclaim about how dry gloves will keep your hands warmer and add greater dexterity underwater but I have yet to try them. I wish you success. You may be warm enough with some simple thermal underwear with your suit or some added fleece when it gets colder.

 

[FinnMom]

A super warm undersuit is the Weezle Extreeme plus. It looks like a human-shaped down sleeping bag. It's bulky out of the water, but actually crushes down more and more evenly underwater than any other suit I have used. It also wicks moisture exceptionally well: if I dress in the heat before diving a really cold spot in summer (therefore the winter weight undersuit), the sweat will chill me at least slightly with other suits, but not the weezle. Also many slight suit leaks are noticed only by the moisure on the surface of my Weezle after a dive, during the dive I never noticed.

It's a bit excessive with a neophrene (i.e. warm) drysuit, but my easily-chilled daughter uses that kind of pair and is hugely happier because of it, even under the ice. Basically with the Weezle Extreeme Plus the cold will always be problem for your head and esp. hands, not your torso.