Have to kick to decend from surface but very negative on the bottom

[berndo]

Sounds like you're doing fine and got the right amount of weight. Definitely no need to cross your legs at any point or emptying the bcd and exhale in a certain order.

 

[EmotionalSupportTrevally]

When I got my new W7 7mm neopren I had trouble going under at all.

It was just possible with a lot of extra weight, going facedown and kicking. Every few meters I had to stop, get upright so I could equalize and than go head down again kicking.
At about 10m it was all better and I could descent normally so it was all due to the buoyancy of the 7mm.

I figured out that I had to flood my 7mm wetsuit a bit at the surface. I struggled to descend, but could easily hold a safety stop at the end of the dive. For me, air seems to mostly be trapped in the ankles. I have skinny ankles, and the bootie tops and wetsuit legs would seal a bunch of air in. It will eventually work itself out, but needs some help at the start of the dive.

 

[Chavodel8en]

We probably cant tell if you're weighted correctly over the web.

But I will say that the process you describe is exactly what I do with my 8mm wetsuit in Monterey/Carmel ocean waters. I get impatient with "normal descent" so I duck dive, and once I get to intermediate depth, I start pumping air back into my wing or else I'll crash into the bottom.

As mentioned already, we lose alot of buoyancy from thick wetsuits compressing at depth.

Note that steinbil describes a good way of checking your weighting - at the end of your dive once you've breathed down your tank

 

[Belzelbub]

Hi,
During my last dive, I found myself have to kick in order to decend in the first couple of feets and once I passed some certain depth, I started to decend pretty quickly.
On the surface, I tried to empty my lungs and still could not decend without kicking.
On the buttom, I had to pump a lot air into my BC to keep neutral.
Am I underweighted or overweighted?

What happened next? As you saw in some replies, the buoyancy of your wetsuit is fighting you. I suspect you aren't overweighted, at least not significantly so. Can't really tell from this if you are underweighted.

Specifically, what happened at the end of the dive during your safety stop? If you were able to hold your stop with a nearly empty tank, then probably not underweighted. Those bubbles embedded in the wetsuit will grow again, so have more buoyancy than they do at depth. If you were able to hold this stop with little or no air in your BC, then your weighting sounds pretty much spot on.

What happened at the end of the dive is a lot more telling from a weighting perspective.

 

[rick00001967]

I always found it helped when diving wet, to flood the suit before putting all my gear on.
Works great in warm water. Not so great in cold water. Brrrr Lol

 

[SlugLife]

Hi,
During my last dive, I found myself have to kick in order to decend in the first couple of feets and once I passed some certain depth, I started to decend pretty quickly.
On the surface, I tried to empty my lungs and still could not decend without kicking.
On the buttom, I had to pump a lot air into my BC to keep neutral.
Am I underweighted or overweighted?

You likely have "air trapping" of some kind.

1. BCD: Essentially, when you dump air from your BCD at the surface, it's not emptying enough. This could be related to a variety of things, such as the shape, or type (brand/model/etc) of BCD-bladder, the size of bladder, whether there are bungies or other restrictions, or even potentially something on the user-end. I had a problem with this myself, when I was using an oversized BCD wing, intended for doubles (2 scuba tanks). Smaller wings are easier to dump air from.
2. Other Equipment: You could also have air-trapping in other gear as well, such as in your wetsuit, pockets, or other equipment.
3. Lungs: Beginner divers also frequently have bouyancy problems related to being nervous. Try to relax, dump air, and breathe out. Remember your lung is also a sort of "BCD" itself, and the more air in your lungs, the more you float.

I don't know your exact experience level, but you could try practicing in a safe environment, such as a place with no waves or current, and a gradual sloping shore. That way you have "all day" to figure it out, and aren't rushed, such as you might feel if you were on a dive-boat, with limited dive-time or people waiting for you. If you're inexperienced, ideally bring a dive-buddy with you. If you have difficulty finding one, try a local dive-park where other scuba-divers hang out.

As far as under-or-over-weighting, you don't sound under-weighted. You may be over-weighted a little. But I personally would not change your weighting until AFTER you figure out the above air-trapping issue.

 

[FreqFlier]

During my last dive, I found myself have to kick in order to decend in the first couple of feets and once I passed some certain depth, I started to decend pretty quickly.
On the surface, I tried to empty my lungs and still could not decend without kicking.
On the buttom, I had to pump a lot air into my BC to keep neutral.
Am I underweighted or overweighted?

Are you saying everything was just fine before your last dive?
Otherwise:
Undersized BCD wing?
Trapped air?
Cheap/bad quality 5mm wetsuit? (compressed substantially? how deep did you go?)

 

[Litefoot]

I always found it helped when diving wet, to flood the suit before putting all my gear on.
Works great in warm water. Not so great in cold water. Brrrr Lol

I take a milk jug filled with hot tap water. I then have my buddy pour it inside the front and back of my wet suit until it runs down my legs. It's a nice pre-charge before diving in.

 

[jellycatsdad]

Proper decent!


Usually people are taught "Exhale, empty bcd, decend" without being told that order is important!


1. INHALE - Hold your breath (Yes, you are on the surface, completely safe)


2. Empty drysuit while holding your breath (If applicable)


3. Empty BCD while holding your breath (You will still be floating... )


4. Cross your legs (You might be inadvertantly be swimming to keep balance...)


5. Exhale while leaning a little bit forward


The result of this will be that you are 3m+ below and horizontal before you feel the urge to breathe, and hence, you will be able to stay under when you inhale instead of popping to the surface again.


This gave me the calm that I needed to start my dive properly. No stress. No fuzz. Properly weighted!


ORDER is relevant!

Someone also suggested crossing my legs, and that worked. I’ve been having frustrations trying to start my descent - last dive was with AL80s. This next dive, I’m trying out a BP/W and taking a slow exhale.

 

[Imla]

Someone also suggested crossing my legs, and that worked. I’ve been having frustrations trying to start my descent - last dive was with AL80s. This next dive, I’m trying out a BP/W and taking a slow exhale.

No need to do a slow exhale.
Inhale. Empty bcd while holding your breath. Then do a quick exhale with a following holding empty breath until you reach 2-3 meters. Then calmly inhale.