I dive in a very wide range of temperatures from the Red Sea to somewhere where Antarctica is just over the horizon, and it is not just temperature but also different hang times doing deco in blue water
I think purchasing a heated BZ400 is a silly idea. Worthless after a couple washes and wildly expensive given other options on the market.
See pdf here, admittedly I haven’t updated it in two years and my opinions of Santi quality have fallen off a cliff.
Post 3 in thread 'Bottoms of feet cold (drysuit, 39F / 3.9C water)'
I'm trying to dial in my exposure protection for winter Lake Tahoe diving. It gets down to (and is currently) 39F, pretty much from the surface on down. I've taken a number of steps to boost my thermal protection and have successfully done 90 minute dives at this temp without getting too chilly...
scubaboard.com
In terms of heated socks and gloves, running wires through the undergarments is a little obnoxious when gearing up, but Gerbing (as above), and SmartTex (out of Poland, run by a guy named Jerzy) offer options. Another one that’s recently popped up on my radar is this:
Redundant electrically heated 400g/m² undergarment which offers either single or redundant heat (requires two E/O into your suit) for HALF the cost of the Santi. Still thinsulate, but can buy almost two made to measure vs one Santi (using €, even sillier in $). 400€ vs 750€ ish.
With the diversity in your diving climates, I’d stick with layerable separates, a la:
Capilene Air baselayer
FE Xerotherm
FE Halo AR or Weezle Extreme or Rofos 400
Lola or Gerbing or LM etc heated vest
NEO 8mm hood, NEO 10mm hood
Would leave you “exposed” to intermediate length dives in the 22C range in which an FE Arctic or similar would probably add value.
The heated gloves and socks take the edge off, but I don’t decide to put them on for dives less than 120min in water below 8°C and I view it as a symptom of a cold core.
A last option would be a constant output heat battery like an UWLD or (courtesy of a friend) having a 4-cell pack made such that as the battery draws down, you can move the heat from 40% to higher and maintain constant heat output using a Pitkin controller.
GL
