Hood and mask fit or interference?

[PanamaMike]

How is a hood supposed to fit with respect to the
why it meets the skirt of the mask? That is, is the
hood supposed to overlap the mask skirt or is one
supposed to trim the hood such that it just meets or
eases back from where the skirt of the mask seals
against the face?

--Mike

 

[dlndavid]

Hi Mike and welcome to ScubaBoard.
I had the same question when I started diving cold water with a hood. Most put the mask on over the hood, outline where the mask/hood overlap is, then trim the hood back to not overlap mask. It makes it much easier to always get a seal without having to fuss over it. And if the hood fills with air, poke some holes in the top. Conehead look isn't cool. :mrcool:
David

 

[spectrum]

The hood seal wants to slightly overlap the mask skirt to keep cold water off of your face. If the seal is too big and not trimmed the hood will not conform well to your head and it will exert uncomfortable forces on your mask. Here is a post about how I have trimmed mine:
http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=1089266&postcount=6

Pete

 

[Scuba Jerm]

Ditto to what David said, I don't like having the hood cover the mask seal at all; nothing worse than getting it all mixed up underwater!

 

[spectrum]

Ditto to what David said, I don't like having the hood cover the mask seal at all; nothing worse than getting it all mixed up underwater!

What sort of water temps are you guys diving in without overlap, which implies a gap since nothing stays that precise?

I dive in sub-40 waters frequently and went straight to overlap because it seemed like common sense to me. I admit that getting the overlap right is a bit of a trick, especially with gloves underwater. Is it overkill or are you in warmer water where the exposure isn't as painfull?

Pete

 

[Scubee]

As a cold water diver I prefer my hood to overlap the mask slightly, to keep cold water off my face, as spectrum said, but also because I find that I hardly ever get water in the mask that way (provided hair is out the way ). I suggest you try to dive with your hood before trimming it, and then trim bit by bit, until it feels comfortable.

 

[dlndavid]

I prefer the mask/hood clearance to overlap, as with big ol' thick gloves on it makes it easier to get mask on without any fuss and no leaks. And yes the cold water on the face is always a shock, at first.

 

[spectrum]

I prefer the mask/hood clearance to overlap, as with big ol' thick gloves on it makes it easier to get mask on without any fuss and no leaks. And yes the cold water on the face is always a shock, at first.

Would you please define "cold" in your waters? Without that context none of this is of much value to the OP.

Pete

 

[cummings66]

When I dive with a normal mask and hood in cold waters, for me that's below 40 degree's, I prefer the slight overlap so I don't have exposed skin.

However, I've got buddies that define cold water as anything less than 80 so if you think it's cold enough to wear a hood then I think it's cold enough to have some overlap and thus no exposed skin to get cold.

 

[dlndavid]

How cold does it have to be to be uncomfortable would vary from person to person.
I've seen plenty of people wear hoods in 70-80 F water.
Monterey water temps range from about 48-58 F cold.