How Dry is Dry?

[coreypenrose]

Drysuits are only a theory. I use a top of the line DUI TLS350. With around 200 dives on it now, I have been completely dry on maybe a dozen dives. I just replaced the neck and wrist seals last month and still get out of the suit a little damp.

Is the dampness from sweating or leaks? I've had one leak in my FLX50/50.

 

[Kamala]

While we're at it... does anyone know a shop in the Keys (I know this is extremely unlikely) that rents drysuits? Anyone want to lend me a big man drysuit for this happy occasion?

 

[MB]

KL is often quite warm, even in winter. Dry might be semi-dry, and there's a good chance of copious sweating. Combined with salt hair, the need to pee, and (depending on the time of year) stings and such, these complications could distract from the event.

Sounds sorta neat, but building the event around this is complicated. Requires good sea conditions, even if doing this in the bay. You'll have a lot of important stuff that's not in your control. Your other half might not appreciate this if things go south (which is always possible with water activities AND ceremonies).

The dive aspect adds a LOT of attention to gear and stuff. While you'll both want to focus on the wedding and each other, you'll need to deal with gear, a rented drysuit, etcetcetc. Also, you ought to get some serious experience diving dry before you build a big event around that. Sounds like the potential hassle factor is increasing.

My wife and I love to dive, and most of the folks who came to the wedding were divers. We organized a (dry) beach wedding (even THAT was complicated by a tropical storm that started brewing a few days before the wedding). After the wedding, we went to local fish house for the reception. A few hours later, we gathered at a boat, and shared a great shallow night dive with guests. Non-divers came along on the boat so they could share the event with us on the way to the site and back. We held off on the toasts until after the dive. That ended up being a too cool day that incorporated dry and UW activities into the wedding, without adding too much complexity to the whole event. Our fallback was that if the conditions went south, we'd still have a good day and good memories. They didn't - we did.

Good luck!
MB

 

[MaxBottomtime]

Is the dampness from sweating or leaks? I've had one leak in my FLX50/50.

Likely both. I sent the suit back to DUI twice and they couldnt find a leak with four leak tests. Finally, I ran my backup light along the inner surface of the left leg (where I was always getting wet) and found four pin holes. I patched them with Aquaseal and stopped that leak. The only "leak" I have now is from the dump valve on my left forearm. The next time the suit is in the shop I'll replace the valve.

 

[android]

What about the drysuit Arnold used in True Lies where he wore a tuxedo underneath?
Of course he was diving under ice, so maybe he wasn't sweating much....

 

[Kamala]

This is looking more and more like a less good idea . Looks like the best options would be to lose enough weight to not look too gross in a shorty, wear a quick dry bathing suit, and towel off before putting my wedding clothes on in front of the guests or maybe a waverunner entrance instead of scuba. Thanks for everyone's 2 psi!

 

[Rick Inman]

Although the exterior lining of my undies are damp, my body (or anything I put on under the undies) is normally dry due to the wicking proprieties of the underwear. So, in theory, you could put some good underwear on OVER the wedding clothes and they would come out dry.
As to wrinkles, you'd have to contact James Bond to see how he kept his tux so perfect...

 

[String]

Not convinced that'll work - you arent meant to wear anything under the undersuit. The way i see it is you'll sweat, the bottom layer of clothes will absorb most of it and the undersuit will only wick some of it, result is you are wet.

 

[Kamala]

The hassle level certainly looks like it'll be out of hand. Certainly with already lugging down tropical set-ups for Key Largo and then for the honeymoon on Andros then adding the drysuit and possibly another octo at a minimum. Looks like I'll have to get into a shorty, go with the waverunner, or walk in like a normal person, but who the hell wants to be normal.

 

[Rick Inman]

Not convinced that'll work - you arent meant to wear anything under the undersuit. The way i see it is you'll sweat, the bottom layer of clothes will absorb most of it and the undersuit will only wick some of it, result is you are wet.

Right, of course. I didn't think it through.