How long did it take you to become comfortable in a drysuit?

[Rusty Roo]

Morning / evening all,

I've done around 250 dives in a wetsuit and feel at one with the sea....

so i can dive around my amazing, but cold shores in the UK i've invested heavily in a drysuit. i've done 6 dives in my drysuit and simply, i just don't trust my drysuit.

i have found with my weighting i don't need to use my wing and i only just take the pinch off the suit and i'm fine.

i find drysuit diving slightly more restrictive than wetsuit diving, such as without thinking, tilting to the left to look and dumping air out of the suit. is this the reality of drysuit diving, it simply is more restrictive in body movements or do some of you guys not notice?

 

[sheeper]

a drysuit is .......different. it fits and functions differently so yes....it takes some getting used to and adjusting how you dive.
a properly fitting drysuit should not be overly restrictive. I have a better range of motion in my drysuit than in a 5mm or 7mm wetsuit.

it took me a couple of hours in the pool and about 3 dives to get used to my drysuit.

 

[jbomb001]

I did my ow. Dry so I didn't know any different.

Sent from my galaxy S5 Active.

 

[Xta]

I would say it took me about 5 dives to feel like I knew what I was doing, but I didn't feel totally great about it until I went on a dive trip and I dove in it everyday for a week.

 

[Yoyoguy]

Morning / evening all,

I've done around 250 dives in a wetsuit and feel at one with the sea....

so i can dive around my amazing, but cold shores in the UK i've invested heavily in a drysuit. i've done 6 dives in my drysuit and simply, i just don't trust my drysuit.

i have found with my weighting i don't need to use my wing and i only just take the pinch off the suit and i'm fine.

i find drysuit diving slightly more restrictive than wetsuit diving, such as without thinking, tilting to the left to look and dumping air out of the suit. is this the reality of drysuit diving, it simply is more restrictive in body movements or do some of you guys not notice?

I agree with you. I am new to diving dry (about 8 dives dry so far) and although im getting used to the buoyancy aspect of it, I do find it a bit more restrictive. A couple things I have found help. By adding 2 extra pounds weight I am able to add a little more air to the drysuit giving me a bit more ease of movement AND an extra layer of bubble for warmth. You can also close the shoulder vent (once you are hovering at the level you want to be at), this will allow you to tilt a bit without losing air out the vent, however, you must either remember to open the vent back up OR get used to manual venting and always leave it closed. There is not much you can do as far as going into a head down position with your feet up without the bubble inside the suit going to your feet. This will always be different than diving wet.

 

[RJP]

Morning / evening all,

I've done around 250 dives in a wetsuit and feel at one with the sea....

so i can dive around my amazing, but cold shores in the UK i've invested heavily in a drysuit. i've done 6 dives in my drysuit and simply, i just don't trust my drysuit.

i have found with my weighting i don't need to use my wing and i only just take the pinch off the suit and i'm fine.

i find drysuit diving slightly more restrictive than wetsuit diving, such as without thinking, tilting to the left to look and dumping air out of the suit. is this the reality of drysuit diving, it simply is more restrictive in body movements or do some of you guys not notice?

A.) Have you taken a drysuit class?
B.) Does your drysuit fit well?

Sounds like you might be a touch underweighted; if you've still got some squeeze going you will be more restricted.

I am as flexible in either drysuit I own as I am in a wetsuit.

 

[g2]

Having your weight and trim correct, and a drysuit that fits right, will make all the difference.

I started in a drysuit that didn't fit and poor trim, and I never could get the hang of it.

Once I had my own, good-fitting drysuit, and the correct weighting, suddenly it all came together... Just a few dives and voilà, like magic.

 

[TSandM]

I wouldn't say that diving a dry suit is necessarily more restrictive, per se, but it will always require a bit more awareness and forethought than a wetsuit. You CAN assume any position in a dry suit, but you have to be aware of the dynamics of doing so, and make any needed adjustments ahead of time.

If you feel your ability to move is restricted, then you may be diving underweighted and have the suit too squeezed. I think some people are daunted by the amount of weight required to dive dry, and don't wear enough to allow inflation of the suit to where it is comfortable and they are mobile.

 

[Storker]

I did my ow. Dry so I didn't know any different.

Same for me. I was comfortable in DS at the same time I was comfortable under water.

It took me 5-10 dives to get used to my new suit when I switched from snug neoprene to somewhat more baggy trilam, though.



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[FinnMom]

I went dry after maybe 100 dives and good CMAS** skills. At the time it felt like I spent a ridiculous amount of time getting back to that level in a drysuit. After 15-18 dives over 7 months (Nov-May, so it was the slow season) I still had a floaty feet problem, still hadn't regained the abilirty to stay horizontal and hold a depth and was beginning to think I was truely hopeless. Pretty soon after that I started to get back in control. It probably took 30 dives to feel like the whole drysuit issue was throughly and permanently in the past.
Somwhat because of this I put my daughter in a drysuit from day one she didn't seem to be the least bit bothered by it. These last couple years all or nearly all students are also in drysuits from open water dive #1 and it seems to cause them no additional difficulties at all. We do spend baybe an extra 1-2 hours in the pool. trying the suit and learning to roll to get un-inverted.
So it's a learning process that takes some time from many wetsuit divers. If you have the opportunity to just start as a dry diver, I strongly recommend that route. If not, I recommend patience and a side order of self-deprevating humor.