How much extra neoprene for repetitive dives on liveaboard?

[Esprise Me]

I guess no one has a rule of thumb like I imagined, where if X amount of exposure protection is your minimum for a given temperature on a single dive, you need X + Y for multiple dives. As far as warming up in between dives, I have a Surf Fur I love (and which I bought on the sage advice of you fine folks), but was thinking of getting a thinner, windbreaker-type boat coat for this trip. Is it worth bringing the Surf Fur?

 

[Neilwood]

I guess no one has a rule of thumb like I imagined, where if X amount of exposure protection is your minimum for a given temperature on a single dive, you need X + Y for multiple dives. As far as warming up in between dives, I have a Surf Fur I love (and which I bought on the sage advice of you fine folks), but was thinking of getting a thinner, windbreaker-type boat coat for this trip. Is it worth bringing the Surf Fur?

As you have noted, there is no rule of thumb - you just have to go by experience which you will learn. What works for someone else might not work for you.

As a few have noted there are a few tips to think about:
1) get your wet gear off between dives if at all possible and hang it to maximise how dry it will be before your next dive
2) stay warm between dives. Wearing a hoody or a light windproof jacket will help a lot if on deck
3) Go for a warm shower between dives.
4) Work out what works for you and don't worry about what others do - some people will spend all the time in board shorts/ thin Tshirt even during the evenings. Personally I prefer a little more esp if there is a breeze.
5 ) Choose your wetsuit wisely. A good fitting 3mm will be more effective than a poorly fitting 5mm but a good fitting 5mm will be so much better than any 3mm.

 

[AdivingBel]

I take what I think I'll need for an individual dive given the location and season. Could be anything from a lycra to a 5 mm, but I also toss in my trusty 3 mm hooded vest to wear if I start to feel chilled on repetitive dives. Many times I'll only wear it on a couple of dives, but it's lightweight, easy to pack, and I'm glad I have it when I need it. YMMV

 

[Esprise Me]

For anyone who stumbles across this thread in the future wondering about the same thing: I ended up bringing the 7mm, and it was the right decision for me. It certainly wasn't too much; at no point did I feel overly warm, and toward the end of the week I actually started feeling just a little chilly on the last few dives of the day. (Not enough to bother with my hood, which I hate but brought just in case, or my Sharkskin, which I also brought, but enough to feel glad I didn't go out and buy a thinner wetsuit just for this trip.) There were 27 dives available: 5 dives on 5 days plus 2 on the morning of the last day. Many people were complaining about the cold by day 3; several folks skipped at least a few dives for that reason. I only skipped the night dive on the third day, due to an upset stomach.

I also brought my big Surf Fur coat, which was especially nice after the night dives, when the air was relatively chilly, and it really wasn't too much trouble because I just carried/wore it as my jacket on the plane. (I wore the Sharkskin jacket on the plane too; I figured if my checked bag with my wetsuit didn't make it I'd definitely want that.) I hadn't counted on the AC being cranked up so high in the indoor spaces on the boat, and there being so much wind in all the outdoor spaces; I'm definitely glad I had something so warm. We also had some slightly cooler and cloudy weather the last few days, when everyone's core temperature was already depleted, and a couple people were very interested in my great big fuzzy boat coat. I don't think I'll ever do a dive trip without it now.

So my personal answer to my original question, I guess, is that for LOB diving, I need at least twice the neoprene I would need for one or two dives at the same temperature, and I need almost as much thermal protection for LOB diving in 80-degree water as I need for a single day of up to 3 dives in 60-degree water. YMMV.

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

Wish more people would come back and close off a thread!

 

[nquinn]

I'm curious if anyone else on here finds liveaboards to be just... too much diving. I did my first one when relatively new (dives 6-19 or so).

5 dives a day was just SO much, and I hated getting up for 6am dives. By the third day getting off the boat I was totally exhausted and needed to sleep instantly. Not sure how much of that was from not enough sleep (though I went to bed early) vs. constant diving/maybe dcs type issues vs. plain out exhaustion. (At the time I was 36 or so and reasonably fit).

 

[chillyinCanada]

I'm curious if anyone else on here finds liveaboards to me just... too much diving. I did my first one when relatively new (dives 6-19 or so).

5 dives a day was just SO much, and I hated getting up for 6am dives. By the third day getting off the boat I was totally exhausted and needed to sleep instantly. Not sure how much of that was from not enough sleep (though I went to bed early) vs. constant diving/maybe dcs type issues vs. plain out exhaustion. (At the time I was 36 or so and reasonably fit).

5 dives a day are a bit much for me nowadays but I used to do 4 regularly. That said, the 6 a.m. dives are a real pain, especially when one doesn't see the hammerhead or anything else.

How do you ascend from your dives? Perhaps you come up a bit too fast. Any trouble holding your stop?

 

[MrBigfins]

There are various Lycra socks out there. I have the ones from XS Scuba. I found it more comfortable to turn them inside out so the seam is on the outside.

I got the xs scuba ones as well, since they aren't really shaped like socks you can turn them so the seam is on the side

 

[nquinn]

5 dives a day are a bit much for me nowadays but I used to do 4 regularly. That said, the 6 a.m. dives are a real pain, especially when one doesn't see the hammerhead or anything else.

How do you ascend from your dives? Perhaps you come up a bit too fast. Any trouble holding your stop?

I definitely had trouble holding my safety stop a few times on that trip. Even today (with 30+ dives) when I'm wearing 5mm or thicker wetsuits I find it can be tough for me at the end of the dive. When I add more weight though I'm usually so heavy at the bottom I'm constantly hitting my inflator. Have experimented with around 10-12lbs.

With 3mm/shorty suits though I found that with 6lbs I had zero problems holding my stops. Seems the thicker neoprene just makes stuff a lot harder for me in that 15' range where I feel like I'm constantly being yanked up.

 

[AdivingBel]

I'm curious if anyone else on here finds liveaboards to be just... too much diving.

Ummm...you don't HAVE to do ALL the dives. For me liveaboards are about diving as much as I want; convienence (10 steps from everything); comradery/getting to know folks in a unique environment; ease of diving sites that would otherwise require multiple, long boat rides if done land based if even possible; and being at sea with all the beauty that goes with it (including the night sky). There's more to it than being an "iron diver." All IMHO, YMMV.