How to make 5 mil wetsuit warmer

[BRT]

Hopefully I am posting this in the right place. New to scubaboard. I am a novice, vacation diver who gets cold easily. I have a 5 mil Henderson wetsuit with 3 mil booties and a cap that kept me warm in Costa Rica and Hawaii but diving Cozumel in the winter it just wasn't enough. I wasn't shivering but was uncomfortable by the end of the first dive and for most of the second. I also have a 1 mil wetsuit that I bought for snorkeling in Hawaii (mistake because it wasn't enough).

What can I do to make diving in the 5 mil warmer? I am not an avid diver, so I don't know all the options very well. I had a claustrophobia freak out at the dive shop trying on a hooded vest do I don't see that as an option. Death by neoprene is not the way to go Gloves have not been allowed the places I've dived.

Should I try to layer the 1 mil under the 5 mil and would that help much anyway? Get a 3 mil shorty? Hooded vest seems a common recommendation on this board but I don't see a way past my claustrophobia. The hood I borrowed from a friend was a pain with the tucking into the neck of the wetsuit and it wanted to let water in, which was not helpful.

Thanks!

Seems there was a method for turning a 3 mil into a 5 mil?????

 

[spectrum]

Starting with your existing 5mm suit, how does it fit. Do you see the seam stitching imprinted in your skin when you doff it? You want a hint of compression to exclude water volume and that is where the impressions come in. No stitching = too loose. More here. Solution, Twinkies are back or a new suit.

Next in line is dealing with your head..... A beanie is better than nothing but leaves alot on the table. What a hooded vest does nicely is to eliminate the neck opening as a source of water entry. It also covers the previously mention next / blood vessels and you head. As for claustrophobia, go try some out, cuts vary a lot, I tried 3 or 4 brands before settling on the Bare chicken vest I wear under my suits at times. The right vest should not bring the world in around you. Yes, you will be more heavily geared up but what may feel tight and tugging as you sweat in the dive shop will be a delightfully comfortable barrier between you and open water while you drive, get over it, try it, you'll like it.

Also there are some step-in vests with a zipper that runs from thigh to cheek. Those allow you to release the neck/ head until you splash and as soon as your mask is off.

Pete

 

[WhyMe]

Pete, thanks for describing a bit about how I can tell if the suit fits and Twinkies are not in my future. The suit leaves seam lines on my arms and legs for sure. I never noticed on my body. It does not fit super tight around my waist, just fitted, so as I move around swimming, the fabric is not always in contact with my back. I frequently have a gap in the waist of pants or shorts at the back when I try on clothes so it's clearly something about the way I'm built. A custom wetsuit is not in the budget at the moment but I can see the advantages.

I didn't think about a benefit of the step in zip up hood is unzipping it. A hooded vest is not something I would as easily don on an off during a SI. In looking at the step in shorty's, it looked like they are 5 or 7 mil. Would 5 mil on top of my 5 mil suit be too much on my core? I don't see them readily available in 3 mil. Would I still get the same size for putting it on top of my wetsuit as I would if I we're wearing it alone?

Jennifer

 

[spectrum]

Hi Jennifer,

Okay so it sounds like you have a decent fit.

As for adding the 5mm, look at it this way..... Where you are diving most divers do fine with some sort of 3mm set-up. You have a good fit and I assume it's a decent suit from some brand with a reputation. In spite of all this you are cold and that's not a happy or safe place to be so wear more and dive happy. If you decide to open the chin zip during the dive to cool down you will need to remove your mask to roll the hood back. Otherwise the opened hood catches air and gets real weird.

One other thing..... Are you a placid diver fining along with good trim or are you flapping, sculling and gyrating. While it may seem like the active diver would be generating more body heat that behavior pumps water through the suit costing thermal energy. The sedentary photographer is anther story.

Pete

 

[stuartv]

Wow. I just got back from diving Coz. I was totally comfortable in just a 3/2. Different people are different, but I have a suspicion suit fit and suit seals make an important difference. In shopping for my suit, I found many variations in the seals (or lack thereof) of different suits.

Anyway, another option is Lavacore to wear under your suit. It's neutrally buoyant, so it won't affect your weighting. And, depending on who you ask it adds warmth equivalent to having neoprene that is 2 - 3 mm thicker.

My LDS is Clearancing all their Lavacore gear, so I got a sleeveless full suit and a long sleeve hooded shirt for pretty cheap. I haven't dived the hooded shirt yet but it's way more comfortable to wear than any neoprene hood or hooded vest I've tried.

If you want to check into getting Lavacore, my LDS is:

http://www.coraledgeadventures.com

But, to get the Clearance pricing, you need to call the shop. The website still has "regular" prices.

 

[WhyMe]

My wetsuit is a 5 mil Henderson Thermoprene, back zip. 18 months old, used on 12 dives.

I have avid diving friends who love Lavacore so I'll look into that too.

If layering wetsuits, like putting the step in over the the 5 mil full suit, do you get the same size in the suit that will go on top as you would if you were wearing in alone?

 

[stuartv]

If layering wetsuits, like putting the step in over the the 5 mil full suit, do you get the same size in the suit that will go on top as you would if you were wearing in alone?

Personally, that is where I'd start, for sure. But, I would be prepared for the possibility of having to swap to a bigger size.

Keep in mind that you can get some plain, thick neoprene and cut yourself a spine pad and glue it into your suit yourself. That could really help fill in the area where you get a gap that lets water move around in your suit.

I originally intended to buy a hooded vest to use when my suit and Lavacore farmer john isn't enough. But, since I got the LS hooded shirt, I think that will add a pretty decent amount of warmth, though the hood part itself is still pretty thin. But, I plan to just get a plain hood to wear under the Lavacore hood for when I need that much extra.

 

[KeithG]

I feel good at first, no cold water tricking in. But once we are swimming around and I have my head looking up and ahead with my body horizontal, then move my arms that is when I start to feel the cold down my back a bit. Also if I curl forward like going into fetal position the I think I feel cold water down the back of my neck then too. I should have paid more attention while I was diving.

sounds like your suit really doesn't fit properly. you also noted in another post that it is loose in some places and this is very bad as it causes pumping which will force water through regardless of how good your arm, leg and neck seal is.

poor fit means the suit can not work properly and will not keep you warm. adding different / more layers will not fix the problem. very few people get a proper fit from off the rack wetsuits.

a properly fitted suit will have no spaces and no water exchange. they are very warm.

imho, a properly fitting wetsuit is the first piece of gear to invest your money on. if you are not comfortable (warm), then diving is not much fun. a single custom fit suit is likely cheaper than multiple off the rack pieces.

 

[tbone1004]

since you said the suit is a little loose in the torso you're going to want a traditional hooded vest instead of the step in style. It will close up the water pockets in your torso and mostly eliminate the water ingress at the neck.

 

[WhyMe]

I put the suit on again today to check the fit. I think the problem is coming from when I put my head back, which is how it's positioned when I am horizontal swimming, there is a bit of a buckle between my shoulders below the neck. It fits snug across the shoulders but I guess is too tall at the neck, if that makes sense. I can see how then moving my arms pumps water in. Not obvious when you are standing in it. The waist only gaps in the back when I twist my body and the zipper doesn't flex as much and pulls away from my back a bit. I do have seam marks on my torso in addition to my arms and legs.

Would something that goes over the current wetsuit solve this problem better than one that goes under?

I can can see how a custom fit suit is cheaper in the long run but when you are new to the sport, it's harder, at least for me, to jump in with special order items. Live and learn, plus learn from all of you