mostlyirish
Contributor
Heading to West Palm / Jupiter May 10-17. What water temp can I expect? I'm trying to determine if my 3 mil wetsuit will be enough or do I need to invest in a 5 mil. Any opinions welcome.
Jupiter water temp in May
- Thread starter mostlyirish
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caruso
Banned
I'll be diving in West Palm and Jupiter in mid-April and I don't plan on using anything other than a 3mm.
Some people are less cold tolerant than others.
Some people are less cold tolerant than others.
OP
mostlyirish
Contributor
Thanks for the input. Please check back in after your dives to let me know how it went.
PoolsOpen
Contributor
I just dove Jupiter last week. 3mm with lavacore hood was perfect. Bottom temp was 75 -77 F. It will be warmer in May.
caruso
Banned
Was anyone diving a shorty? One of my group has a shorty wondering how he'll do with it.
PoolsOpen
Contributor
No shorties on this trip. In the summer shorty is fine because its so hot topside between the dives. We're still experiencing some wind with cool air (by Florida standards lol) so it was in the high 70's with some cloud cover during the SI. I did not even pull the top off between dives and it felt perfect.
johndiver999
Contributor
3 should be good, later in the year maybe July or
August, more likely to possibly need a 5 during upwelling. Bring a hood in may just in case
Johnoly
Contributor
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For the 2nd week of May the best advice I can offer is to.............GO DEEP !!
If you are comfortable into the 3 digits,,,you will not be disappointed. The bull sharks, Lemons and dozens of dolphins will be traversing right thru our waters and headed north. Make sure your strobes and camera is in the 'Fully On - ready to Snap' position before you even splash because the action happens very quickly.
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I would expect the water temp in April to be mid to mid-high 70s and in May to be high 70s, maybe even 80 approaching June. Best way to tell is to jump in. I have a 7, 5, and 3 mm full suit and a hooded vest and mix and match all of them every year. I take the hooded vest with me every trip, just in case.
These questions are tough because everyone has a different cold tolerance. I've been on charters with divers in a swimsuit with a rashguard and I was in a 5mm fullsuit with a hooded vest. We were both comfortable. Everyone is different!
Several points to consider. These are typically deep drift dives (70-100') so you'll have some suit compression and you won't be working hard to generate heat (except when trying to stay in place to see something cool!). Plus it's not uncommon to be in the water for 60 minutes or more on each dive. Also the surface conditions matter a great deal. If it's warm on the surface (which it should be in May), you have time to recover thermally for the second dive. If it's chilly or windy on the surface, that second dive can be miserable as you've not been able to replenish your body heat.
With all of that said, come May the majority of divers are in 3mm or 5mm fullsuits. You don't see many shorties or swim trunks/rash guards until the water hits the low to mid 80s. For smaller folks like myself, you'll never see me in a shorty let alone a swimsuit and rash guard!! I don't break out my 3mm until around 85F and then only if diving shallow.
Several points to consider. These are typically deep drift dives (70-100') so you'll have some suit compression and you won't be working hard to generate heat (except when trying to stay in place to see something cool!). Plus it's not uncommon to be in the water for 60 minutes or more on each dive. Also the surface conditions matter a great deal. If it's warm on the surface (which it should be in May), you have time to recover thermally for the second dive. If it's chilly or windy on the surface, that second dive can be miserable as you've not been able to replenish your body heat.
With all of that said, come May the majority of divers are in 3mm or 5mm fullsuits. You don't see many shorties or swim trunks/rash guards until the water hits the low to mid 80s. For smaller folks like myself, you'll never see me in a shorty let alone a swimsuit and rash guard!! I don't break out my 3mm until around 85F and then only if diving shallow.
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