Keeping warm between dives

[SteveAD]

I agree with all of the above, add air to "fluff" the suit, hat, gloves, jacket, dry gloves if practical. If dry hood and gloves are not practical, try taking a hint from the hardcore wetsuit crowd. bring along a substantial supply of warm water to pour on your head and hands (while staying all zippped up in the drysuit of course), then towel the head and hands before putting on hat and gloves.

 

[KazooDiver]

I use a Boat Coat by Dive Gear USA you can find a link to it here. Nylon outer shell with a fleece inner liner makes it nice and warm...plus it is knee length so your thighs stay warm also!!

 

[cummings66]

Get dry gloves if a new suit (mine's a Viking Xtreme) isn't an option, dry gloves are WELL worth the cost. Mine increased my comfort level so much I didn't even get cold on the SI when I skipped the hat and my hair was frozen into icicles.
Ber :lilbunny:

What do you mean it's not an option, you can add drygloves to the Viking Extreme, mine has them on it as does my Viking Sport.

I'd suggest the classic ring system as it's more versatile.

For what it's worth, I get the hood off and add air to the suit. It works fine. Do not leave the squeeze on or you'll get cold. If my head is wet I'll towel it off, short hair dries very fast no matter what the temp.

 

[S. starfish]

I once had a student teach me "the lumber jack dance". I did actually warm me up, don't remember how it goes though, it was actually quite tricky. Well, for white guys like myself at any rate.

 

[tstormdiver]

Thank you all for some very good suggestions. I want to keep diving through the winter, but I'm arather big coward of the cold:blinking: . A new dry suit really isn't an option, as the one I have is only about a month old and was quite an investment. I will certainly look at dry gloves. My suit really isn't designed for them, but I know that there are some that would still work. During my dry suit class I had a very difficult time getting my gear set up for the second dive because I needed my bare hands for dexterity & they got so cold I couldn't feel what I was doing. It was a bit of a challenge getting ready. I have recently gotten a heavy jumpsuit undergarment to wear underneath that I believe will also hopefully add to my comfort, I just haven't gotten a chance to try it out yet. I'm still waiting for my other gear to return from it's annual inspection.:shakehead

 

[Dive-aholic]

These are the gloves I use. They do leak a little, but even in 50 degree water my hands are usually sweating in these things. I also use a dry hood. It doesn't keep my head dry, but it keeps it warm. I don't take it off until I have my knit cap in hand, especially if it's windy out. And I do inflate my dry suit as soon as I hit the surface.

 

[scubawally]

I dive in eastern Canada and the water and air temperatures cannot possibly get any colder than we get here in the winter. So here are some tips to keep warm durring the surface interval.

1. If you are wearing a dry suit keep it on, if you are wearing a wet suit take it off and towel yourselk dry.

2. find a place that is sheltered from the wind, inside a vehicle works very well. You can also turn on the heat if you so desire.

3. take off your diving gloves and hood, dry your hands and head. Then put on a pair of linned gloves and a wool hat

4. dring warm fluids, preferably without cafine. As this will dehydrate you and we all know what that can cause.

5. drink small amounts for warm freash water this is not so much to help with the temperature but rather increase your level of hydration and therfore decrease the chance of getting DCS. Because DCS is more likely when you are diving in cold water.

6.if you get really cold in the water as well you can take a couple of small chemical handwarmers and use duct take to secure them to places such as your stomach and back


I hope this helps you guys as diving in cold water can be very rewarding but it is chalenging as well.

 

[Diving Doc]

If you are getting really really cold, you can buy a heated body vest from a company called Typhoon. The 'Icebreaker' is an electrically heated vest powered by battery that gives you, I think, two hours of heating. if you are interested, have a look at this:
http://www.typhoon-int.co.uk/pages/diving/products/category=31

 

[Tigerman]

The best way to keep hot is to wear wool.
Use wool as the layer closest to your body and use woolen gloves and hood when not in the water. Its important that the hood covers your ears properly.
A little something many people dont consider when dressing; Put your woolen shirt OUTSIDE of the woolen leggings. Heat rises, so you want the shirt to catch as much as possible of the heat from below, which is best achieved by having the shirt hanging outside of the pants..

 

[LiteHedded]

i bought a boat coat
seems toasty warm but with the weather lately I haven't had a chance to use it