Life Expectancy of a Wetsuit?

[Twistinside]

I am wondering if anyone knows the shelf life of a wetsuit? I am a fairly new diver, and I have most of my own equipment, mostly new, except BC and reg -used but bought from LDS.
My next purchase will be a wetsuit...and here is my concern: if I buy a used wetsuit, owned buy a little old lady who only wore it on Sundays, only in freshwater and pools, etc...(it's amazing that all used equipment is in such "great" shape, and only used in "freshwater" and pools -as if chlorine couldn't possibly cause any damage to neoprene, makes you wonder why they are selling at all) how long can a wetsuit be expected to maintain it's original quality? I have heard from other divers that neoprene loses it's warmth giving qualities over time....how much time?
I know that I could buy a new wetsuit and be done with it, but if I could buy a good used suit I am okay with that for now.
The wetsuit in question is a 7mm XCEL, 2 piece, bought new in 2001. The suit has some minor creases and piling in the knees (not sure if that makes a difference), other than that, supposedly in great shape.
Even if this suit is not a good buy, I am still wondering about the shelf life...for future reference. Any help is appreciated! Thanks!

 

[spectrum]

I am wondering if anyone knows the shelf life of a wetsuit? I am a fairly new diver, and I have most of my own equipment, mostly new, except BC and reg -used but bought from LDS.
My next purchase will be a wetsuit...and here is my concern: if I buy a used wetsuit, owned buy a little old lady who only wore it on Sundays, only in freshwater and pools, etc...(it's amazing that all used equipment is in such "great" shape, and only used in "freshwater" and pools -as if chlorine couldn't possibly cause any damage to neoprene, makes you wonder why they are selling at all) how long can a wetsuit be expected to maintain it's original quality? I have heard from other divers that neoprene loses it's warmth giving qualities over time....how much time?
I know that I could buy a new wetsuit and be done with it, but if I could buy a good used suit I am okay with that for now.
The wetsuit in question is a 7mm XCEL, 2 piece, bought new in 2001. The suit has some minor creases and piling in the knees (not sure if that makes a difference), other than that, supposedly in great shape.
Even if this suit is not a good buy, I am still wondering about the shelf life...for future reference. Any help is appreciated! Thanks!

I think you have 3 things to look at.....

1. Wear and tear, you mention some pilling on the knees. Also included would be loose stitching and zipper condition. The should be pretty easy to evaluate.

2. Next is aging. Was it stored hanging or folded up in a balll? The creases you mention imply some sort of folding or stuffing for a period of time. Creases represent crushed gas pockets in the neoprene but if it's just creases, not chrushed patches the insulation loss is probably insignificant. As long as it's visually OK with you it's OK.

Aging would also include where it was stored, cool and dry or someplace hot and sunny or damp. Sunlight will break rubber down over time and dampness lets stuff grow. If it's real stiff of crisy forget it

3. Compression is next. Was it used for skindiving at and near the surface? If it belonged to a deep diving enthusiast then the gas cells in the rubber have taken a beating and may not be rebounding to their original insulating potential.

As for the poool use, some recent comments here were that a properly maintained pool is not of significant detriment to a neoprene wetsuit.

For the price of a new BARE at www.divetank.com it may not be worth the risk.

That's my 2 cents,
Pete

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Neoprene varies in terms of quality and specific characteristics. Some neoprene is a bit softer and stretchier while other neoprene may be more compression resistant. It is usually a trade off so you seldom get both qualities to a great degree in the same material.

If properly cared for (not tightly folded or exposed to sunlight) an unused or little used suit will age very well on the shelf or hanger. But in water use will take a toll on a wetsuit much quicker.

I usually get about 1 season out of a wet suit, but then I do a large percentage of my dives below 100 ft and I do about 130-160 dives per year. Structurally my wetsuits hold up well and would physically do another season or two easily. But they do get badly compressed and lose a fair amount of warmth as the season progresses. And by the end of one season, they have also lost much of their original flexibility and a new suit of the same model will feel noticeably more comfortable.

 

[SangP]

Hi DA Aquamaster,

Btw, thanks for your advice bout regulators, I really appreciate it.

1 suit every season! OMG, what suits do you normally buy and what type of neoprene are they made of!

I was worried about that happening and after some discussion with Stefano at Elios he recommended a medium or high density neoprene should I do some technical dives.

Twistinside, sorry for this hijack but I won't buy a 2nd hand wetsuit cus I never know what the previous owner did inside the suit and I really hate rashes LOL!

Secondly, a lot of cheaper wetsuits on the market use low density cheaper neoprene and they don't age/last well anyway, on use only in freshwater chlorine isn't friendly to neoprene so it really doesn't matter.

Lastly why are you looking for a 7mm wetsuit, anything more than 6mm and I rather get a drysuit.

Get a new wetsuit and you don't have to worry about rashes or having the suilt fall apart on you when you least expect it and 2001 is just too old for my comfort I would think that 3 years is bout the max for a often used suit.

SangP

 

[dbg40]

I agree, that suit sounds too old. Unless you can get it for 20 bucks I wouldent bother. As far as the life of a suit, I dive mostly 7MM(90%) and all things considered I can generally get 3to 4 years of pretty good use out a good quality neo suit. As with anything else,you get what you pay for, and alot of the life is in the way you care for your stuff pools and sun are killers.

 

[pilot fish]

What's the best way to store your suit ? I roll it up and store it in my travel dive bag, as I was told at LDS, to avoid creases in suit, or hang it in closet. How can one tell if your suit is not doing it's job anymore?

 

[Corigan]

Hang the suit in your closet on a nice thick wetsuit hanger. Best way to keep creases out and to avoid loosing thermal protection in the creases.

Matt

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I notice a lot of initial compression after 20-30 dives or so as I have to remove a fair amount of weight to maintain the same bouyancy. After that I do not really notice any direct change in the suit but rather just a feeling of being cold in a water temp where I would not normally be toward the end of the season.

Cold water in August here means surface temps of 65-70 for the first 20-30 feet and then two or three more thermoclines and bottom temps around 38-40 degrees below 130 feet. If I lived somewhere warmer, where I was not doing deep dives in cold bottom temps, I would probably do two seasons per semi-dry. As it is, late in the year when the water temps near the surface fall much below 60, I move into a dry suit since I no longer overheat at the start of the dive or during the shallow deco stops.

I like to store mine on a wet suit hanger (wider so as not to crease or stretch the shoulders of the suit) or store it like my dry suits - folded over a 3 ft long hanger made from a 3" piece of PVC with a rope at either end. Folding is ok if you follow the same folds that are already in the suit from being stored and shipped that way from the manufacturer.

 

[Twistinside]

Thanks for all the information...I decided against buying that particular suit...As for buying a dry suit instead of a 7mm, you are talking about a HUGE price difference (for me anyways, I'm sure that everyone else on this board are eccentric millionaires with a passion for diving). Because I live in KY, water temperatures can be pretty chilly, so I think a 7mm is my best choice, but I would also like a lighter one for the Florida and Bahama trips...Now you see why I am trying to save a little money! I spend it all on dive trips!

 

[SangP]

Hi there Twistinside,

Good on you and I think if you looked hard enough you'll find some decent deals:

http://www.scubaboard.com/t90047-factory-second-dui-dry-suits.html

Another thing is that a money well spend on a dry suit will be something you'll be able to use much longer than a wetsuit.

You'll end up spending more on wetsuits in the long run than getting 1 dry suit and cheaper wetsuits for warmer dives.

DA Aquamaster have you considered high density apena wetsuits?

Cheers,

SangP