Los angeles exposure suit

[ebfh]

I am going to be in Los Angeles for the next four - five years and I was wondering what thickness wetsuit should I buy? I will be there year- round (not including most of summer). I also get cold easily in the water. Would a 5/4 wetsuit with a hood and 2mm gloves be sufficient? The water there is 62-68 degrees throughout the course of a year.

 

[Rainer]

The water is often much colder than that at depth (often low 50s F). If you plan to dive a lot, I'd look into a drysuit for sure. To me, the bare minimum anyone would want here would be a 7mm wetsuit with 5mm hooded vest. Some get away with 3mm gloves, but I'd strongly prefer at least 5mm. That said, I have less than ten dives wet here and hundreds dry (including dry gloves). The latter is MUCH more comfortable, again, especially for someone who tends to get cold.

 

[Chocula]

... The water there is 52-68 degrees throughout the course of a year.

.. fixed!

I dove with a 5 mm one piece suit and 3 mm hooded vest for a couple of years. This was fine during the late Summer and Fall, but a bit cold during Winter and Spring. You should be looking at 7 mm suits. I have an Aqua Lung SolAfx 8/7 mm with an integrated hood that works great year round, but I do have to occasionally pull open the neck to flood the suite on the rare 70 degree days. The biggest drawback to this suit is that it takes 30# of lead to sink it and it is very bulky to pack. Water temperature is a little warmer as you get closer to San Diego, and a little cooler as you get closer to Ventura.

-Chocula

 

[ebfh]

At what depth would you say that it gets to the low 50's? Sorry I was reading a water temperature report for only the summer.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

It depends where you dive. Palos Verdes has surface temps of 48° to mid 50s most of the year. Occasionally it will reach the 60s, but that is uncommon. Laguna Beach and San Diego will have temps ten degrees warmer. I made 800+ dives in a 7mm wetsuit before going dry. I don't plan to ever dive a wetsuit again.

 

[undrwater]

Well fitting dry suit or farmer john wetsuit. The greatest benefit of the dry suit is AFTER or BETWEEN dives as your core will stay warmer than wetsuit divers. There is nothing better than a drysuit with a pee valve on a dive boat, or on a very cold winter day with chilly winds blowing.

 

[jscan1]

I dove 7mm, and on most trips with more than two or three tanks, I'd get cold towards end of second dive and then on the surface interval be sticking the hot water hose or Hot shower down the back of my suit...low 50's at depth is very common even far south as SD and definitely on the Wrecks.....I've gone dry, some wicking long johns, and the undergarment makes for a perfect day year round in our waters

 

[claymore]

As others have said if you can afford it go dry. The comfort level goes way up. The learning curve is a little long and there is more gearing up hassles with a dry suite. Last weekend I did a 31 minute dive at 39-45 degrees then did a 40 minute dive at 45 degrees and I was getting cool in the water but almost as soon as I was out of the water I was warm and the air temps were in the upper 40's and the wind was blowing. I know that if I would have been in my Farmer John I would have been really cold and stayed cold much longer.

 

[Spg01]

You can survive in a 7mm with a good hood and decent gloves, I did for a few years. And I also remember taking a boat to Anacapa and having to debate if I really wanted to go back in for the 3rd dive of the day because I was so cold.

Or, just go for the drysuit and save yourself from being cold and have a much better time. I guess it will really come down to how often you are planning to go diving. I try for at least 1 to 2 shore dives a week all year long, so a drysuit was a natural progression for me. But if you only dive every now and then a 7mm might not be that big of a deal for you.

 

[drbill]

I dive a 7/5mm with hooded vest. Even in summer water temperatures at depth can be in the 50s. Currently at depths to 50 ft here off Catalina I'm getting 64-66 F min temp.