New DUI Drysuit Gets Wet Inside

[K_girl]

I bought a DUI dyrsuit TLS350 that had been sitting on the rack for a long time. LDS sent it back to DUI for new seals and pressure testing before I picked it up. I was assured the suit was leak-free. The suit is not flooding, but it is definitely getting wet. I tested it in my own pool just waist-high for a two minutes, not even letting the neck and wrist seals touch the water. It looks like the material is getting wet right around the waist seal. My left leg was getting wet, where the zipper stops at the right hip, that area did not get wet. I took it back to the LDS and they pressure tested it 3 times, still could not find a leak. I did the test in their pool, again, not letting the neck and wrist seals get wet and they made sure the zipper seal was shut solid. They were amazed - the suit got wet. They had no explanation because the pressure test showed there were no leaks. Afterall, they tested it 3 times!!

Question: how many drysuit divers out there put up with wetness on the interior of dry suits because they think they must they must be doing something wrong? My LDS shop was trying to think of all the things I must be doing wrong until I proved to them it was possible for a pressure test not to show a leak, do everything right and yet, the suit still gets wet inside. We will be sending the suit back to DUI for further repair, but I intend to document my experience to them before it is shipped off. I don't want it sent back again with them saying - pressure test shows no leaks and keep trying to blame it on me.

Karen

 

[turtle_guy]

Could it be condensation from sweat? How warm is their pool?

 

[spectrum]

Well if the shop witnessed it then they shouldn't be blaming you.

As Turtle_guy mentioned condensation in a dry suit is a universal phenomenon. What were you wearing and how wet was wet?

You say "the suit got wet". After getting yourself into the thing indoors and immersing a level of wetness on the inside of the suit from condensation is to be expected. That is why you need to wear a synthetic wicking layer against you body so that the moister will be drawn from you resulting in wetness on the inside of the suit and exterior of your additional undergarment. After a dive where you were warm and/or the water was very cold you can have a surprising amount of wetness in there however with the right garments YOU will be nice and dry.

If the waist seal is a different material that is more conductive then it would be come a condenser and attract the humidity and we first.

Are we talking about a damp panel or a spot that is soaking you?

What are the suit materials? What were you wearing for garments?

Pete

 

[ronbeau]

Well if the shop witnessed it then they shouldn't be blaming you.

As Turtle_guy mentioned condensation in a dry suit is a universal phenomenon. What were you wearing and how wet was wet?

You say "the suit got wet". After getting yourself into the thing indoors and immersing a level of wetness on the inside of the suit from condensation is to be expected. That is why you need to wear a synthetic wicking layer against you body so that the moister will be drawn from you resulting in wetness on the inside of the suit and exterior of your additional undergarment. After a dive where you were warm and/or the water was very cold you can have a surprising amount of wetness in there however with the right garments YOU will be nice and dry.

If the waist seal is a different material that is more conductive then it would be come a condenser and attract the humidity and we first.

Are we talking about a damp panel or a spot that is soaking you?

What are the suit materials? What were you wearing for garments?

Pete

The DUI TLS 350 is a trilaminate suit. The trilaminate is Nylon/Butyl Rubber/Nylon.

 

[dannobee]

Before you send it back, turn the suit inside out, then fill up the bottom half with water. any leaks will show up right away. If it's on the bottom half of the suit you won't even need to clamp the seals shut. I agree, sending the suit back is a real pain in the butt.

Are you sure it's not condensation?

 

[bolantej]

I vote for condensation or sweat. If they tested it 3 times I would try it in open water and see if you stay warm. When I had a hole in my suit I froze my **** off.

 

[RS]

I had the same experience with my TLS350 and thought it had a leak, but it was just condensation.

Now the p-valve, thats another story!

 

[PinkPADIgal]

How is your shop pressure testing the suit? Are they submerging it in water, or are they blowing the suit up, then spraying it? Sometimes if there is leaks a long a seam, it is harder to detect, unless the suit is submerged.

DUI should have pressure tested the suit before they sent it back to the store. It seems strange that they would replace seals and not do so.

When you were in your pool, did you have your undergarment on? If so, try it without it. Wear a long cotton tee. You will notice the leak right away and where it is coming from.

If you are wet inside your drysuit, then there is a problem. You paid too much money for your suit for you to be wet.

 

[Doc Intrepid]

Karen,

I have frequently had sweat and condensation inside my drysuit.

The issue is where the moisture is located. The idea is to wear an undergarment that wicks the moisture away from your skin, to the point that the warm sweaty perspiration condenses on the inside of the drysuit between the undergarment and the inner side of the suit. The outer surface of the undergarment can be moist, but not the layer against my skin.

(Also, ocasionally the chest valve where the LP inflator hose attaches can leak - especially if you remove the hose to inflate cc SMBs or liftbags and then re-attach the hose.)

I don't know where you're located, so don't know what your standard temps are - but given that you're buying a drysuit I'm supposing you're diving in pretty cold water. Like the others have said, if you're diving in cold water you can definitely notice moisture inside your drysuit that results from sweat and/or condensation. Not always, but it CAN happen.

You need to identify where the moisture is located that you're noticing, and whether its on the outside of your undergarment or on the inside, etc.

You may be wanting to look for a different undergarment, or wear a wicking layer beneath your undergarment.

Hope this helps,

 

[TSandM]

You can have a leak that is persistent but difficult to find. I have one in my Mobby's suit. It's somewhere in the crotch seam area. Two different shops have had the suit for repair, and have done various things that seem to work for a while, and then fail. I have done the light search for holes. I have filled the suit with water (nobody who has not done that can know what a PITA it is). I can't find the leak, and neither can anybody else. One leak that WAS fixed appears to have been in a seam, in such a place that the seam had to be flexed just right to leak, and I suspect the current leak is also that kind of problem.

It's not condensation. It's salt water. I've even TASTED it to be sure!

Drysuits can be maddening.