gstroupe:
Hi all. I'm in the market for a dry suit and wanted some advice from my cold water diving brethren. I only plan on using the suit for cold water dives but that will include wrecks. I've seen alot of debate over neoprene vs. Trilams and wanted to ask that question again given that I only plan on using the suit in these conditions. I'm leaning toward neoprene given its insulating and durable nature. Now that hypercrushed suits are available are those the "best of both worlds"? I thought it appropriate to ask the experts
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Hopefully I can shed some light on the subject.
There are 4 materials for drysuits......
Neoprene - Regular
Thermal Properties - Some at shallower depths. As depth increases, the thermal properties become negligible. I don't consider this a feature at all.
Bouyancy Characteristics - Positively bouyant near the surface. As you descent, the material compresses and becomes less bouyant. This causes a problem for newer divers (and even some experienced divers) as they get shallower, causing difficulties to stay down.
Durability - Although it has great stretching capabilities, it is not nearly as durable as a trilam or vulcanized rubber. It is more susceptable to tears, but is easily repaired. I find neoprene seals need to be tighter to ensure that you do not leak water down your arms or neck. For some people, this is very uncomfortable and cause a gag reflex.
Care / Maintenance - These suits take a long time to dry out, both inside and out (you get condensation inside the suit, particularly on hot days). They also need to be properly hung up so as to not compress the bubbles out of the neoprene. They take up more space when travelling because you are not supposed to roll these up tight or squish it into a ball.
Neoprene - Crushed
Thermal Properties - Negligible. The nitrogen bubbles have been compressed out of the material leaving little to no thermal value.
Bouyancy Characteristics - Negligible. The bubbles are compressed / crushed out of the suit material.
Durability - Same as Regular Neoprene.
Care / Maintenance - Same as Regular Neoprene to a slightly lesser extent.
Bi/Tri-Laminates
Thermal Properties - None. Typically made from a rubber membrane sandwiched between a layer of ballistic cordura nylon on the outside, and a thin layer of material on the inside, typically a nylon. The nice thing about these suits is that you can select the amount of thermal protection you want to wear underneath based on current conditions, and have more room inside to accomodate more thermal protection.
Bouyancy Characteristics - None. Because of the makeup of these suits, they are pretty well neutral in bouyancy.
Durability - Extremely durable. Can be rolled up and are more compact than the neoprene suits. The seals are typically latex, which form better to your neck and wrists, and are more comfortable, but provide no thermal protection. Most suits come with a neck apron built onto the suit to keep you warm. Costs to repair these suits are a little more, and the latex seals are more delicate than neoprene. No stretch in these suits, so you get them sized a little larger (the test is to try one on and see if you can touch your toes without the suit drawing tight). Not too large though, otherwise you start trapping air.
Care Maintenance - Easy to take care of because of their durability. They dry out extremely quick, and after being dried out, can be rolled up for storage.
Vulcanized Rubber
I don't have any experience with these suits, but am told they have very similar characteristics to the Bi/Trilaminates. They are easier to repair, with the exception of the seals, in which case, are similar to the trilams. I am also told they are more cumbersome and restrictive due to the nature of the rigid heavy rubber.
I hope this helps a bit. Do some more research, try a few on, talk to local divers that have them, and get what works best for YOU.
I personally prefer trilaminate, but most of my buddies are diving neoprene. I always laugh when they're trying to eliminate every single last bit of air from their suit when we come back into shallow water because the change in bouyancy from the suit.
