Next purchase assistance.

[doghouse]

My situation:

Diving is planned to augment my other activities, primarly giving me a way to work on the boat and dock w/o having to pay someone.

I have my own reg and bc.
I have a 3/2 semi-dry wetsuit which is fine for working on the boat, but not good enough for recreational diving in this area. (or so I am told) I also have gloves and hood to go with it.
I also have a 4 mill shortie.

I cannot decide if I should get a 7mm wetsuit and rent the tank every time I need to do work. This could mean that I only burn 500#'s off a tank before returning it.

- OR -

Purchase a tank that I could get filled whenever, and rent a wetsuit when I go on regular dives.


Now IF it seams that I am doing more diving than I expect and over the summer determine that I do need a heavy suit, I would have the time to save up purchase a very good wet suit or a dry suit.

So those are my thoughts, please feel free to tear holes in my logic, or provide support for one of the two options. Do you have a third that is better? Lets hear it.

 

[Scuba Sciences]

Hi Doghouse,

What water temp are you diving?

Here's an idea. If you have the 3/2 full length suit now, but need something warmer, could you wear your 4 mm shorty over your 3/2 to give you 7 mm on your core? That would definitely keep you warmer! Or maybe a hooded vest to give you a lot of warmth under your 3/2 and combine that with a hooded vest.

This way you could get your cylinder now, and work with what you have for the wetsuits. Do you think that could work?

 

[DandyDon]

You have a 4 mil shorty?

Yeah slide it over or under the long suit, whichever feels easier. I tried that with a 3 short over a 3 long before buying a 7 - worked ok. I wish I had not bought the 3 shorty, but I did - not much demand for a used shorty. I don't know, maybe I should ebay some things, but I doubt I have enough to really bother learning all that.

Even owning your own tank, you do not want to suck it empty - that'll allow water to get into the reg, maybe even the tank, as well as not leave you a safety reserve. The 500# rule is still a good one. You might go for a 100 cf tank, tho.

Btw, diving along to work on your boat or dock is a good way to make headlines - or a bad way actually.

 

[Brandon]

Even owning your own tank, you do not want to suck it empty - that'll allow water to get into the reg, maybe even the tank, as well as not leave you a safety reserve. The 500# rule is still a good one. You might go for a 100 cf tank, tho.

I think he means that when he rents a tank to go diving, he typically uses only 500 PSI before returning the tank. Owning his own tanks would allow him to get more mileage out of each fill, essentially reducing the per-dive cost by as much as 1/4th, as he would be doing multiple dives per fill.

Personally, unless you're working on your boat a LOT, I wouldn't buy a tank. Consider this scenario: You need to make a couple dives on your boat to replace your prop and zincs. You had a 3200 PSI fill when you started, and made two dives using around 500 PSI each. You put your gear away with 2000 PSI left in the tank. Your buddies call next weekend and want to go on a recreational dive. They have good fresh fills from the shop at 3200 PSI each. You're now the limiting factor on the length of the dive, as you're starting the dive with short-filled tanks. Most likely you're going to get a fresh fill before the dive - rendering your cost savings plan much less efficient.

Also, remember that in addition to the purchase price of the tank, you have things like visual inspections and hydro testing that need to be paid for. Given that a fill is usually somewhere around $5, and a rental tank is only a couple dollars more, you have to do a lot of diving to make owning your tanks cost efficient. Convenience may make this worthwhile, depending on the proximity of the dive shop and if your dive times are compatible with shop hours.

Go with the suit. The first time you get good and cold you'll kick yourself for not doing it, and the $3 you saved by owning vs renting the tank is going to look pretty silly compared to your blue and numb fingers, toes, arms and legs!

Just a thought,

-B.

 

[doghouse]

Brandon, you are correct. The small jobs would be done a couple of times a year. Thus saving me an hour drive.
Danny, thanks for the concern, but I will not be diving alone in the slip. SWMBO will be right above me. The shortie I have is left over from the trips to Hawaii skin diving. Helped prevent the sunburn, and added a little flotation. That and I have to work on the KOI pond a couple of times a year. The fall and spring can be darn cold! 45-50 degree water, and 1/2 - 1 hour cleanups. That shortie just barely kept me warm enough to clean everything up and move all the plants to the bottom. It has taken me years to collect the misc. gear I have now. Not all of it is going to be useful for diving. So I am trying to figure out the best way to streach my dollars until I can afford the better stuff.

 

[Hoyden]

A 3/2 with a 4mm shorty over it won't cut it for ocean diving in your area - bottom temps at depth are usually in the high 50s. You can probably get away with the 3/2 plus 4mm shorty for summer diving at Lake Rawlings, but I can't imagine quarry diving plays into your plans since you live so close to the ocean.

Jackie

 

[DandyDon]

Oh, ok - thanks Brandon. Yeah, if he needs a tank a couple times a year for only 500# of use before returning, I can see that being a waste. I bought a use 80 cf so I could have one on had without driving 3 hours round-trip, but I hardly ever use it. I don't think I did use it last year between viz inspections as our practice hole in NM charges the same for your tank or theirs.

A 3/2 with a 4mm shorty over it won't cut it for ocean diving in your area - bottom temps at depth are usually in the high 50s. You can probably get away with the 3/2 plus 4mm shorty for summer diving at Lake Rawlings, but I can't imagine quarry diving plays into your plans since you live so close to the ocean.

Jackie

Oh I have done it with a 3 short over a 3 long in Calf waters to 50s, and it worked, but I like my 7 mil long a lot more for that. I just don't like hoods, so use a beanie, but can't find as heavy a beanie as I'd like for Calf and Seattle diving. Anyway, I do agree the 7 mil suit would be a better next buy, and get a hood or beanie, as well as a dive skin.

I don't think a dry suit is in your buying future. They're more in the "if you have to ask this kind of question - nope!"

I am still concerned about this...

will not be diving alone in the slip. SWMBO will be right above me.

Whoever is gonna be above you, you plan to go in the water alone? Even to replace a prop can be dangerous alone.

 

[bubble-head]

I would go with the 7 mil suit. Our waters are a good match for the 7 mil. I dove through January in the Bay and off Nags Head with my Bare Artic and was comfortable. I also use the 7 mil in summer when ocean diving.

 

[spectrum]

Yea, go for the suit, be protected.

As for returning a few cylinders that are quite full, so what? It's only short term until your next investment cycle.

Pete

 

[jumbo]

Get a suit first, I figure if your not picky on what type of cylinder you want rent one.
It takes about 100 dives a year for a couple years before you see a return on your cylinder if you buy a nice steel one

JUMBO