Ogres: Have Layers. Parfaits- layers. Wetsuits- layers? Key Largo in March...

[Katch]

Who'd you dive with? I did my AOW with Rainbow Reef a couple years ago. Also did the Spiegel as the deep/wreck dive.

 

[Orlando Eric]

Here is my take on the wetstuit layer and staying warm experience. Based on my personal experience and conclusions without any controlled testing. The heat comes off your body and heats the water around it. The water heats and moves away from your body being replaced by new cold water. The Neoprene does two things. It keeps a layer of water against your skin which once warmed stays there. The thickness of the suit retards the heat loss the same as the fiberglass insulation in your house by retarding the transmission of the heat. The best thing you can do is get a suit that fits you tightly. No gaps for excess water in it. You want a small amount of water layer between you and the suit. Wrist, Ankle seals and a good fitting neck so the water does not escape then cold water rush in. If you wear a 5/3 hood like me in the under 65f then do not nose breath into the mask then into the hood then down the hood flushing the suit right to your ankles with a huge bubble then refills with cold water.. brrr.

Layers to me is not as good as getting a full well fitting thick suit. Two sets of 3.5 mm do not equal a full 7mm in my experience. There is a layer of water between the two 3mms to slosh, spill, leak and cool off reheat etc that does not exist between the 3.5mm+3.5mm of a full 7mm.

Pre flood your suit with warmed water if possible this makes a huge difference as well.

---------- Post added February 22nd, 2013 at 04:37 PM ----------

Another +1 on the getting a suit that fits properly. This makes all the difference in the world. Water steals heat from your body 25 times faster than air. A extra cup of water squishing around your crotch area a 1/2 cup along your spine and 1/4 cup behind each knee joint makes it noticeably cooler. I was buying the junk off the rack at divers direct and then bought a Bare Suit 7mm which actually fit me. The difference is Huge! (even though it is now filled with 5-10# of extra fat these days) . Also take a pair of "C" calipers to DD and check the thickness of that "3mm" suit.. the ones I checked a few years back where in the 1.75 2.0 range. I think they measure it at the seams or something.. ?

---------- Post added February 22nd, 2013 at 04:45 PM ----------

I also have read peeing removes warm liquid from your core actually cooling you off a little so you get colder peeing. I am not sure about this science either. If I had a pot full of 100 F water and poured some out the water in the pot would still be 100 F ..

 

[Firebird2XC]

Who'd you dive with? I did my AOW with Rainbow Reef a couple years ago. Also did the Spiegel as the deep/wreck dive.

I was with Rainbow Reef, too. What a great experience! They're a really great operator.

 

[tracydr]

Hey all.

Looking to do some winter diving off Key Largo next month. Upon suggestion of others, I went out to get myself a 5mm full wetsuit. This would be beyond my 3/2mm shorty. After beating the bushes and some other nonsense, I've gone a slightly different route...

I got a nice new 3/2mm full body, along with a 5mm hood. Along with gloves and dive boots, I'm now looking like Kenny from South Park, but in neoprene.

It was suggested to me that I would be fine in 68+ degree water with that configuration, but that I could layer over my full body with my shorty. This produces some sort of weird 6mm torso layer effect.. it's a little cumbersome.

Are there some sort of under armor layer things one could do? Like maybe with rashguard-like materials? What does everybody else do?

That would be drysuit temp for me! Or, if not drysuit, 7 ml. I hate 7 ml so I would use my drysuit for sure.

 

[luscioman]

Here is the water temps in March. I just noticed this is an old post.


Find Florida Keys Weather information here at Fla-Keys.com - Islamorada, Key Largo, Marathon, Lower Keys, Key West