pee valve

[CALI68]

I haven't ponied up to put a hole in a suit I don't really like yet, but there have been several times I wish I had a pee-valve. Shore dives in cold weather where you don't want to take off the DS.. but especially on boats. I'd much much rather hopping into the water and lettin' her flow while everyone else gears up instead of taking off half the DS and hanging on the transom, trying to simultaneously not fall out and not pee into my suit.

Oh yeah, shore dives in very public places without bathrooms too. I didn't like having to crawl into the lone pine tree at the Gaskin site so the people in the apartment building next to the site couldn't see me.

BINGO!

 

[slingshot]

Now all we need is a good hand signal to warn your dive buddy off before you raise the water temperature a few degrees....

 

[Uncle Pug]

So today my buddy and I were standing waist deep at the start of a shore dive and he says, "Wait just a minute I while I rinse out my mask." I said, "No problem... I'm kinda busy myself right now."

 

[Dan Gibson]

I use it anytime I put my drysuit on. I try to stay well hydrated. The minute I hit the water, I seem to always have to go.

I don't know about the rest of the people having problems geting these things off. I have no problem. It does not hurt. I have heard people complain that it hurts and then you hear these people are tugging at the things to remove them. Now that would hurt. Just peel it back and roll it some. If they were that bad, there would be a lot of people with medical problems who would insist on changes to the design. I have never taken any skin off. These are usually the same ones who don't put it on right. Don't shove it in. Roll the thing up one turm, place on tip and roll completely back. That way you don't get glue on the end and he ain't smiling wide the whole time. That can be bad and can lead to infections. It's all technique.

I swear to god, I'm not trying to be sarcastic or a jerk, but, after reading the descriptions of guys who use pee-valves, I've just got to wonder why in the name of god you guys use those things. Tape? Tearing? (shudders) Are all you Instructors or divemasters that work with classes all day? Or are you mostly tech guys with long deco periods?

Is there anyone out there who, like me, that rarely has a dive go over 45 minutes that actually uses pee-valves? Personally, a quick trip to the head before entering the water is usually enough to tide me over.

I'm not trying to be a jerk; I'm just trying to imagine the logistics of trying to roll on a condom on a dive boat with a bunch of my buddies...

 

[coreypenrose]

I use it anytime I put my drysuit on. I try to stay well hydrated. The minute I hit the water, I seem to always have to go.

I don't know about the rest of the people having problems geting these things off. I have no problem. It does not hurt. I have heard people complain that it hurts and then you hear these people are tugging at the things to remove them. Now that would hurt. Just peel it back and roll it some. If they were that bad, there would be a lot of people with medical problems who would insist on changes to the design. I have never taken any skin off. These are usually the same ones who don't put it on right. Don't shove it in. Roll the thing up one turm, place on tip and roll completely back. That way you don't get glue on the end and he ain't smiling wide the whole time. That can be bad and can lead to infections. It's all technique.

Interesting post, thanks for the info.

When I first started diving, I couldn’t imagine changing out of wetsuits into a drysuit – now I won’t dive the California coast without one. I’m quite sure diving with a pee-valve is the same but I’m still wondering about logistics of using that particular piece of equipment.

Hmmm….how to ask this? When I, typically, use condoms, my equipment has to be in….uh, a certain condition. If I have to apply a condom on a dive boat, well, I’m not sure just how I would, well, prime the pump before I suit up and enter the water. The coast does get kind of cold, after all.

I can’t help but think that a relief zipper would be easier and, well, require less, uh….prep time and I like to keep my gear as simple as possible.

 

[Dan Gibson]

Don't prime the pump!

Interesting post, thanks for the info.

When I first started diving, I couldn’t imagine changing out of wetsuits into a drysuit – now I won’t dive the California coast without one. I’m quite sure diving with a pee-valve is the same but I’m still wondering about logistics of using that particular piece of equipment.

Hmmm….how to ask this? When I, typically, use condoms, my equipment has to be in….uh, a certain condition. If I have to apply a condom on a dive boat, well, I’m not sure just how I would, well, prime the pump before I suit up and enter the water. The coast does get kind of cold, after all.

I can’t help but think that a relief zipper would be easier and, well, require less, uh….prep time and I like to keep my gear as simple as possible.

 

[Tavi]

.................I can’t help but think that a relief zipper would be easier................

Try your relief zipper at 60'

 

[coreypenrose]

Try your relief zipper at 60'

LOL.....I'd love to see that.

 

[hardhat]

Haven't seen a relief zipper used at 60'. But there's a story that comes up from time to time around the shop I work at. This guy had just gotten a new dry suit, his first dive on it. Well you see his buddy that he was diving this suit with, was the builder of the suit. The guy that had built the suit was watching the other pretty intently, he was waiting for the relief zipper to fall out of the suit. You see when he installed the relief zipper into the suit he used water soluble glue, and the zipper did finally fall out of the suit while they were down around 60' in the water. Nice buddy hu? This a true story, and I know it's true because I know both guys and the suit builder is the type of person that find practicle jokes like this to be what life is all about.

 

[bcsean]

Haven't seen a relief zipper used at 60'. But there's a story that comes up from time to time around the shop I work at. This guy had just gotten a new dry suit, his first dive on it. Well you see his buddy that he was diving this suit with, was the builder of the suit. The guy that had built the suit was watching the other pretty intently, he was waiting for the relief zipper to fall out of the suit. You see when he installed the relief zipper into the suit he used water soluble glue, and the zipper did finally fall out of the suit while they were down around 60' in the water. Nice buddy hu? This a true story, and I know it's true because I know both guys and the suit builder is the type of person that find practicle jokes like this to be what life is all about.

ROFL. Damn, I'm glad I don't have a buddy like that. I was also questioning the use of a relief zipper on a long dive, while underwater. Not always an option to just pop up and get out when you really gotta go.