Pee valves for recreational diving

[SOUTH DEVON]

Thanks a lot guys for your replies, I enjoyed reading your posts, and laughed at your good humour! It's great to be able to talk to experienced divers, as I'm currently diving with novices like myself (the blind leading the blind , and there's only so much information you can get from a book (nothing about pee valves)
thanks again/Steve

 

[Greg_Manko]

Re: Pee valves - I'd rather have one and not need it, than need one and not have it!

 

[SOUTH DEVON]

That's exactly what I've been thinking !

 

[Waterborne]

You insert a catheter? Are you serious?

Riiiggghhhttt. How about nooo. (in the best Dr. Evil impression)
As MechDiver said, you don't use a foley or a straight catheter. You use a condom catheter. I think it's pretty self explanitory from there. I would go ahead and install one from the start. You will probably do it later on if not now. Might as well have the pro's do it for you now as I have seen some DIY projects turn into a mess.

 

[ew1usnr]

Has anyone ever installed a pee-valve into a wet suit in order to avoid "the funky smell" issue? Farmer Johns can be a bit troublesome to get in and out of. A pee-valve could simplify things. What would be the DIR position on such an arrangement?

 

[DA Aquamaster]

A small dry suit style relief zipper would make sense on a wet suit or semi dry. Of course the whole world would look at your suit and know what it's for so I suspect the idea could be hard to market to the average rec diver.

 

[ew1usnr]

DA Aquamaster once bubbled...
A small dry suit style relief zipper would make sense on a wet suit or semi dry. Of course the whole world would look at your suit and know what it's for so I suspect the idea could be hard to market to the average rec diver.

Can you imagine the looks on peoples faces? You're killing me. LOL

 

[ScoobieDooo]

ew1usnr,
You use what called a Texas catheter - EXTERNAL cath, not a Foley (internal cath).

MechDiver,
How do you find a 'private' place on a boat to hook up your condom cath? I have found that a bit of a problem with privacy issues on boats with mixed company around.

One of the reasons why I haven't ever even USED my pee valve yet on my drysuit!

Whomever gets that $1600 Bare ATR Light I have for sale is gonna get a nice suit all Halcyon'd up with a nice (unused) Pee Valve!

 

[MechDiver]

ScoobieDooo once bubbled...

MechDiver,
How do you find a 'private' place on a boat to hook up your condom cath? I have found that a bit of a problem with privacy issues on boats with mixed company around.

One of the reasons why I haven't ever even USED my pee valve yet on my drysuit!

I put on the cath and short section of line prior to going to the dive boat, or in the head if it has one. Once I have my undies and drysuit on, I hook up to the QD fitting on the long section of line that runs to the valve and that's all that's needed. If you don't like/trust the QD style fitting, you can get a barbed brass line coupling and use that.

MD

 

[ScoobieDooo]

MechDiver,
I've been on 'both sides of the fence' and found a drysuit to be more trouble than they are worth! Pee Valves, buoyancy issues, gluing pockets on thighs, etc - hot in the summer in-between dives - sweat to death in that thing in-between dives chatting with my buddies! At least with a wetsuit I could take the jacket off and stay cooler!