Question for dry suit wearers

[BabyDuck]

sounds like you & mike are going to figure this out!

i was thinking of maybe a leg sleeve with silicon seals top & bottom and perhaps bilam middle. you'd put it on topside & it would fit from maybe lower midthigh to below your prosthesis. the seals would be secured with normal tension like on a drysuit, and you'd leave a pretty big bubble in the sleeve part (since it wouldn't have inflation/deflation) for movement and gas law needs. that way your knee area would stay dry & mobile. i bet steve gamble would be willing to work with you on this.

but what ever you two come up with will be even better, i bet.

 

[Mitchell Teeters]

Heck I was going to suggest a bulb drawing a vacuum on the socket where the one way valve is located. You can pump out water as it loosens.

Sent from my NookColor using Tapatalk 2

 

[TechDeep]

Sounds like Baby Duck is thinking the same way I am. A drysuit for the knee joint. I suppose also it could have inflation/deflation, perhaps worn with a shorty wetsuit. Of course the most important thing that would be needed is a special kind of buddy who is aware of the situation, and able to lend assistance if needed.

By the way Baby Duck, Matt will be FIVE on the 26th!

 

[Lizard Leg]

If the socket gets wet, it;s not too big of an issue - it's the water that gets in between the liner/sleeve/skin - once the skin/silicon contact gets wet, the slicon looses it's "grip", the friction fit is gone and after a few kicks everything starts sliding off. I can generally get 3-45 minutes or so before this happens, it;s the second tank/dive that is the biggest issue. trying to take everything off on the boat, get it totally dry and everything back on, yeah, not fun.

Let me see if I can explain how the system works/fits in a little more detail. Some of these are my leg, some aren't.

Here is the liner that rolls on to the stump (residual limb to the medical folks ):


Once that is on, the socket is put on. The white sock is just to cushion and take up room as the limb volume changes duting the day:


Over that, sealing to the black carbon fiber socket and to the skin above the liner is a sleeve:


You can see where in the first picture, water has gotten in between the silicon and the skin, and it is sliding down. This was in between dives. You can see my knife strap around the bottom edge tightend way down to try to seal the bottom some - it kept sliding so my next step is to find a 1" or so nylon webbing strap that I can put on and cinch down super tight and then velcro in place. Kind of like a tank strap. I don't think the valve is the issue, but need to know if water is coming in from the top or the bottom of the seal. From what I have seen/experienced over three years of using this system underwater, it leaks in from the top, where the silicon to skin seal is. As the thigh muscles move, it creates small gaps and a little water gets in. More swimming, more gaps, more water. I've never had the leg slide off, but once it slides down, even a tiny bit, the leg starts "bell clanging" inside of the socket and that's it - time to get out of the water. I do keep a snorkel keeper attached to the pylon of the dive leg so in case it ever does come all of the way off, I can clip it off to my BC and not have to worry about carrying it.

With 6mm of skin tight silicon, a thick 3 ply sock and the limitations of any below knee amputee, bending my knee is already a chore. I'm trying to find a solution so the system as outlined above is made better, without adding any more weight or layers if possible.

 

[Mitchell Teeters]

Heck ya, get with Mike at DRIS and see what he will charge to take a DS leg from an old suit, and put wrist seals on both ends. Enclose the joint with the DS "leg". Shave the leg at the seal and you would be golden. I'm pretty sure Mike would not charge and arm and a leg. (pun intended).

I don't care who you are, that was funny.

 

[Lizard Leg]

Can't shave anywhere near where the liner/sleeve/prosthetic is - that's a whole 'nother can of worms!

I will contact Mike at DRIS - he's a good guy!

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

Can't shave anywhere near where the liner/sleeve/prosthetic is - that's a whole 'nother can of worms!

I will contact Mike at DRIS - he's a good guy!

As for a drysuit, we could easily make a sleeve with 2 neck seals. 1 at each end that would seal the entire thing. The problem would be just like a drysuit diver though, you need to relieve the pressure by adding air to the "sleeve".

The biggest problem, that I think is happening....The silicon seals, as you keep moving and flexing, water slowly breaks the seal. After 35-45 minutes, it has created a tunnel to the end of the stump. Then it starts to collect water, breaking your air tight seal even more, then making the whole thing want to come off....which it does. The only real way to prevent this, is by sealing it off with the sleeve and 2 neck seals. Again, you will have to add air and exhaust it during the dive.

The other thing, what about compression? As I said the water is tunneling thru the silicon, and eventually popping it off. If you have a wetsuit around that area, that compression might slow that process even more.

What about fully removing, dumping out the water, drying and putting everything back on after dive 1?

 

[Lizard Leg]

In between dives I do remove everything and have a spare liner and sleeve (dry) that I switch out to. My concern mainly is if I do a long dive, over 45 minutes and have a long surface swim or a current to contend with, the leg when itgets wet inside the liner just does not stay on - and I lose the propulsion from that side.

I have never tried a wetsuit over the top seal (shorty) but am thinking about it. So far, I have never done any dives in anything other than a suit and rashguard. Just not sure if it would help that much.

 

[jonnythan]

Are you sure it's actually leaking? It's possible the moisture inside is sweat.

 

[Lizard Leg]

I had thought of that - but it's saltwater. To minimize sweating as much as I can, and to ensure the best seal, I leave the sleeve rolled down, dry my leg and roll the sleeve up as late as I cna before entering the water. It takes a LOT of sweat to make it slip off -think cutting the grass in 100º heat and 95% humidity for an hour. Your leg gets used to be confined and actually doesn;t sweat as much after a few years. I also use a special anti-perspirant during the summer that alleviates 99% of sweating - you just have to keep everything really, really clean!

Not sure about the dry suit leg rig up - I really have no idea how they work, but trying to get two more seals to hold, one of them on hard smooth carbon fiber - it just seems as if I am doubling the chances of smething leaking.