Shrinkage in old neoprene wetsuits?

[Tassie_Rohan]

Folks –

I have a problem with all my wetsuits. I’m sending my drysuit off for repairs and so pulled out my old wetsuits that I haven’t used in 20 years (bought in my 30’s, and I’m in my 50’s now).

None of them fit – the neoprene has shrunk considerably during storage. I can get into my 3mm, but can’t close the back zip, and my 6mm has much the same problem around the torso.

Has anyone else experienced similar shrinkage of neoprene during long periods of storage? Particularly around the waist?

I’m hoping that stuffing the suits with a large barrel will stretch them back to their original size.

Any insights into the mechanisms in neoprene that causes this, and tips on how to best avoid this issue in the future, would be appreciated..




Regards,

Rohan.

 

[DiveLikeAMuppet]

Well it’s not limited to wetsuits, my drysuit tends to shrink especially after Christmas for some reason.

 

[scubaozy]

Probably it did not shrink but it became less flexible due age..

 

[Centrals]

Shrinkage wet suit?
Never has such an issue with 3mm full suit but 5mm is another story. However, my wet suit never last more than 3yrs.
Quality of the material could be the main issue.

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[johndiver999]

Stuffing until a barrel shape is attained…, that had been my problem, rather than the solution

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Has your body weight and measurements remained the same? There's always the joke and ribbing about wetsuit shrinkage etc. after thanksgiving, Christmas, and aging.
But this not entirely true.
Wetsuits do in fact shrink multi dimensionally.
The gas bubbles that the rubber is blown or injected with will work it's way out over time. It's the gas bubbles that hold the material apart. As the gas escapes and the neoprene breaks down, the rubber pulls itself back together and the material shrinks. It also loses it's flexibility. The thicker the material the more noticable it gets.

 

[bletso]

Eric,

Works for me!!