Silicone neck seals. Too tight if they roll?

[JohnN]

After a week of 3 dives/day in cold water, that annoying leak that leaves me with wet feet on a two tank day dive, has me upset enough to try to do something about it. My silicone neck seal does roll on me and apparently my neck is too short to get it pulled down enough to lay flat

Is this a likely source of the leak, or should I be looking for other causes? My “jammies” are synthetic fleece, so they don’t hold much water to give me a clue to the source of the problem

 

[lexvil]

A rolled silicone seal shouldn’t leak, creased will. Use a strong light on the inside of the suit in a dark (ish) room, start at the toes and run the light over the surfaces, if there is a hole you’ll see it.

 

[Seameadow]

Not sure of the causes, but putting a hoody over the seal solved the problem for me, and keeps me noggin nice and toasty

 

[stuartv]

I had a small hole in a previous drysuit that I could not find. I went to the local lake, where the water is cold, and put the suit on with no undergarments, then walked into the lake. When the water got to where the hole was and started to come in, it felt like an ice pick stabbing into me. Then I knew exactly where the leak was...

 

[merxlin]

After a week of 3 dives/day in cold water, that annoying leak that leaves me with wet feet on a two tank day dive, has me upset enough to try to do something about it. My silicone neck seal does roll on me and apparently my neck is too short to get it pulled down enough to lay flat

Is this a likely source of the leak, or should I be looking for other causes? My “jammies” are synthetic fleece, so they don’t hold much water to give me a clue to the source of the problem

It was suggested to me to wear a dark colored long sleeve T-shirt over my undergarment as any leakage from the waist up will soak into the T shirt and show up where it is leaking.

 

[boulderjohn]

After a week of 3 dives/day in cold water, that annoying leak that leaves me with wet feet on a two tank day dive, has me upset enough to try to do something about it. My silicone neck seal does roll on me and apparently my neck is too short to get it pulled down enough to lay flat

Is this a likely source of the leak, or should I be looking for other causes? My “jammies” are synthetic fleece, so they don’t hold much water to give me a clue to the source of the problem

When I have had minor leaks in the upper part of my suit, they did not get my feet wet. When I get wet feet, things are coming in lower than the neck. As for rolled neck seals, mine are always rolled to the outside, and they don't leak unless I get them creased. One of the "problems" I have with silicone neck seals is that they work so well that I sometimes get careless about the neck seal and get a surprise leak because I wasn't careful enough.

Drysuit leaks can sometimes be real devils to locate. I once sent mine in to a highly reputable repair center describing right where I thought it was leaking. I got it back later with a note saying it was not leaking where I thought it was, but they found another leak. I wore it and immediately felt a major leak right where I said it was. I sent it back, and, oh yeah, there was indeed a leak there. Son of a gun. They then did a super inspection of the suit and found a whole bunch of tiny, tiny leaks they had not seen before. Now it has no leaks whatsoever.

So if reputable professionals can miss leaks like that, there is a good chance the rest of us can miss them, too.

 

[JohnN]

When I have had minor leaks in the upper part of my suit, they did not get my feet wet. When I get wet feet, things are coming in lower than the neck. As for rolled neck seals, mine are always rolled to the outside, and they don't leak unless I get them creased. One of the "problems" I have with silicone neck seals is that they work so well that I sometimes get careless about the neck seal and get a surprise leak because I wasn't careful enough.

Drysuit leaks can sometimes be real devils to locate. I once sent mine in to a highly reputable repair center describing right where I thought it was leaking. I got it back later with a note saying it was not leaking where I thought it was, but they found another leak. I wore it and immediately felt a major leak right where I said it was. I sent it back, and, oh yeah, there was indeed a leak there. Son of a gun. They then did a super inspection of the suit and found a whole bunch of tiny, tiny leaks they had not seen before. Now it has no leaks whatsoever.

So if reputable professionals can miss leaks like that, there is a good chance the rest of us can miss them, too.

Thanks and an update. . .

I was always puzzled that it was primarily my left foot that gets wet, and when I (tried to) wear dry gloves, my left glove liner also got soaked.

I bet you can tell where this is going. . .

The exhaust valve (SiTec) on the suit wasn't tightened very well and is a prime suspect. That little sucker is tight now and I'm set to go diving next Wednesday. Fingers crossed