So what the heck is a semi dry suit?

[*Floater*]

The name is misleading, but the seals on a wetsuit can be a very nice feature if they work properly. The ones I had on my Cressi-Sub were the neoprene fold-in kind like on some drysuits (but thinner neoprene). As I lost weight and the suit became looser, I believe those seals made a big difference because they kept the water exchange to a minimum, which is important because your body warms the water inside the suit to some extent, but that's of little benefit if it just flows out of your arm and leg cuffs, the neck hole and zippers, and is replaced by the cold water outside. Of course, if you have great fitting suit, then there's little space for water inside anyway, so benefit from the seals is much lesser.

 

[Hockeynut]

So what the heck is a semi dry suit?

A wetsuit with a weird name.

 

[TSandM]

I have a Scubapro suit with wrist and ankle seals. They do minimize water entry, but the zipper is still a wetsuit zipper, and there is no attempt to do anything of a seal at the neck. In fact, the neck is cut so wide I use a hooded vest underneath it to minimize water flow.

If you want to dive dry, you need a dry suit. Not all of them are terribly expensive, and you can often buy one used that needs new seals, where the cost of putting new seals on (even if you have someone do it) will still leave you with a pretty cheap suit.

 

[cmburch]

My Xcel wetsuit has to be the easiest to put on. It has ankle zippers, a chest zipper, and integrated hood. If desiring a wetsuit, this style is far superior. Except for the pee problem - does not flush with water. I once had water coming in the chest zipper when freediving (submerging and ascending) because I did not close it properly. The chest zipper has 2 overlapping pieces of thin fabric that do not allow water in if zipped properly.

 

[BigFame]

wow this hobby takes a LOT of homework, I have asked and had so many great answers and yet I don't know if I know anymore today than I did a few weeks ago. I am so confused about so much, I can only imagine how hard this all would have been to figure out without all the great help here on SB. thanks to you all

 

[Kern]

I have a Cressi Ice 7/5mm semi dry. It fits like a glove. It has fold in seals at neck, wrist & ankles. It zips across the back from shoulder to shoulder, so there is no break in the neck seal. The zip is an air tight brass BDM as found on dry suits.

It's the best wet suit I'v ever used.

 

[digital_steve]

get a drysuit and use it year round
unless you're in the tropics, the drysuit is the way to go. makes doing multiple dives fun as opposed to uncomfortable

 

[String]

A semi dry is a wetsuit with a bigger marketing budget. You'll get just as wet and marginally less cold than a wetsuit.

 

[BeaverDiver1]

in my opinion, the difference in price does not come close to matching the difference in comfort and warmth. Get and ultra-light dry-suit, you can use it anywhere, you can put dry gloves on it, and you will have far better mobility. You can even ditch your BC.

 

[timegan]

So you ditch your BC....OK were do you put your tank/s strap em to your legs?