The Drysuit and the Wetsuit

[Twiddles]

Okay hopefully I can get some answers on this one that will change my mind about the drysuit. I have over a dozen dives (yea I know) with divers in drysuits. Every single diver claims that the drysuit is much better than any wetsuit they have every dived. They claim that its is warmer and significantly more comfortable, do to its warmth, than a wetsuit.

My delema is this, every single time I have been with a group diving in drysuits at least one of them has had a leak. Every time I look at a drysuit divers face it seriously looks as though they are having serious circulation issues through the neck of the suit. I hear of multiple problems regarding how bulky the suit is (granted these issues have been raised by students new to dry suits).

My problem is this, although I have no problem in 50 degree water, I still find I am warm when exiting the water, no shivering (well until I open the suit) and I wear only a hood not a hood vest so I can get more insulation if I want it. I am 6'4" and 245lbs and probably have a significant amount of "built-in" insulation. My wife on the other hand is 5'5" and 130lbs and wears a full hood vest and freezes her *** off. Shes good for maybee 20 minutes shes cold at about 15 minutes. I have thought of a drysuit for her but she has seen all the problems with it. She is also concered about the bulk of the suit and the additional work it may put on her diving.

Is it a good idea for a beginning diver to even attempt using a drysuit, especially a diver that is not completely comfortable in the water (she knows what she needs to do, but it is obvious that she is not completely comfortable)? Is there another way to increase her insulation without a drysuit? Can she do anything to help keep her temp up? I have read about a semi-dry wetsuit, is there any benefit to this suit or is it a marketing gimmick? She is using a very nice aqualung 7MM wetsuit now with a full vest hood 7MM boots and 5MM gloves.

 

[Bobbin-along]

I'll apologize ahead of time for those who disagree, but I never bought into the drysuits and beginners don't mix. OW students have successfully been trained from the beginning in a DS and didn't die from the experience.

Adding layers to her existing suit may work, but if she's that cold in 15 mintues she might look at a different type of suit. That is assuming the one she has fits properly and doesn't have gaping holes in the neck, arms, and feet which allow water in and heat out.

Semi-Dry suits. I haven't met anyone here at the dive club and of the surfers in the PNW that don't love their semi-dry suits. And they do keep your much drier and much less exchange of water, based on what my friends look like when the unzip.

Women are just colder than men, and changing to a drysuit adds a new dimension of testing clothing layers until you are warm enough. There are a few of us on here who have spent a significant amount of effort looking for the right baselayer combo for our drysuits. As it is, I have never been "toasty" warm compared to many (usually men) divers who rave about their baselayers. For example, I wear the Weezle or Pinnacle Merino Evolution base layers around the house and don't even get slightly overheated. Others think I'm insane.

So for your wife if she is just absolutely miserable cold, she may look at either borrowing or renting a drysuit from the LDS, take the class and see what she thinks. But the most important thing is that she find in drysuit land is a base layer system that works for her.

My delema is this, every single time I have been with a group diving in drysuits at least one of them has had a leak. Every time I look at a drysuit divers face it seriously looks as though they are having serious circulation issues through the neck of the suit. I hear of multiple problems regarding how bulky the suit is (granted these issues have been raised by students new to dry suits).

On the surface the seals are pretty snug, but once underwater you don't even notice them. I'm a choker when it comes to things around my neck but it's something not so tight to induce panic when on the surface. The suit is no more bulky (to me at least) than a 2 piece 7mil suit. You really do get used to it and find it to be very comfortable.

 

[Hockeynut]

I'd go ask the same question in the Great Lakes Wrecking crew. I would bet 90 percent of them dive dry and can probably give you some good answers.

 

[TeddyDiver]

If you feel perfectly cosy in a wetsuit, so stay with it. On the other you wife really could use one. Maybe a 5mm noeprene drysuit is the right for her. In my opinion it's better for smaller persons than a shellsuit.
I've never had a leak, ok, maybe a drop now and then, but not enough to make anything wet. Just got to be more carefull with sharp edges, rocks etc than with a WS. A DS also needs a bit more maintenance like zipper wax and "baby powder".

 

[loosebits]

Adding a drysuit adds another variable to buoyancy control. If she's already having problems, I would wait on the drysuit but Bobbin-along is right, people learn drysuit diving from the beginning and do just fine but I'm sure uncontrolled ascents are more common with newly carded drysuit divers compared with newly carded wetsuit divers.

Semi-drys are a viable option but they run a little more than a wetsuit and she's probably going to want a drysuit eventually anyway.

So, it's a tough decision. You can get her a semi-dry now knowing better options exist and when her skills improve, she'll probably want to go dry or you can get her a drysuit now and it will likely add another dimension to her discomfort. If she does get a drysuit, I would spend a lot of time with her in shallow water so she can practice dumping air and getting air out of her feet.

 

[amascuba]

It sounds as if the people that you are diving with don't have proper fitting drysuits and/or they are holes in the suit that is allowing water to enter the suit.

A proper fitting suit in good condition beats a wetsuit any day of the year. Drysuits do take time to get used to though. After a 20 or so dives it gets amazingly easier to dive and you will not look at a wetsuit the same way ever again.

 

[amascuba]

Semi-drys are a viable option but they run a little more than a wetsuit and she's probably going to want a drysuit eventually anyway.

My experience with semi-dry suits are that they are wetsuits with rubber seals around the calfs and forearms. I personally didn't find any difference in how a wetsuit or a semi-dry kept me warm.

 

[loosebits]

I've never dove a semi-dry but I've had a couple of buddies dive them and they seemed much warmer than they were in the equivalent wetsuit. I hear the most praises about the Mares Isotherm. It has a drysuit zipper and true neoprene neck and wrist and ankle seals.

The idea here is to limit water exchange so that your body only has to warm a volume of water once, not over and over again as with a typical wetsuit.

 

[SteveAD]

I agree with Bobbin on most points but take exception on one. Women are not inherrently colder than men, it has nothing to do with gender, it's all about body mass.

Now, in general, the average woman is smaller than the average man, so on average women tend to get colder quicker.

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My delema is this, every single time I have been with a group diving in drysuits at least one of them has had a leak. Every time I look at a drysuit divers face it seriously looks as though they are having serious circulation issues through the neck of the suit. I hear of multiple problems regarding how bulky the suit is (granted these issues have been raised by students new to dry suits).

Latex drysuit seals need to be trimmed so that they are snug without restricting circulation. If there is any change in face color the seal needs to be trimmed a bit bigger.

My problem is this, although I have no problem in 50 degree water, I still find I am warm when exiting the water, no shivering (well until I open the suit) and I wear only a hood not a hood vest so I can get more insulation if I want it. I am 6'4" and 245lbs and probably have a significant amount of "built-in" insulation. My wife on the other hand is 5'5" and 130lbs and wears a full hood vest and freezes her *** off. Shes good for maybee 20 minutes shes cold at about 15 minutes. I have thought of a drysuit for her but she has seen all the problems with it. She is also concered about the bulk of the suit and the additional work it may put on her diving.


You in a wetsuit and her in a drysuit would certainly help to equalize the cold tolerance disparity due to your respective sizes. As for her concerns with bulk, a good undergarment under a trilam type suit is usually far less restrictive than a multi layer wetsuit set up it sounds like she needs. With just a bit of practice it also becomes far easier to get into the drysuit.

Is it a good idea for a beginning diver to even attempt using a drysuit, especially a diver that is not completely comfortable in the water (she knows what she needs to do, but it is obvious that she is not completely comfortable)? Is there another way to increase her insulation without a drysuit? Can she do anything to help keep her temp up? I have read about a semi-dry wetsuit, is there any benefit to this suit or is it a marketing gimmick? She is using a very nice aqualung 7MM wetsuit now with a full vest hood 7MM boots and 5MM gloves.

It is not difficult to dive dry, it is just a bit different. Divers who go dry very early have less old habits that they have to change. A big part of her lack of comfort is likely due to being cold.

No one should just grab a drysuit and hit the beach, she should find a shop or insructor with a suit that fits reasonably well, and spend a few hours properly supervised in a pool to get comfortable in the suit and then try it in the cold.

 

[amascuba]

I've never dove a semi-dry but I've had a couple of buddies dive them and they seemed much warmer than they were in the equivalent wetsuit. I hear the most praises about the Mares Isotherm. It has a drysuit zipper and true neoprene neck and wrist and ankle seals.

The idea here is to limit water exchange so that your body only has to warm a volume of water once, not over and over again as with a typical wetsuit.

The suit I wore had the typical wetsuit zipper and that is where the most water exchange took place. It was cold!