Unpressurised Dry Suit for Shallow Surface Supplied Air Diving

[rx7diver]

... are there any "manual" inflation options for a drysuit - i.e. breath in and use whatever hose/adaptor to then breath air into the drysuit like a manual bcd inflation? ...

+1

rx7diver

 

[lowwall]

During the 1950s and early 1960s, shallow-water diving was routinely undertaken in a valveless unpressurised drysuit, e.g.:

In February 1961, the Santa Cruz Sentinel published the above article about the "Golden Tiger" drysuit made in Loveland, Ohio, by the So Lo Marx Rubber Company. This "Skooba-"totes" drysuit proved its worth as an exposure suit for a snorkeller diving the Pacific Ocean in search of shellfish for the table.

The "Golden Tiger" drysuit above is from my diving history collection and I have used it while snorkelling in the North Sea off the coast of North East England.

I found the suit warm, dry and liberating for surface snorkelling off North Sea beaches since the thin material will not bind arms or legs when moving through the water. Thanks to water pressure, deeper dives will expel all or most residual air, flattening the suit against the body, but shallower dives will have less impact.

It is all in the preparation. Donning the footed trousers is relatively straightforward, while the hooded top may need a little soapy water or talc for lubrication when passing the arms through the sleeves, especially if perspiring on a hot day. Beach shoes or fins should be worn over the feet to prevent abrasion.

After dressing, suit watertightness necessitates careful sealing of the sleeve cuffs against the wrists, the hood aperture edge against the face and, last but not least, the jacket and trouser waist skirts, which must be twisted together into a leaktight roll between the top and bottom of the suit.

The final stage of the process is venting the air trapped inside the suit. Failure to do so will lead to the suit ballooning in the water and preventing even shallow submersion. Residual air is removed by walking slowly into the water, which will result in the air being squeezed upwards from the trouser legs by water pressure and then released from the suit by raising a wrist or hood seal momentarily from the skin.

The critical difference is that this is made from an elastic material. The material stretches, allowing the wearer to retain mobility and avoid squeeze injuries like crease "hickeys" even as the external pressure increases.

 

[Bert van den Berg]

Hello!
I have an opportunity to do some surface-supplied diving at depths smaller than 12m for videography (I only have experience with regular SCUBA, but will practice in a pool at a nearby club.)

Unfortunately, the water in Ireland isn't particularly balmy a lot of the year, and I was wondering about using a drysuit. I see threads here when divers say that the squeeze isn't so bad down to 20m, with others describing a contrary experience. Venues like "Silfra Iceland snorkeling" seem to offer dry suit diving on a commercial basis, although I don't know whether they descend with them.

Is there any consensus on the board regarding the viability of shallow diving with a dry suit?

Thank you for your time!

I agree that a small pony bottle would solve the problem.

Here is a video of my wife diving on a Hookah and wearing a small pony bottle on her back

Also has the advantage of providing air in case the Hookah stops for some reason which has happened to me several times.