Weight

[Paladin]

This past Saturday, I went over to Circleville to dive Twin Quarries. The weather was nasty with thunderstorms, dark skies and a lot of wind. One of the requirements there is that all divers wear a BC. I normally don't use a BC and this was the first time in over twenty years that I'd had one on. Since the weather was on the chilly side, I decided to do something else that I have very rarely done: wear a wetsuit. Now when it comes to using a full, relatively thick wetsuit, I'm afraid I am a newbie, in spite of all my years of diving. I have always preferred diving without one. I have an old Henderson shorty that is very thin. I think it's a 1.5mm, but I'm not really sure. It isn't very buoyant and only needed a couple of pounds of weight to counter it. Unfortunately, I've gained a bit of weight since I used it last and it shrunk. So, I decided to rent one from Todd's Scuba Shop at Twin Quarries.

The only wetsuit he had that would fit was a 5mm jumpsuit. I was using my AL80 with 10 pounds of weight on my belt. I got into the water and found that I could not sink, in spite of a completely deflated BC. I was too light. I ended up with 16 pounds of weight on my belt. It made me a bit heavy at the beginning of the dive but light (about neutral) at the end.

My question is: is this about right for a 5mm wetsuit? 16 pounds seems a bit much to me.

 

[imwright1985]

3mm adds about 4 lbs i think so i wouldnt say its a rediculous amount. figure about 4 lbs for the al80 and about 6ish for the wetsuit puts you at 10, bc may add a 1/2 lb to 2lbs, and depending on the way you gained weight, could easily be the extra you arnt thinking of

 

[spectrum]

With an AL 80 I need 14 with a 5mm full suit and 3/5 chicken vest. You were in the ballpark is the most I can say. Your body composition, the condition of the suit and a host of other factors could swing it.

However if I read you right, you ended the dive neutral with an empty BC and I assume you were in control all the way back to the surface and did not "cork". If that is all true then you were what I'd consider to be textbook perfect.

Pete

 

[Jim Lapenta]

It is what it is. No one can say what the correct amount of weight is for you. I use 4 lbs with a 3 mil full suit in saltwater with a steel BPW. 8 with a 5mil. Looking back thru my log the last time I used a 5 mil with an al80 was over 3 years ago. I required 14 lbs with a standard jacket bc. I was at that time 5'7" and around 140 lbs. I'm now right at 160.

 

[sambolino44]

16 lbs may be a bit more than you actually needed, but maybe not. If you aren't used to using a BC, you may not have been getting absolutely all the air out. A bit heavy at the beginning and about neutral at the end is just what you want; if you keep doing the same dive and eventually find you can drop some pounds, then you'll know it was too much. Otherwise, just take the lead and be happy. If you want to see ridiculous, come up here to dry suit land and we'll easily double down on that 16 lbs!

 

[Paladin]

Thanks, guys. Having to relearn buoyancy control (because of wearing a wetsuit) after all these years is a bit embarrassing, but I'm getting a bit too old to dive to any depth in skin. I can't seem to handle the cold like I used to. I liked the 5mm suit I used on Saturday and I'm seriously thinking about getting one.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I should be able to dump 5 pounds of weight when I use my old steel 72.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Thanks, guys. Having to relearn buoyancy control (because of wearing a wetsuit) after all these years is a bit embarrassing, but I'm getting a bit too old to dive to any depth in skin. I can't seem to handle the cold like I used to. I liked the 5mm suit I used on Saturday and I'm seriously thinking about getting one.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I should be able to dump 5 pounds of weight when I use my old steel 72.

No, not 5 maybe 3 lbs.

 

[imwright1985]

depends on the MFG (because of wall thickness) there are charts that list general bouyancy properties of tanks just base it off of the highest number and that al80's usually are 4. i would start by dropping 3 or so and use some 1lbs to experiment with then drop the weight off after you see how your bouyancy acted during a dive to get it set about right since its better to be slightly overweighted than underweighted

here is a link Scuba Cylinder Specification Chart from Huron Scuba, Ann Arbor Michigan

 

[Paladin]

My AL80 is a Catalina S80. Empty it is +4 pounds. My old Healthways steel 72 is about -5 pounds full and about -1 pound empty. It has always been my habit to adjust between the two by using a five pound weight. I wear the weight when I use the AL80 and dump it when I use the 72. This has always worked for me when diving without a wetsuit.

 

[SailNaked]

I was on a trip to Mexico after buying a new 3MM full wetsuit and read all the posts about how much weight to use and I calculated I would need about 12# so for the first dive that is what I used, then on the second dive I got to the bottom at 60ft and realized that I had forgotten my weight belt on the boat, since it was a drift dive I did not want the group to split up so the DM handed me 2# to keep my feet from floating up, and I got 4# from my wife on the safety stop so that I could do it head up. weight is a relative thing, good to be able to borrow some from your relatives at the safety stop.