Wetsuit choice

[Prostardiver]

Hard to say where you are planning to dive, but to use Blue Stone as an example, it gets really chilly at depth. You can have lots of fun looking at the stuff and the nice fish, but when you step on down to the boat, (I think around 60 feet) it gets cold really fast.

There is a good reason why I have exposure protection for various situations. I currently have two dive skins, a 5 mil, a 7 mil, and a dry suit. The trick is to dress for the situation.

So my answer to the original question would be to do the homework, find out what the conditions are at that site, and dress accordingly.

 

[kbashara]

I just dove off of Va Beach yesterday and at 100' the bottom temp was 59 degrees. I have a 2/3 wetsuit and I froze my butt off! Hence, I am in the market for a thicker suit. Two years ago off of Nags Head, I dove in that same suit and marked a bottom temp of 52 degrees. Apparently, my head is as thick as my middle because I didn't learn then that nothing less than a 5 mil is recommended for those two areas in the summertime...

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[tablets]

I dive quarries a lot in the north and I always wear a 7m with 7m hood/boots and 5m gloves. I've dove in 100 degree days, but as soon as you hit the thermocline, you'll want the 7m. I just prefer to have the extra warmth in case you need it. Personally I never feel over heated in the water even if the surface feels like bath water. I prefer to have the comfort and not need it, rather then need it and not have it. I've dropped into some cold thermoclines and it's just not a pleasant dive under geared.

Just recently I was around 115ft in a quarry and the temps hit 39 degrees. My 7m setup wasn't cutting it.

 

[tdtaylor]

I took a look at a couple of quarry websites, and in combination with the three I go to, the surface is often around 75 in Summer, and drops about 10 degrees for every 30 feet of depth. In the quarries I dive, there are always very distinct thermoclines about every 30 feet +/-. I imagine your quarries are not much warmer. As mentioned above, if I am practicing deep in a quarry, my drysuit goes on, and I just make sure I am quickly in the water when diving in the Summer.

 

[maniago]

My wife and I will dive our OW cert this weekend in a VA quarry in 8/7 "semi dry" Aqualung wetsuits (they have cuff dams) that we got from Leisure pro for $350 shipped. We went to the max as we're from up-north and applied the standard rule: there is no such thing as bad weather (read: cold in this case), just bad clothing. I don't expect to ever need to buy another wetsuit for the DelMarVaPA quarries or off shore here and northwards....I might however be able to cook a full course meal in my wetsuit while I'm diving! haha

 

[Queequeg]

A 3 mil will not cut it....no way..no how..unless you wear 2 or 3 of them.

A dry suit..while expensive is more versatile than some may think. I wear mine in quarries..and ocean dives MD/NC/SC. The water temps can vary quite abit along the east coast on any given day. If you want to be cooler in the drysuit...lighten up your undergarments...it'll be as cool as you want. If its cold...layer up..you'll be toasty warm.... what-ev

Get a 3 mil or 2/3 for tropical diving and you should have all you need.