Wetsuit thicknesses advice for skinny folk

[New Hoo Diver]

My fiancée and I are headed to our open water certification dives in 1 month and are about to purchase wetsuits for our trip to the Caribbean. For the foreseeable future we plan to do warm-water diving (75 degrees plus). I posted a question about this on the new diver board (before I noticed the exposure suit board) and the overwhelming response was to get a 3mm suit. I told this to my LDS and they are very opposed to it. I firmly believe that they are not just trying to eke a few bucks out of us, but that they actually believe that 3mm suits will not be sufficient and want to sell us something that we will be happy with (we took a private lesson with one of them and liked him a lot). The suit that fits us both the best is the Henderson Hyperstretch. They are recommending that I get a 5mm and that my fiancée gets a 5/7 (she only fits into the junior which only comes in 3/5 or 5/7).

The key reason they are saying this is that we are very thin and therefore lose body heat quickly. I’m 5’10” 140 lbs and my fiancée is 5’5”, 95 lbs. We took our pool classes in 80 degree water and we did get cold, but we were in the water for a while and not that active. In general, I think we deal with cold water less well than other people (judging from pools, beaches), but neither of us has dove before so it is hard to tell how cold we will get. In addition to us being thin, they cite the following reasons for getting thicker suits:
- The Hyperstretch is not as warm as a regular wet suit
- They are easy to get on, so we avoid the key disadvantage of a thicker suit

Are there any divers with similar proportions or who have significant others / diving buddies that are that could comment on this?

This board has been a great discovery- I have learned a lot and hope to contribute something other than questions soon. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[Narced]

it simply depends...for my wife and I a 3mil is more than enought for that area. Thing is everyone's cold tolerance is different regardless of weight/height.

The LDS is erring on the right side in m opinion, tho, as you can always let water in, better to be warm than cold.

I guess the only real advice I can offer is how did you seem to compare with others in your class for cold tolerance during your OW? Did the LDS that is recommending the 5mil see you reaction to cold on dives at all?

Maybe as a general starting point if you feel that you may be more prone to cold from you dives so far, then maybe opt for the 5mil, if not the 3 is probably plenty.

Bottom line again tho, is that it just depends on your own tolerance. If you can gauge this against the masses and then go thicker or thinner based on that I think you will be safe tho.

 

[Narced]

Also-Few people I know have had a very good experience with the Hyperstretch suits. While I consider most of their suits to be very nice, maybe go with the gold core for the money rather than the hyperstretch. The gold core will be warmer in general relative to it's thickness (or so they claim), but should be considerably more durable for you as well.

 

[TwoBitTxn]

New Hoo,

I am built much like you are. When I was in Coz back in October I was 5'10" and 155. I've gained a little since. I was fine in my 3mm Akona. I would recommend a light hood. The only time I got cold was on the third dive of the day which was a night dive. Also consider diving in a pool is boring. You notice getting cold much quicker. Diving in Coz there is so much more to focus on you don't notice being lightly chilled if you are.

Best wishes to you both,

TwoBit

 

[rcohn]

My wife is 5' 4" and 108 lb, she gets cold easily. For diving in the upper 70s she uses a 5 mm suit of standard neoprene (not hyperstretch) and sometimes adds a hooded vest. I'm 6' 1" ~165-175 lbs and prefer a 5 mm suit for the mid seventies. Even at 78 degrees I'm adding a hood or hooded vest to a 3 mm suit after several days of diving.

Everyone's cold tolerance is different you'll need to see how you do. We may be wearing suits with hoods while others wear fleece skins and no hoods. Of course we often spend longer in the water than they do.

I haven't tried the hyperstretch but you might want to consider more standard neoprene such as the goldcore.

Ralph

 

[simonk999]

So I'm kinda skinny too, and like to be warmer rather than colder. That said, I'm happy with a 3mm, but always take a vest and mini-hood just in case. The slick lined suits (e.g. gold core) are warmer if they fit well.

 

[Mike Newman]

Originally posted by New Hoo Diver
I posted a question about this on the new diver board (before I noticed the exposure suit board) and the overwhelming response was to get a 3mm suit.
Are there any divers with similar proportions or who have significant others / diving buddies that are that could comment on this?

New Hoo - I'm just about 6 feet tall and 170 lbs. I have just had a great diving holiday in the Mediterranean, where the water temps ranged from 69 - 74.

I wore a custom 3mm shorty from www.aquaflite.com

It was toasty! I guess you know though only too well that fit is everything. I should add as well that I had the advantage of Aquaflite's Ocean Liner 'titanium-like' lining. This definitely makes a difference.

We're all different and the only way you're going to know for sure what you and your buddy need is to check it out. Sensibly, it's always better to be too warm.

MN

 

[DuckDive]

I would just like to second (err, third?) the comments about hoods. I'm sure you are aware that heat loss from the head accounts for a significant portion of the total cooling effect. You can increase the effective temp range of a wetsuit quite a lot by adding the option of a hood.

Having said that, you can only rely on your own personal experience for this kind of thing... and as you don't have that yet... well.. you just have to go with your gut. If you trust your LDS and they are "very opposed" to a 3mm, perhaps it's because they know you better than we do. I must say tho that from here 5/7 sounds like overkill.

It might ease your burden to consider that your wardrobe will probably not be complete with only one wetsuit - whatever you choose now, sooner or later you'll most likely need the other as well . Err on the safe side.

Personally: 5' 9" 150lb and headed for the Carib with a 3mm Gold Core and a 2mm hood. I'm guessing, but pretty confident it'll work just fine.

Good luck, and have fun!

Mark.

 

[DaveO]

Hey, trim people! I dove in Grand Cayman this past April. Water temp was low 80's each dive, and a 3/2 suit worked well enough for me. I'm 6'4", 180, about 9.5% body fat, and get chilled easily. Got chilled on the night dives.

I recommend a hood too, and apologies in advance if this is too obvious, but in the spirit of "never use unfamiliar equipment for the first time on a dive", I'd suggest you try out the hood in the pool *before* an open water dive. I drew stares and laughs with a mask and hood in the pool, but now I know how to adjust it and clear it- something I wouldn't want to learn in the deep blue!

Best of luck to you and yours!

 

[Zept]

I am 1.60m (5'4") and 47kg (105lbs) and also get cold easily. I wear a 3/2mm fullsuit with a 3mm vest over the top in 27-30C water (80-86F) and it isn't really enough. I stay warm on the first dive of the trip, but after that I'm always chilled after 50-60 mins. I wish I'd bought a 5mm suit (and I'm trying to persuade my boyfriend to buy me one for my birthday!).

One thing I found was that as you get more experienced and your buoyancy control improves, you move around less underwater and you get cold more quickly. When I first started diving, a 3mm shortie was enough. Now, I'd just laugh if you offered me one.

Also, if you get the 5mm suits, don't pass judgement on them until you've done a few dives. Brand-new neoprene is very warm (and very buoyant). After a few dives it settles down.

Hope that helps,

Zept