Wetsuit vs Drysuit while in Cold Water

[elmer fudd]

scjoe,

When conditions permit, which is most of the summer up here diving wet if by far my choice. I'm comfortable and capable in my dry suit but nothing (to me) beats the sheer carefree simplicity of a wet suit. Any way I look at it, from ease of use, ease of donning, dealing with summer heat, maintenance cost/risk etc. When it's a tossup for underwater comfort the wet suit usually wins out. Many of the downsides of diving dry are not even on the radar screen when diving wet.

Consider the dry suit a tool. For the right dives in the right conditions it's indispensable but it's not the only game in town.

Pete

+1

You summed up my own feelings perfectly.

---------- Post added May 1st, 2013 at 05:08 PM ----------

I dive wet here in Puget Sound whenever I can. For me that means dives of 60' or less from around April to November. Depth is very important if you are diving wet in cold water. As that suit compresses it gives you less insulation. If you're in cold water and you're going deep, get a drysuit. Outside temperature is also very important. On a 90 degree summer day diving wet feels refreshing and wonderful. When it's rainy and 40 degrees out it's just miserable.

I often swim in Puget Sound as well and I find that my body does acclimatize to the cold somewhat. If you are regularly swimming and diving wet in cold water it stops having that shocking effect when you enter it. You still lose a lot of body heat in the process though, you just aren't bothered by it as much. If you find you can't stop shivering an hour later then you're overdoing it.

 

[Panama Jones]

Thank you all. I will rent and Drysuit this summer and give it a try. I double checked my logbook. My coldest dive was 45 degrees in a 7mm full with and added 7mm vest (14mm on core). I was 38 minutes at a max depth of 43 feet. I wrote in my book that I was comfortable but I think that just compared expectation of freezing my a$$ before the dive. If I remember now the better word would be tolerable. BTW, this is Lac Beauvert, Jasper, Alberta if any are familiar. My next dive was at 54 degrees but it was four hours later and I was very comfortable.

I am told I am very cold tolerant but to the guy that dives 41 degrees in a straight 6.5mm semi...wow.

BTW, the only time I was ever super cold.. two weeks ago in Puerto Vallarta, full 3mm at 69 degrees, first dive was cool but fine. 2nd dive was a 45 minute boat ride later, my partner put on a vest over her 3mm, I said I was fine and left my 3mm full on for the 45 minute boat ride to the second site (stupid). Below the thermoocline, I went crazy cold, lasted a few minutes, I thought I could almost see the PSI on my gauge dropping, looked at my computer and it read the same 69 degrees (I though for absolute sure we were in the 50s). I signalled to climb above the thermocline to finish the dive. Golden rule..if diving wet, get out of the suit as soon as your out of the water.

 

[doctormike]

Thank you all. I will rent and Drysuit this summer and give it a try.

You generally aren't able to rent a drysuit without the certification card (and it's not a great idea even if you could). Look for one of the demo days in your area (DUI or other company).

 

[Steve_C]

One thing not mentioned is the need to stay dry in a dry suit. If you are diving dry and spring a major leak for some reason, then you have a problem, possibly a major problem, especially if your drysuit is one that does not have insulation value of its own. Not saying that dry is not the right choice for many folks but there are risks and you should take better care of it then those of us who sometimes abuse our wet suits.

 

[elmer fudd]

One thing not mentioned is the need to stay dry in a dry suit. If you are diving dry and spring a major leak for some reason, then you have a problem, possibly a major problem, especially if your drysuit is one that does not have insulation value of its own. Not saying that dry is not the right choice for many folks but there are risks and you should take better care of it then those of us who sometimes abuse our wet suits.

I think that just the cost alone has that effect. When you've just dropped $1200 or more on a drysuit you tend care for it a bit better.

That said though, I've been wet many times while diving dry and it's usually not that big a deal. My old Mobbys armorshell didn't hold up very well to abuse and it always seemed to have a few pinhole leaks I couldn't quite find or it would spring a few new ones, (I hated that suit). It was common for me to come up from a dive with a damp sleeve or leg. Later I bought a Hydroglove vintage reproduction drysuit and I got soaking wet in that a few times. I remember wringing the water out of my sleeve once after a dive and it was like a waterlogged towel, but even breached I find a drysuit is warmer than a wetsuit.

I'm sure a drysuit could have the zipper or a seam fail in a spectacular way and cause a total flooding, but I have never seen it. I'm kind of curious how many divers have.

 

[maj2]

I dove for ten years plus in a wetsuit from April to November, mostly in
Lake Huron, in temps often in the mid to upper 30s at depth. The older I got, the colder it felt.
Then I got my drysuit last winter.
I can say with certainty that it feels warmer. Especially on repetitive dives.
Started ice diving this winter. I would not have wanted to do that wet.
Should have invested in a drysuit much sooner.

 

[tracydr]

I have never dove a drysuit. I have been in cold water in a full 7mm, then a 7mm step in vest (for 14mm) and hoodiesn gloves, and booties.

I am a little cold at 40 - 45 degrees (but tolerable) and comfortable at 45 to 55 degrees.

There are two stories I hear all the time. Story 1: At depth, you are just as warm or warmer in you wetsuit, it's when you get out that hurts. Story 2: I'll be way warmer in a drysuit at depth.

I dive the cold mountain lakes of Canada. In know enough to peel off the minute I am out of the water and get into something warm till the next dive regardlesz of the temp outside.

Any thoughts? Should I stay or should I go (dry)?

I didn't have the money while I was a medical intern and dived the Puget Sound for a year in a wet suit. It was a Farmer John so it was a 13 ml on the body, I think.I rented it from the military base along with my other gear for an amazingly cheap price of $25 a weekend and would go shore diving. i think that included 2, maybe even more tanks. I stayed pretty pretty warm, until I got to 100 feet. It was also pretty chilly on the surface interval. I don't think I'd want to dive that way ever again but it was a lot better than not diving when that wonderful, world class Pacific NW Puget Sound was right in my backyard. I was a brand new diver and all those shore dives were a great way to learn.
I now have a nice drysuit after years of longing for one. I wouldn't dive any temperatures less than 70 without it. Maybe if the surface temps are extremely hot and its a very short dive in shallow water I would dive wet. I did dive wet in Galapegos when we were there but I didn't have a drysuit yet and I think if we were to return I would probably dive with a drysuit. Really, I'm getting too old for the cold water wetsuit stuff!
There are many things I love about my drysuit. It's a trilam and I can change the undergarments depending on the temperature. I love being warm and dry on the surface. I love that it drys in literally an hour, is light and easy to pack.
It requires more maintenance, is expensive and there's a learning curve as far as the bouyancy. I wish i didn't have to worry about the female urinating issues but i just purchased a She-pee and will be practicing with that in the pool this weekend.
Once you learn to use the air in it to your advantage, I find it actually can help you in maintaining horizontal trim and can be quit advantageous, especially in cold water where you're going to need more weight with a wetsuit or drysuit. I actually dive with less weight with my drysuit than with a 7 ml but that really depends on undergarment and a lot of other factors.
Overall, I find a lot of use still for my 3 ml wetsuit, maybe a little use for my 5ml ( lake diving in 115 degree temps with cold lake temps) but I don't ever see myself getting into a 7 ml again. Actually, as I get faster at getting my drysuit on, I'll dive less with the wetsuit, even on hot summer days out at the lake. It's a matter of getting it on quickly and getting wet to cool off, then finishing the gearing up process, after getting myself wet down, so that I don't die of heat exhaustion.

 

[abies]

There is a reason pretty much everyone who dives mountain lakes in AB dive dry, the water is cold and the air is rarely that warm. Dry is always warmer, after my drysuit my next best purchase was my dry gloves, those are fantastic.
Ben

 

[BRT]

There is a reason pretty much everyone who dives mountain lakes in AB dive dry, the water is cold and the air is rarely that warm. Dry is always warmer, after my drysuit my next best purchase was my dry gloves, those are fantastic.
Ben

The drysuit allows you to maintain, or even increase, insulation thickness at depth. Hard to beat that. And when you are ready to get out of the water you hit the inflate button and gain a bunch of insulation. No real comparison on warmth. If someone is tough enough or hot blooded enough to enjoy diving a wetsuit in cold water, more power to them. I would if I could but it takes the fun out of the second dive. And the dry suit is easier to get in and out of.

 

[tracydr]

One thing not mentioned is the need to stay dry in a dry suit. If you are diving dry and spring a major leak for some reason, then you have a problem, possibly a major problem, especially if your drysuit is one that does not have insulation value of its own. Not saying that dry is not the right choice for many folks but there are risks and you should take better care of it then those of us who sometimes abuse our wet suits.

With the right undergarment, you should be able to have a complete flood and still stay reasonably warm at least long enough to complete your dive. Maybe not toasty but safely warm. I had a pretty good flood last time I dove and I hardly even knew that my undergarment was sopping wet.