Wetsuit / weighting

[krawlings]

I have been diving with a 3mm wetsuite and just perchased a 5mm . The quetion is how much more wieght do I need to add , going to the 5mm from the 3mm?
here is some info that may help . I wiegh 176 lb. I curently use 8lb. of added wieght. (4 in the trim pouch and 4 in the waist quick release pouchs)?

 

[redacted]

My wife adds 4 lb going from her 3mm to her 5mm suit and she is a good bit smaller than you. I suggest you add 6lb which should be quite safe and then decide if you can drop 1lb of that after a couple dives.

 

[CamG]

Greetings Krawlings and welcome to SB! The smell of fresh neoprene is a awesome thing is it not? I think your weighting this far sounds like you are a pretty well trimmed out diver. I would start by adding 1 or 2 lbs to each of your weight pockets and add or subtract from there. Go through the paces and perform a weight check at the surface then a fin pivot drill with 500 psi in your tank at 20 ft. This can be a fun exercise and a learning experience for all involved. If your suit is new it could take more weight than you might think but do not worry. Just make sure to train safely with it before doing much serious diving. Have fun and enjoy your new suit! What kind is it?
CamG Keep diving....keep training....keep learning!

 

[dkktsunami]

Your answer will be approximately 4 lbs. assuming all other things (water, equipment, etc.) remain the same. Do a buoyancy check at the end of a dive with appx. 500 psi and write down the results. I keep a list of weighting for different suits, different equipment, salt water and fresh. Difference between salt water and fresh, all other factors unchanged, will be about 6 lbs for average sized people.

 

[diverkun]

I am the same weight & use 8# with my 3 mm. going to a 5 mm I started with an additional 4# (12#) total then went down to 10# total - depends on the suit some times.

I would go with the others suggestion to start on the high end (4# extra) and adjust/take off weight as needed.

 

[krawlings]

I have the Sea Elite X FLEX5

 

[udtfire]

over the last 20 years i have played with this question on many ocassions and what i have come up with is a math formula 1.4 lbs per mm of wet suit plus 6 lbs female and 8 lbs male this should make you a little( very little) heavy but you can dive a little heavy safely but if your light you 1.can't dive or 2. risk and unavoidable asscent but with this formulia you should be able to adjust weight in the dive to become comfortable. sorry for the spelling but i hope this helps it has served me well as and instructor trying to quess weight for my divers remember its just a place to start seek training at your lds if the customer buys from us we put them in the pool for a one on one test fly