wetsuits in Florida?

[Jherny]

hey guys,

any of you florida peps have some insight as to when ill ever need a wetsuit in florida other than diving the springs up in central FL?

will i need one for the "winter" months? if so, how thick? ect...

just got into diving this year and right now I've just gone in board shorts and one of those dry fit shirts to wear the BCD more comfortable.

thanks.

 

[Doby45]

It is dependent on the person. I have a 3mm and a 5mm full suit. I used my 3mm down in Pompano in 85* and it was like I was in warm pajamas. I was in the water a total of 1:30hrs and I was very comfortable. You have other people that will wear shorts and a tee shirt in 85* water. Wetsuits can be had for cheap..

 

[Banyan]

I wear a full 3mm in the winter off Key Largo, sometimes with a 3mm hood if I'm doing 4 dives in a day and the repetitive dives are causing me to dump body warmth. In the summer, my 1mm skin is fine. It's actually warm enough to dive in board shorts, but the skinsuit protects from the moon jellies that get bad in the summer.

 

[Jherny]

I wear a full 3mm in the winter off Key Largo, sometimes with a 3mm hood if I'm doing 4 dives in a day and the repetitive dives are causing me to dump body warmth. In the summer, my 1mm skin is fine. It's actually warm enough to dive in board shorts, but the skinsuit protects from the moon jellies that get bad in the summer.

good to know, thanks!

hows diving in key largo? i eventually want to make my way down there and check it out. who do you use out there? or do you have your own boat?

 

[Jherny]

It is dependent on the person. I have a 3mm and a 5mm full suit. I used my 3mm down in Pompano in 85* and it was like I was in warm pajamas. I was in the water a total of 1:30hrs and I was very comfortable. You have other people that will wear shorts and a tee shirt in 85* water. Wetsuits can be had for cheap..

thanks for the info.

 

[Banyan]

good to know, thanks!

hows diving in key largo? i eventually want to make my way down there and check it out. who do you use out there? or do you have your own boat?

It's hard to say, since it's all comparative. I just did my first dives off Key Largo after a two week dive vacation to Roatan and probably would have felt disappointed if I wasn't playing around with my new camera. Still, it's tropical diving with a lot of pretty fish, so I really can't complain.

I had grand plans to hit every dive shop in the Keys and write a huge SB comparative review. The main reason it petered out is that Quiescence Divers out of Key Largo is almost my ideal dive shop and I can't find much willpower to try somewhere new. Small boats, experienced crews, and a presumption that the diver knows what they're doing and doesn't want a nanny. You can find ops in the upper Keys that cater to every sort of diver and personality. There's a Florida subforum that will get you a lot of feedback on this topic.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I wear a 3/2 full suit in the height of summer on S. FL, including the Keys, but I admit it's often excessive. In winter months, a 5 mm full suit with a hood is my preference. When I was a newer diver, I wore a shorty. It seems the more I dive, the more I want to be downright toasty.

 

[seeker242]

I dove a 3mm over the winter and froze my a$$ off!

 

[Jherny]

I dove a 3mm over the winter and froze my a$$ off!

crap... really?

 

[stuartv]

Everybody handles temperatures differently. So, rather than ask what kind of wetsuit you need - which nobody but you can answer - you might be better off to simply ask what are the coldest temps you'll experience at any time of the year anywhere in FL.

I also feel the same way as Lorenzoid. I started off diving my 3/2 full wetsuit in anything down to as low as 71 or so. And I've always been comfortable. But, sometimes I have felt a little cool later in a dive in those temps. Maybe that's a little bit from my suit getting compressed a bit over time. Regardless, I have gotten to where I'll often wear something thicker now in those same conditions - because cool is comfortable, but warm is even comfortabler ;-). My last dive trip was to NC and the water on the bottom was 79. I wore my lightweight, breathable drysuit and was quite happy. Though, to be sure, I would have also been quite happy and comfortable in my 3/2. I was diving steel doubles and wanted the drysuit on that trip for redundant buoyancy.