What do you wear when the water is in the mid to upper 70's?
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that temperature is tricky for me. it wouldn't have to be much colder for me to put a drysuit on, but have been relatively happy at that temperature in a 5/7 mm semi-dry with a neoprene vest and hood, even for liveaboard diving.
exposure protection is a personal thing, it's hard to generalise.
But... it is not a wet _suit_ it is just a top. TO me... any suit that is not a drysuit... (And even some of those
) Are wet suits. A skin is a wetsuit, a rashguard is a wetsuit. A thin neo can just as well be a rashguard... There is not much isolation in this "sweater", so I'll continue to call it a rashguard. 
grantwiscour
Contributor
We dive a 3 mil full suit when the water temp is in the seventies.
I have rashguards and one chillguard. Chillguard decidedly not a skin suit and also not strictly a rashguard. Just top also.
But... it is not a wet _suit_ it is just a top. TO me... any suit that is not a drysuit... (And even some of those
And I'll continue to call it a shortie or jacket-only wetsuit with lycra rash guard arms. A wetsuit, traditionally speaking, uses the thin film of water warmed by body heat moving very slowly or trapped within the neoprene wetsuit, and the cells within the neoprene, as thermal insulation. Skins provide no thermal insulation because they, unlike wetsuits, are completely and instantly water permeable and extremely thin, like nylon stockings or tights.
Of course, wetsuits and drysuits and deep sea diver hardhat gear are also rash guards in the broadest sense, because they perform that function. So do submarines. Lycra skins are much more portable and practical, guarding against sun, jellyfish and the like just as they were designed to do. They fit like a second skin, almost undetectable by the wearer, hence the name.
Above 72 degrees under an hour 3 mill, over an hour 5 mill over two hours Drysuit. 65-72 it's a 5 mill to an hour 7 mill or Semidry to 2 hours dry after that. Under 65 is usually Semidry up to 45 min and dry above that or below 60.
---------- Post added December 11th, 2014 at 09:03 PM ----------
But I dive in the Northeast.... Cold is relative.
---------- Post added December 11th, 2014 at 09:03 PM ----------
But I dive in the Northeast.... Cold is relative.
dumpsterDiver
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For WPB you can probably get by with a full 3 mm suit and a hooded vest. I prefer a full 5 mm suit and 3 mm hooded vest if the air is cool, or a separate 3 mm hood if it is warm. If the weather gets really cold, a great combination is a 5 mm full suit, 3 mm hooded vest and then wear the other 2-3 mm hood over that. With 5-6 mm on your head and a good seal around your neck, you can be pretty comfortable in low 70's water and without a lot of constriction. The water in WPB can drop to around 66 in the winter... summertime temps can be much, much colder.. low 50's.
It is absolutely essential to have a good knitted ski cap for the surface interval and a long, wind proof coat as well.
Tony387
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From 75-50°, I dive a 5mm. Below 65°, I break out the gloves and hood. Below 50°, I use a 7mm.
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