Boat entry in drysuit

[mainedvr]

Have not yet dove in my drysuit from a boat. Just wondering what issues with entry into the water could arise and how others have handled them. I can see if you had significant air in the suit it would burp through the seals and cause some flooding. Thanks

 

[Marie13]

Burp your suit before getting geared up the rest of the way?

 

[KevinNM]

No. you should have burped you suit. You step off the boat and splash into the water, no problem. Even when you get air pushing past the neck seal you don't get that much water in. If you pull the neckseal open in an emergency, then yes, you will flood the suit.

 

[Subcooled]

Squat down and hug yourself tightly. Excessive air will leave the suit (unless you forgot to open the purge valve). Unless you do this, you'll float like a balloon, once in water, and feel stupid It is much easier to descend too, with all that air left on the boat.

If your suit has a user replaceable quick-lock neck seal, then do yourself a favour, and make sure it is properly and correctly attached. Closing the drysuit zipper is also a recommended thing to do. People have forgotten to do that.

These things are easier to correct on the deck or when wading of course.

 

[Storker]

Squat down and hug yourself tightly. Excessive air will leave the suit (unless you forgot to open the purge valve). Unless you do this, you'll float like a balloon, once in water, and feel stupid It is much easier to descend too, with all that air left on the boat.

If you're one of those who dive with the shoulder valve open (like I do), just a couple of minutes in the water with your feet down will expel most excess air left in the suit. And I prefer sticking a finger under the neck seal when I hug myself; the air gets out a lot faster that way. The shoulder valve is a bit slow.

 

[grf88]

The first backroll in a drysuit can be entertaining.

 

[lerpy]

I burp my suit when gearing up, leave my valve open when I splash, then when I am about 20 feet down I close it.

 

[Mustard Dave]

The first backroll in a drysuit can be entertaining.

I posted in another thread about that. There is a little fishing boat in Scotland converted into a liveaboard. There is no opening on the gunwale, so you have to step over it to jump in. The re is a small ledge on the outside, but it is about four inches at most, so it can be quite tricky, especially with twins and stages. One of my mates decided he could backwards roll it, but unlike a RIB, there is a fair old drop to the water. The result was a boat-full of people laughing as they watched a pair of fins poking out of the water, drifting away from the shot line!

To answer the OP, as others say, just empty the suit first. Some air may come past the neck seal, but any water will be pushed out of the way. If any does come in, it will only be a few drops. Make sure you go feet first, so you don't look stupid, like my mate.

 

[Storker]

Some air may come past the neck seal, but any water will be pushed out of the way.

I and my mates tuck our neck seal no matter what type it is (neoprene, latex or silicone). With a well-fitting seal, I've never had - or seen - issues with air burping out from a tucked neck seal. The tuck makes the bubble squeeze the seal even tighter against the neck. AFAIK an untucked neck seal loses suit air a lot easier.

 

[Gareth J]

youtube link to divers doing negative entries with drysuits.


Divers entering the water in the blockships in Scapa flow.
(This dive although shallow, 20m, is very tidal with big currents that sweep divers off the sites if they don't descend quickly).