1st Ice Dive

[bill-da-ho]

yes, i have plenty of insulation,,lol.. after all, you dont see a walrus wearing anything beyond a 3 mil do you..haha

 

[Andy_HFC]

Dear lord, that sounds like madess. I dove last weekend in 46F, i had a 5mm full suit with a 5mm shortie over the top, plus the usual thicker areas around kidneys etc.

I was comfortable, but i couldn't have worn any less protection.

The thought of diving in colder water with less neoprene is frightening! I struggle to see the enjoyment in that.

I'm doing my dry suit training next week and getting a suit asap - too bloody cold getting changed in some random car park after a dive!

I would imagine it is dangerous, dexterity would worry me.

 

[bill-da-ho]

Dear lord, that sounds like madess. I dove last weekend in 46F, i had a 5mm full suit with a 5mm shortie over the top, plus the usual thicker areas around kidneys etc.

I was comfortable, but i couldn't have worn any less protection.

The thought of diving in colder water with less neoprene is frightening! I struggle to see the enjoyment in that.

I'm doing my dry suit training next week and getting a suit asap - too bloody cold getting changed in some random car park after a dive!

I would imagine it is dangerous, dexterity would worry me.

I have not dove in water warmer than 55f, I have been in 45f with my 3 mil and suffered no discomfort. I dont find that I am cold at all except for the initial dunking to get my suit wet. I will let everyone know the temp, and how it went today when I get back tho, trust me, if its not any fun, I aint doin it again!

 

[smoothfin]

I have not dove in water warmer than 55f, I have been in 45f with my 3 mil and suffered no discomfort.

yowza, i thought i was being a manly man when i did ice dives in a 7mm. 45f with a 3mm gives a whole new meaning to "cold-tolerant".
can't wait for the report on this experience.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

yes, i have plenty of insulation,,lol.. after all, you dont see a walrus wearing anything beyond a 3 mil do you..haha

Back in the day, I'd do ice dives in a 1/4" high waist wet suit (before they invented the farmer john) and after the second dive it was common to not be able to feel my feet. Hypothermia was a given.

Now, I do have a lot more "bioprene" as the medium size suit hanging in the dive locker has mysteriously turned into a 1X or 2X depending on the brand, but I am also a lot wiser than I was then.

Still, I used to dive a lot in an apline lake with several thermoclines and water temps that would vary from the mid 70's on the surface to 35 on the bottom in late summer. On shallower dives I would often use a one piece 3mm suit to go to 60 ft or so where the temps were in the 55 degree range and I did not get overly cold. But that is a LOT warmer than a 35 degree ice dive.

 

[Gary D.]

I've done working dives in 28df in a 1/4 High Waist, with a Beaver Tail like DA posted. They were stiff and comfort was not there yet but they worked ok.

Just because something is listed as the same size doesn't mean they are. Just go to a store and try on garments and shoes and you will see the same size isn't. Also sizes change from one country to another depending on where they were mfg.

Now about getting cold. Having more mass may or may not keep you warmer for a while. But something to keep in mind is once your body temp starts going down it doesn't instantly reverse when you get out of that enviroment. After removal your temp will continue to drop until the new warmer enviroment gets to the depth the colder temp reached to reverse the process. If you wait until you start shivering you may be in trouble even after you get into warmer conditions.

I'd wait until you get a suit that fits.

Gary D.

 

[Andy_HFC]

I have not dove in water warmer than 55f, I have been in 45f with my 3 mil and suffered no discomfort. I dont find that I am cold at all except for the initial dunking to get my suit wet. I will let everyone know the temp, and how it went today when I get back tho, trust me, if its not any fun, I aint doin it again!

Your tolerance for cold water must be way above average, i'm really skinny mind you, just take a glance under your suit and make sure you haven't got scales as opposed to skin!!

 

[bill-da-ho]

Well, just got back from the dive,, it went way better than yesterday!! I was more comfortable even befor I got in the water. the temp was 34f. went about 18 feet deep, swam about 75 feet from the ice hole. boyancy was the best I ever had, stayed about 2 feet above the bottom the whole time. I had really no discomfort beyond the initial dunking, took me about 2 minutes of bobbing in the ice hole befor I went down, this is usual for me on most of my dives tho. takes me a minute or to to get comfortable. We swam around a water inlet pipe for a few minutes checking things out, then started to circle at the end of the tether, about 15 minutes in the water I called the dive, my mouth was a bit cold, no problems there, but I started to feel cold under my arms, where the farmer john bibs and the upper dont double up. It was a good dive, as I am here typing this report out.... I will do this ice dive one more time in my 3 mil. I did enjoy it, but I will wait to do further dives under the ice for when I have a dry suit, if for no other reason than I can stay down longer and enjoy it. I really dont think it was as bad as some would believe tho, depends on the person I guess. Anyhow, it was a successful dive and I'm glad I did it.

 

[themagni]

Good work on the dive. I had to abort today's dive because it was too windy. It was so windy that a large fish was beaten to death against the rocks and seagulls were having trouble landing on it for lunchtime.

It looks like I was wrong about the exposure gear. It sounds like you've found something that works out well for you. I wouldn't have thought it possible, but there we go.

 

[Puffer Fish]

Ok, with a 2 piece 3mm, gloves, hood and boots... you should be able to stay alive for around 2 to 4 hours.. depending.... so a 15 minute dive gives you lots of margin for error.

And in say 34 degree water, your mouth would be... ah 34 degrees...having done a lot of ice dives, your description is missing a few details...