Are dry suits worth it?

[James R]

For me, no question about it. I wear mine about 1/2 the year. I do not own, and do not want to own, a 7mm or thicker wetsuit.

1. My drysuit is just as comfortable as my 5mm. Easier to don/doff too.
2. It has a p-valve, which doesn't seem like that big of a benefit, but I drink a lot of coffee (ok some water too) and hey, it's nice to not smell like pee after a dive.
3. Much warmer in winter, even at a spring fed lake we use that is 71-72 degrees year round. Getting out of the water in drysuit = no big deal when it's 35-45 degrees, a lot colder soaking wet.

I just used it cage diving with great white sharks for 3 days, right at 24hrs in the water - was not cold, didn't have to get out of it to use the restroom. I put it on around 615am and didn't take it off until they closed the cages -- crew brought us food, drinks, etc anytime - one of the best trips of my life, and I've been really lucky as far as travel goes.

Mine is a DUI CLX450 signature series and should last a very long time. Worth every penny.

 

[guruboy]

The exchange rate isn't really that much different. Pre-Brexit the Pound was about $1.45, today its about $1.30

Still about 10% less on top of already lower prices.

 

[northernone]

After freezing in wetsuits and pouring hot water in the suit to stretch the dive I had enough of cold.

Two used dry suits and a set of wrist seals later I'm not regretting my drysuit switch. And haven't missed a dive.

That said, at multiple thousand dollars if I needed to buy retail I'd have invested in time off work and more diving instead of a suit. Plenty to see shallow and warm.

Enjoy your diving.
Cameron

 

[BreeAbyss]

I love my drysuit! I have a DUI flx 50/50 which I'm sad to see is no longer made. It allows me to dive in water in the 30s and 40s comfortably. I've never had a leak (now that I say that I'm sure I will lol). The only thing is it sucks to take off to pee, especially if you have to use an outhouse or a cramped boat toilet. A p valve would fix that but it looks like a big hassle for girls... One day. My drysuit is honestly one of the best purchases of my life

 

[SeaHorse81]

My drysuit is the only reason I'm still diving. I'd have quit several years ago due to being fed up with getting cold all the time no matter how much neoprene I wore (gave up after even the custom 7 mil suit wasn't enough). It's more of a pain in some ways, less so in others. But getting cold is just not something I spend much time worrying about any more, and that's amazing.

 

[BRT]

I was determined to dive wet when we went back to cold water diving. I was wrong. Even damp dry suits are warmer than wetsuits. Usually you don't know you have a leak until you take the suit off. But usually they don't leak. Being able to blow the suit up as I get out of the water in freezing weather is worth it on its own.

 

[Vegan Shark]

Drysuits are wonderful. I find them a lot easier to use for buoyancy control than a BC as well--if you open your shoulder valve all the way, it'll automatically vent as you go up, meaning you never have to use your hands to take out air. Nice for photography, since you can keep your hands on the camera.

There's definitely a lot more maintenance and care involved than a wetsuit, and diving in a flooded drysuit sucks (it's nothing like diving a wetsuit, since wetsuits are skin tight and allow very little water in. A fully flooded drysuit feels like your body is stuck inside a waterbed.)

But, even with the maintenance and costs they are worth every penny.

Just a word of advice on undergarments: there's no reason to get scuba undergarments versus regular warm base layers made for snow sports etc. It's usually all made from the same materials: polyester, nylon, and spandex. Nothing special about scuba undergarments--they just charge you hundreds of dollars extra since scuba is a niche market and people are willing to shell out lots of cash.

 

[BreeAbyss]

Just a word of advice on undergarments: there's no reason to get scuba undergarments versus regular warm base layers made for snow sports etc. It's usually all made from the same materials: polyester, nylon, and spandex. Nothing special about scuba undergarments--they just charge you hundreds of dollars extra since scuba is a niche market and people are willing to shell out lots of cash.

I find the undergarment comment to be untrue for me personally. In the winter I snowmobile in the mountains in very cold temperatures and windchill and I can't wear my warmest snowmobiling underwear and be warm in my drysuit. Winter sport undies are often much thinner and excellent at wicking away sweat because you are working hard. My drysuit undies are extremely fluffy and have a lot of air space to keep me warm. I will wear my winter long undies under my drysuit undies if it's a really cold day but I find the high loft of the drysuit specific undies to be necessary in keeping me warm under water. I'm also not working as hard so I rely on that air space rather than my own body temp. I also get cold easily ...

 

[AJ]

I dive Santi E-Lite. After 40 or so wet dives I changed to drysuit and never looked back. Not even sure if I want to dive in wet suit ever again, even in the tropics. I had my share of problems (leaky zipper), but I do not want to trade in my drysuit for wet suit ever again. Loved diving dry.

 

[Storker]

I find the undergarment comment to be untrue for me personally. In the winter I snowmobile in the mountains in very cold temperatures and windchill and I can't wear my warmest snowmobiling underwear and be warm in my drysuit. Winter sport undies are often much thinner and excellent at wicking away sweat because you are working hard. My drysuit undies are extremely fluffy and have a lot of air space to keep me warm. I will wear my winter long undies under my drysuit undies if it's a really cold day but I find the high loft of the drysuit specific undies to be necessary in keeping me warm under water. I'm also not working as hard so I rely on that air space rather than my own body temp. I also get cold easily ...

Seconded.

A neo DS is usually fine with normal winter underwear. A trilam suit requires a good undersuit made for diving. Mine is 200 gsm thinsulate with polarfleece lining; if I'd use that for anything other than slouching around during the SS, I'd get heatstroke