DUI drysuit with no valves? Probably some dumb questons...

[jpodesta]

Hi everyone I am new to the forum and to scuba I have a question that should be an easy answer unfortunately I probably already know the answer but wanted some conformation and opinions, I have been looking at drysuits a little while for the cold water season mostly just for hull maintenance on my sailboat I have never used a drysuit but the idea sounds nice.

After looking at them used online it looked like DUI was a pretty common brand and decided to go with that.

I found the perfect one at first good price lightly used with new seals and valves but I was unable to preceed due to complications with the seller.

So in a hurry to find another I spot one that was advertised as new never used with tags and camouflage military color, that sounds cool and my size with the sock feet better for my large foot, but in my rush to buy it I didn't research the model or notice it didn't have any valves! Only noticed it when I was getting ready to trim the wrists and neck.

After looking at the model and some internet search it's the AAOPS type 4, or air amphibious operations suit I guess just for surface use? I wasn't even aware DUI made a suit not for diving, my bad... so here is where my dumb questions start is this suit built the same as all other dui diving suits? just without the valves? Since I'm only going to be cleaning a boat hull and prop on a hookah rig setup could vent air out the neck/wrist or could I send it in somewhere and have valves put on it? The zippers sure look water proof and it has the normal style dui zip neck and wrist seals, has built in socks. I also don't imagine I'll be diving more then 10ft and my rig is only good for 30.

I am assuming the answer to my question is this is a horrible idea, don't even try it and it won't work but I guess it doesn't hurt to ask and get the idea out of my head hah.

If someone could please give me some insight on this it would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

 

[Polarorbit]

You are undertaking a task for which you have neither the training nor experience. There are inherent risks to breathing compressed air, even at just 10 feet depth. I strongly recommend you get SCUBA training before using your hookah. Likewise, diving with a drysuit is a specialized skill that requires additional training.

Once you have the appropriate training and experience, you certainly can dive your drysuit without valves. You’ll be quite uncomfortable due to squeeze and you won’t be particularly warm since you won’t have air in the suit to insulate you. You’ll also need buoyancy control device.

Adding valves isn’t a particularly difficult task. You can do it yourself or send it to a place like DRIS.

Again, a 10 foot dive is still a dive. Please take an Openwater SCUBA course to learn how to dive safely.

 

[Lorenzoid]

That suit is not designed for scuba diving. As @Polarorbit said, you might be able to have valves installed on the suit. But without the ability to add compressed air to the suit as you descend--even to depths as shallow as 10-15 feet--the suit will squeeze you so much that you will be unable to do even a simple task like hull maintenance. You're in FL, and diving drysuits come up for sale frequently. Wait a bit and find a proper suit for diving.

Oh, and if you're not scuba certified, take the course. No one will rent you a tank of air unless you show them a certification card. For hull maintenance (which I admittedly know little about) I suppose you could use a surface-supplied "hookah" setup instead of having a tank on your back, but you should still know what you're doing--take the course.

 

[Thunder Struck]

Had a couple of these used suits come through my LDS. I believe the material was a Gortex type waterproof but breathable. Generally that’s good for temporary exposure to water on the surface where water runs off, such as when kayaking. I wouldn’t expect it to keep you dry fully submerged.

But since you already have it try jumping in a pool for a while and see what happens. Or at least submerge your lower half in a bathtub for a good 30 minutes or more.

Being able to dump air to descend will be the first problem. Then you’ll have to deal with the squeeze. At ten feet, I’d find it uncomfortable for a considerable stay without being able to add a puff of air. These two problems are easily addressed, however, by simply adding the required valves.

 

[jpodesta]

Thanks everyone for all the advice and I appreciate the concern with getting training, I have done quite alot of research on breathing compressed air and practiced using my hookah system in the pool quite a bit but I am looking forward to training and certification especially so I can use tanks in the future and maybe get more into diving as the water is a big part of my life.

Thanks for the advice on the drysuit, I'll try it out as mentioned in the pool or the tub see how the material does in that submerged environment I believe the material is PTFE. I have been hesitant to cut the seals and remove the tags just incase it was useless for my application and I would have a better chance selling it, but I like the suggestion of a tub with the lower half will persevere most of its unused quality, if all I need is some valves that would be a nice suit. And thanks I was wondering if I would have the squeeze issue at that depth, answered another one of my questions!

Thanks again

 

[jpodesta]

Here is also a picture of the suit and zipper if anyone could tell me if that zipper looks like the standard on a normal dui diving suit.

 

[Thunder Struck]

Here is also a picture of the suit and zipper if anyone could tell me if that zipper looks like the standard on a normal dui diving suit.

Looks like the same brass zip and protective over zip on my DUI.

 

[lowwall]

How cold does the water get where you are? Your profile says Florida which suggests maybe 70?

Even if it's 60, I suggest you return or sell the suit and get an appropriate wetsuit instead. They are a lot easier to deal with and much safer than using a scuba drysuit without proper training. A decent wetsuit is roughly the same cost as putting a valve in your drysuit. And training won't be cheap. You'll need open water certification before you can even take a drysuit course.

And please don't try to use this without a valve. You won't be able to get more than a couple of feet underwater without adding a bunch of weight which becomes a huge safety issue if you rip a seal or get a hole in the suit. And you wouldn't want to anyway because it will get very uncomfortable as the air in the suit compresses around you.

BTW, my avatar is my son jumping into Lake Michigan in his first sailing drysuit. He was sailing yesterday in his current one over 40 degrees water while it was snowing. They work great for their intended use which is keeping you dry in cold, wet conditions above and at the surface. But they aren't meant to be fully submerged.