Just ordered my first drysuit

[abyss_scuba]

One accessory I wold get is a pee valve, once you start diving for longer periods on each dive nothing could be better. Or if you are aghast at putting a hole in a perfectly good dry suit stock up on depends. Enjoy.

 

[FyshEye]

One accessory I wold get is a pee valve, once you start diving for longer periods on each dive nothing could be better. Or if you are aghast at putting a hole in a perfectly good dry suit stock up on depends. Enjoy.

LOL, I forgot about that little feature add on. I never had one and never needed one. However, I would recommend a good weight system. I used the DUI weight and trim system, I am sure there are several systems out on the market.


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[serpentara]

Just remember, only put enough air in the drysuit to take off the squeeze. Use your bcd for buoyancy. Padi will teach you to use your drysuit for buoyancy, but then your instructor will tell you after the class that it is bs.

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[SubMariner]

Just remember, only put enough air in the drysuit to take off the squeeze. Use your bcd for buoyancy. Padi will teach you to use your drysuit for buoyancy, but then your instructor will tell you after the class that it is bs.

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Or NOT.

There is no single method for drysuit diving. Some Instructors teach using air in the suit only for insulation & the BC for buoyancy; others teach the opposite where the BC is only used for positive buoyancy @ the surface.

It all depends on whichever the diver is most familiar with & which h/s can use safely & effectively.

 

[fiziks]

So here's the thing with dry suits and buoyancy... If you are properly weighted then you should be neutral with just enough air in the suit to provide adequate insulation (it is not just the undergarment that provides insulation, but the air that it traps, as well) and avoid the squeeze. As you descend, the air compresses and you need to add more to avoid a squeeze and for adequate insulation. If properly weighted, then adding that air to your suit should bring you to neutral and you shouldn't need to add air to the BCD. If you do put air into the BCD, then keep in mind that you are controlling buoyancy with BOTH the suit and the BCD, not just the BCD. As you ascend, you need to dump air from both. I've seen far too many divers who were told to control bouyancy with the BCD so they neglect to vent the suit on the way to the surface (or not vent it enough) and do very good impressions of a whale breaching the surface.

If you have to add air to the BCD, take weight off your weight system.

The exception is if you don't need weight when diving dry (think backplate and steel tanks). In which case, yes, it is better to use the wings to provide the bulk of the buoyancy. It is also nice to have an auto-dumping valve in this case as well. (Of course, I consider this the exception because I am usually in cold water with a heavy undergarment. If you are diving in warm water with a thin undergarment a BP and steel tanks, this might be the norm).

What you are trying to avoid is the potential for sending a large air bubble from your shoulders down to your feet and sending you feet-first to the surface. If you find that you are only adding a squirt or two of air into the BCD and you have no weight to remove, then you may find it easier just to use the suit for buoyancy. If you are just trying to use the suit and you find you have way more air in the suit than you need and no weight to remove, then you need to use both the suit and the BCD. It is a bit more difficult to manage both, but it greatly decreases the risk of doing a Michelin Man impression to the surface.

 

[claymore]

I love my drysuit but some times it is nice to dive in just a 3 mil, when the water is warm enough, without all the weight and ease of movement through the water. I feel a lot more free in a wet suit.
I was diving Tuesday and the water temp was 42 degrees and I loved my dry suit then.

 

[Redshift]

In my opinion there is a single method for dry suit diving. The suit needs air in it to provide better insulation and prevent squeeze. If by doing this the diver also achieves neutral buoyancy (which in many cases it's possible), then the result is obviously only using dry suit for buoyancy, but this is a consequence. If with the proper amount of air in the suit, the diver is still heavy, there is a device designed specifically to control buoyancy, the clue is in the name. A suit with too much air will become more uncomfortable, harder to handle, may not be fast enough to vent, may even get air trapped where it's impossible to vent, can have sudden losses of air (e.g. via neck seal)...

 

[j yaeger]

as fiziks said-exceptions...
if i'm using 12# of air weight on my runtime with twins
then i better have 12# neg bouyancy to start to be able to hold stops
thats a loooooot of air to put in a suit to compensate!
have fun
yaeg