Torso gets cold when diving

[RJP]

Agree. It is probably perspiration. I regularly use underarmor or a rash guard to wick away moisture. It's always a good solution to layer anyway.

Rash guards don't wick particularly well (at all, really) nor do most UnderArmor pieces. (They make about 6 different lines, most of which are form-over-function.)

Suggest OP looks into something that is specifically made as a wicking layer - thin polypropylene or merino wool. I use Patagonia"s Capilene, which comes in three different thicknesses. I use the 3, as it's good for layering under other stuff.

 

[tajkd]

Rash guards don't wick particularly well (at all, really) nor do most UnderArmor pieces. (They make about 6 different lines, most of which are form-over-function.)

Suggest OP looks into something that is specifically made as a wicking layer - thin polypropylene or merino wool. I use Patagonia"s Capilene, which comes in three different thicknesses. I use the 3, as it's good for layering under other stuff.

Right from the Under Armor website = "Signature Moisture Transport System wicks sweat away from the body". There looks to be many models that reportedly wick. Wicking in this case probably comes more from the weave than from the properties of the blend. I don't doubt that the merino wool is better but polypropylene as a material isn't known for its hydrophilic properties.

 

[RJP]

Right from the Under Armor website = "Signature Moisture Transport System wicks sweat away from the body". There looks to be many models that reportedly wick. Wicking in this case probably comes more from the weave than from the properties of the blend. I don't doubt that the merino wool is better but polypropylene as a material isn't known for its hydrophilic properties.

Yeah, the UnderArmor wicking stuff just doesn't wick as well as most other wicking stuff. It absorbs sweat but doesn't really seem to transport it away from the skin.

I think, for wicking, hydrophilic is not exactly what you want as a hydrophilic material would hold the moisture vs move it away. As you say, it's a combination of the weave and the material. Capilene stuff keeps me bone dry - and warm - when skiing and cycling.

Patagonia Performance Baselayers - Moisture Management - Capilene 1, Capilene 2, Capilene 3, Capilene 4 and Merino 1, Merino 2, Merino 3, Merino 4

 

[Storker]

I don't doubt that the merino wool is better but polypropylene as a material isn't known for its hydrophilic properties.

I've tried perhaps half a dozen different fibers, but I use exclusively polypro or wool next to the skin in non-urban activities. They both have their advantages and disadvantages.

Polypro doesn't absorb moisture. If your activity level is high enough to ensure transportation of moisture from the wicking layer to the middle layer, it's my favorite fiber next to the skin. The drawbacks of polypro are (1) that if it gets clammy, it's uncomfortable, and (2) even if you wash it regularly, even after every time you've used it, after a year or so of use it smells like ripe roadkill about thirty seconds after you've put it on.

Wool insulates when damp, and it's the only fiber that does so properly. If you reckon on being damp and/or cold-ish, it's the only thing that works. The drawback of wool is that it absorbs moisture and thus doesn't transport moisture as well as polypro.

So, my choice of fiber next to the skin really depends on my activity level. For medium-high to high activity levels and if it doesn't get really cold, I choose polypro. For medium-low to low activity levels and if I reckon on being damp or wet, it's wool all the way. And if you can find mesh underwear in those fibers, there's nothing that beats that construction. I always use my woolnet underwear when diving, no matter what I wear outside of the wicking layer.

Disclaimer: My personal opinion, although it's based on diving down to -10C air temp / 4C bottom temp, plus some 30 years of outdoor experience in temps from 20C to -25C


PS: No matter what you end up with, avoid cotton like the plague. It's - by far - the worst kind of fiber you can have next to your skin unless in very benign conditions.

 

[Imla]

+1 on the Woolnet from Aclima that Storker links to.
I use this one on all dives. I dive year round in Norway. -15 air, and -1 water at its coldest. I use a Bare fleece under suit, 80/20 Merino/polyblend undergarments, 100%marino mesh undershirt, and if -1, I put on a fleecevest over the Bare Fleece Onepiece.

I stay warm enough to dive 5mm 5finger wetgloves year round for 40min-1hr dives.

 

[Storker]

I stay warm enough to dive 5mm 5finger wetgloves year round for 40min-1hr dives.

That's pretty darned impressive. I put my 5mm 5-fingers into storage when the bottom temp drops into the single digits, and dig out my 6.5mm 3-finger mittens. I've tried the 5mm 5-finger ("semidry". Hah!) gloves in 5C water, and after a little more than half an hour I started wondering where my fingers had escaped to. I sure as heck couldn't feel them.

 

[grf88]

What you stoke the furnace with can also make difference as to how warm you are on a dive. Eating more meat and adding things like garlic and ginger can help the body generate more heat. Google "foods to help you keep warm" for other ideas.

 

[Alowan]

Once again thanks for the input.

I dove yesterday with an added layer on the chest (fourth element vest) and drygloves. It was my first lakedive and I did not change my weights for freshwater so propally was a bit overweightet which might have had an effect.
The water was about 3-4 degrees and it seemed like the added layer (and trying not to sweat to much before going in - even though that is hard when you have to kit up and carry about 14kg weight around on your back).

Unfortunatly my new (used) sitech gloves gave me some problems. As soon as I hit the water I could feel one of my gloves leak. I fixed it rather quickly but the water that had leaked in made my hand wet and slowly crawled up my sleve during the dive cooling my arm. Overall I diden't feel totally cold but my arm, hand and somehow butt felt a little cold.
We dove for about 30 minutes and then called the dive since my hand got really cold - and I already had a hard time using my fingers with the new gloves.

However it seems like some of the tips have helped a bit (or the added weight did the trick?) since it seemed like it was warmer. However I think I will need at least another baselayer (right now only the UG suit and the vest) and propally some thinsulate gloves for my drygloves.

I am thinking about getting a set of Aclima woolnet shirts and pants as suggested here (and by several others). I don't know if I can use this in the summer or warmer places as the red sea etc. or if I will hav eto buy something like the coolwool too.

But hopefully I will stay comfortable with thinsulate gloves, woolnet shirt and pants, foruth element vest and the santi 400g suit.

Btw. I am using the artic socks from fourth element. Any suggestions what to add to that for warmer feet?

My only concern is that with the added undergarmens and baselayer I will have to use even more weight and it already feels like a bad joke (but I suppose singles and drysuit in cold water needs a lot of weight.)

 

[Storker]

it seems like some of the tips have helped a bit (or the added weight did the trick?)

I'm pretty certain the extra weight helped you. I routinely use 1-2kg more weight in the winter than in the summer, to accommodate a little more air in my suit. It's not the undergarments that keep you warm, it's the air. The undergarments just keep the air in place

I am thinking about getting a set of Aclima woolnet shirts and pants as suggested here (and by several others). I don't know if I can use this in the summer or warmer places as the red sea etc. or if I will hav eto buy something like the coolwool too.

I sugget you try the woolnet before buying more undergarments. If you're planning on getting a bit damp from sweat, the mesh construction is vastly superior to anything "whole cloth" so to speak. A non-textured textile will often stick to your skin when damp, while the mesh provides breathing space for the skin. If the wool gets too warm, I'd rather consider mesh polypro than a non-textured textile.

---------- Post added December 15th, 2013 at 10:22 AM ----------

Btw. I am using the artic socks from fourth element. Any suggestions what to add to that for warmer feet

Just one: Whetever you do, don't use too thick socks. If your boots are too tight, you'll restrict circulation and you will be cold. So, if the choice is between newfangled, "technical" super-duper-miracle socks that doesn't let you wiggle your toes, and some thinner, plain woll socks that don't give your feet enough space, go for the latter. If I lace my rockboots just tight enough, my feet are usually fine, if I lace them just a little too tight, they'll be cold. With the same socks, in the same water temperatures.

---------- Post added December 15th, 2013 at 10:31 AM ----------

My only concern is that with the added undergarmens and baselayer I will have to use even more weight and it already feels like a bad joke (but I suppose singles and drysuit in cold water needs a lot of weight.)

Heh. I did a dive outside Hitra early March this year. Neoprene DS, Woolnet + Woolpower 200g all over, an extra thin wool vest (an old Dovre undershirt I'd cut off the arms from) and the previously mentioned foam pad on my chest. -5C air, 3C water, small, open boat. I was toasty warm, but even with winter weights I had to duck dive to get down and hold on to kelp stipes to keep from corking when shallower than 5M...

 

[Alowan]

I sugget you try the woolnet before buying more undergarments. If you're planning on getting a bit damp from sweat, the mesh construction is vastly superior to anything "whole cloth" so to speak. A non-textured textile will often stick to your skin when damp, while the mesh provides breathing space for the skin. If the wool gets too warm, I'd rather consider mesh polypro than a non-textured textile.

Thanks for the reply. I wont be able to try the woolnet before I buy it - but since everyone suggests it I am proppaly going to get a set (especially since I can use it as a baselayer for most diving here - we have from 0to around 20 degree water). And then when my 400g santi gets too hot I can maybe change it for something else and maybe drop a lot of weight

Once again thanks for all the input - It have really helped me out.