Proper Wetsuit maintenance?(cleaning)?

[lord1234]

So, my wetsuit is smelling sorta rank lately...mind you i rinse it off after every scuba adventure. I even bought some green gunk at the scuba store, but it still smells like rotting BO. Any suggestions for how to rinse this beast off of the nasty smell?

--L1234

[Karateman]

I'm not an expert in this area, but I would have suggested to toss it in the laundry machine in a delicate spin mode as I have done a few times before without any problems, but today I would say DON'T! I did that yesterday and the washing machine ripped my 3mm suit!

Hence, my only recommendation is to rinse it in the shower immediately following every dive and hang dry it or have it professionally cleaned at the dry cleaners.

[markfm]

Some sites suggest you can try a hand wash with Woolite, then spray with Febreeze when you hang it to dry. Drying inside-out may be good, or at least make sur eit's a really wide hanger so you get air flow. (I use 1-1/4" PVC over a plastic hanger)

Concerning using washing machines, at least one place specifically mentioned not using a top loader, as the agitator can rip seams. Tossing it in a tub with woolite, hand agitation, should not have such problems.

I've been diving fresh water so far, good hosing and hang to dry and it's been OK.

[Corigan]

I've had good success with a couple of caps of listerine in the rinse. Search the board and you will find lots of suggestions. Use keywords like "listerine" "febreeze" "sink the stink" etc.

Matt

[pasley]

Sounds like you may have a mildew probem.

I purchased a horse watering trough at a local store that holds 100 gallons. After every dive I hose my gear off and then I stick it into the tank for a soak for a few hours, often overnight. Occasionally I add some cleaner made for the purpose and often ad some water softener from the grocery store to help dissolve the salts (I dive ocean). Hang inside out and let it get good air circulation overnight and then turn right side out.

You might try an different type of cleaner, and let it soak for a few hours and hand agitate every once in a while. Be sure to open the suit up and have it inside out when washing it.

Wet Suits Do's and Don't IMHO.
Do:
Rinse well after every dive.
Air dry the wet suit is an area out of the sun and away from heat with good air circulation.
Store in a cool dry place, preferably on a hanger made for the purpose with wide softly rounded shoulders and the zipper down.

DONT"
1. Crush the suit or fold the suit more than you have to. This crushes the air cells and shortens the life of the suit. Those little air bubbles are what keeps us warm.
2. Put it in a washing machine. You may do so with out harm, that you can see. But the seams are delicate and there is the crushing of the neoprene as discussed above.
3. Neoprene is I believe a petroleum based product and can be dried out, so you want to be careful about what chemicals you use on it. Soaps that remove oils may not be the best thing, Bleach may not be good either (but a diluted solution once in a while to kill bacteria may not be all bad if nothing else is working on the milldew, but rinse well).
4. Keep it out of warm areas and the sun. See item 3 above. The garage with its pollution and heat is not the best place to store your wet suit.

[dmurphy]

"Sink the stink" works wonders. Your LDS should carry it.

[m3830431]

So, my wetsuit is smelling sorta rank lately...mind you i rinse it off after every scuba adventure. I even bought some green gunk at the scuba store, but it still smells like rotting BO. Any suggestions for how to rinse this beast off of the nasty smell?

--L1234

After a major dose of sink the stink use baby shampoo routinely it is alot cheaper.

[spectrum]

After every dive all of the neoprene gets a rinse in a dedicated dunk tub, hoods/vests, then full suits, then gloves and lastly booties. After a few hundred combined dive we have rarely had any odor from my wifes or my gear. We dive salt and fresh water and pee as needed.

I did have a mild stench this spring after skindiving in poor visiblity. I suspect the water had a heavy bio-load and I took some home. The next dive cleared it up.

I think a lot of this odor has to do with the waters you dive and the organisims that live there so YMMV. I'd certainly suggest a dunking rinse over a hosing. I'd stay away from machine washing. Everything hangs in the garage to dry slowly out of the sun.

Pete

[tx.lakerats]

I use a cheap plastic trash can and let everything soak in there.. then hang to dry.. seems to do the trick!

[J75]

Make sure you rinse your suit out thoroughly after each dive with fresh water, and do not store it in your bag for long. Be sure to hang it up to dry ASAP. If your suit still stinks, put a couple of caps of listerine in the tub and soak it for an hour or two. Listerine kills all of the bacteria. Of course, then you will smell like Listerine for your next 20 dives, but that's better than being funky.

[EricDive]

The standard Sunlight dishwashing soap in the yellow bottle works just like sink the stink and is way cheaper. just a little in the bathtub or a plastic bin and hand agitate, rince well and you should be good to go for another 30 or 30 dives.

Eric

[WellBelowH2O]

I've often found the tank dunk doesn't always work as well as I'd like. Sometimes I'll lay the suit flat on a table that is on a slant (like in a driveway or something) with the head/arms of the suit lower then the legs. Then I'll take the hose, stick it in a leg and turn it on. The constant flow gives it a great rinse and you'll see water pouring from the neck and arm holes. After a bit, switch to the other leg to ensure that one is rinsed. I dive ocean primarily, so this is a great way to pull the salt out

Then make sure you hang it inside out and get it completely dry before turning it outside in. Also, good airflow is important if it's a bit damp inside. Something I normally use for BC pockets, but works on wetsuit arm holes/leg holes is to take some plastic water bottles (the 16 or 20 oz size) and cut the bottoms off. you can use these to keep the opening open so that you get good airflow and it can dry without getting nasty. Just make sure there are no sharp edges so you don't cut something.