Dry suit basics

I am considering puchasing a dry suit but I have no idea what I need. DUI was just about the only manufacturer I was aware of then I found several other brands.
What do I need to know to intelligently shop for a dry suit?

read this thread http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=182919title=

BRDR882 --- read that thread yesterday. I am not interested in what suit everyone owns or recommends. Naturally, if you own it, chances are you like it and would recommend it.
But, I do not know enough to intelligently shop for a suit. What questions do I ask?

some things I'd look for on a suit are how much insulation I need to fit under it. In the NE it tends to be more because its chilly up here. If I'm spending that much money on buying my own I'd want to have it custom made so I know it fits well. Look for a good durable dipper. Also a dry suit that can be repaired if it gets ripped is good. A neoprene suit tends to be heavier, more buoyant, and given its properties can seep water through after time but they also tend to be warmer. As far as valves go all suits have the inflater and deflater. A nice option is the deflater on the left wrist that can be dialed to automatically release at a given pressure. Other valves you can add are relief valves for extended stays on the bottom. As far as feet. Make sure they don't fit too tightly. You want to be able to add thermal protection there as well. Some suits have more of a sock over which you were a rock boot (essentially a converse shoe, some people do were converse) while others have a shoe built into them. For your hands you can have either a wrist seal with wet hands (or dry gloves with seals as well and a straw between the two) or a ring system to which you can attach either seals or dry gloves. The ring system is also offer on the neck to easily switch neck seals for multiple divers. This can be both good and bad because of ease of use and the additional risk of a leak if you don't get the seal correctly.

I don't by any means claim to be an expert on dry suits but these are my personal thoughts on how I'd go about purchasing one. DUI offers a traveling demo show once it warms up a little that I'd check out. You can try all of there line. Some of the other manufactures offer this as well as do LDS. Once you find a few you like ask around about how others like them. Good Luck!

Thanks BRDR82, your info is very helpful

I think you should start with what kind of diving you plan to use it for? Warmer water or cooler water? Do you plan to travel with it? Long dives?

I think there are essentially two types of suits - (crushed/compressed/regular) neoprene and shell suits.

I think the neoprene suits are the warmest and most puncture resistant, but they might require more weight, or at least have more "swing" at depth, just like a neoprene wetsuit would. The compressed/crushed neoprene has less swing. Neoprene suits can have a more streamlined fit since the material is flexible.

The shells- bilam, trilam, vulcanized rubber, etc.- are lighter, faster drying, and don't swing buoyancy at depth. These are usually oversized since there is no stretch to the material, although fit can vary depending on how the suit is made, which might make it easier to use different thicknesses of undergarments.

Do It Easy is right -- First question is what kind of diving are you going to do in it?

Material: Trilaminate versus neoprene. Trilams are baggier, allow more flexibility in undergarment, are lighter for travel, and dry much faster. Compressed/crushed neoprene has little buoyancy effect, is warmer and somewhat tougher, but heavier, and dries slowly. It is somewhat flexible because it stretches, but not infinitely so. Full neoprene dry suits are WARM, but they have the buoyancy issues of wetsuits, dry slowly, and have little flexibility at all.

Entry: Back entry, front diagonal entry, front horizontal entry. This goes along with a choice of telescoping torso versus flat. Back entry suits almost require a buddy to help you in and out of it, although some people have been creative with systems to self-zip. Many "self-donning" suits are anything but . . . My husband and I and one of our best friends all own diagonal zip "self-donning" suits (from three different manufacturers) and none of us can get in and out of our suits alone. I think telescoping torsos help with this. I don't know; I've never worn such a suit. If you want to follow the training you got, it will be critical to have enough reach and flexibility in the suit to reach your valves.

Dumps: Apeks versus Sitech valves, and siting. A lot of people seem to prefer the Sitech valves for faster dumping. Older Apeks valves apparently had a leak problem which has been reportedly solved with the newer ones. Getting the dump valve situated where you want it is important. A dump valve located on the front of the suit, where it is oriented downward, is useless for a diver who maintains a horizontal diving posture (speaking from experience here). Another option is a wrist dump, but these are smaller valves that are not adjustable. I had one and came to terms with it, but I understand they can rather easily get jammed with sand or debris and leak. Mine didn't. I just didn't like it.

Boots: Hard boots versus soft boots versus neoprene socks and overboots. Hard boots protect your feet, but wear out and have to be replaced. Neoprene socks require some kind of overboot, because they won't tolerate walking on hard or abrasive surfaces.

Seals: Neoprene versus latex. Neoprene seals are thick and warm, but they seem to leak a little more. It is difficult to impossible to find a dry glove system you can put on a neoprene seal and maintain the seal (which is desirable, because otherwise, if you flood a glove, you flood your suit). Latex seals are fragile. They are susceptible to damage from ozone or chemicals, and tear easily. They have no insulating qualities at all. They are very easy to fit dry gloves to, and for practical purposes, they do not stretch significantly with use.

Finally is sizing -- Can you fit into a stock suit (ALWAYS a better option) or will you require custom? As far as I can tell, custom drysuits are like playing the slots. If it pays off, you're thrilled, but most of the time, it doesn't.

The biggest problem with dry suits is that few shops carry much of an inventory, so it's hard to get to try on a suit from the manufacturer that interests you, let alone dive one.

Carribeandiver:

I am considering puchasing a dry suit but I have no idea what I need. DUI was just about the only manufacturer I was aware of then I found several other brands.
What do I need to know to intelligently shop for a dry suit?

Click to expand...

There are four things that keep you from being underwater forever.

1) Gas supply - you can't carry that much gas.

2) Well, you gotta pee

3) Nitrogen... sooner or later you gotta come back

4) Exposure - you get cold.


I got a bigger tank to address number 1. I manage hydration for now, but a Pee Valve is in my future. I dive EAN whenever possible to address number three, and I beat number 4 by my DS.

My objective: Mad bottom time. I dive to stay under water and see & photograph stuff. I don't dive for the hang - I got friends. I don't dive to pull chicks - I'm a drummer (well, that was a bad example...) I don't dive because its cool. I dive to be underwater. A dry suit lets me stay underwater longer. Its that simple.

Wetties can't do what we do. Many think they can, but the simple truth is you guys get colder on your SI, you get more fatigued on your dive, and you won't climb back into slimey for that night dive. All of these are removed when you dive dry, so you dive more, you get more BT and you reach your (or in this case, my) objective of maximizing the UW time.

All the rest is marketing. If you want more BT, you'll dive dry.

You want a suit that fits well. You want a manufacturer that is reliable, approachable and preferrably, local. Dry Suits are not maintenance free. You will be sending it in for service once in awhile. For me, the answer to all of these was DUI. I'm a SoCal, they're in LowCal - it made no sense for me to buy a suit made in New England or Canada or wherever.

I dive in four-wheel drive. I climb over rocks, get mashed in the surf, get pinballed off of rocks and urchins in the surge, I wedge into tight spots to get the shots I want - all of this means my suit takes a beating. I started with a TriLam (TLS350) - still the finest suit for SoCal diving (read: hot days, cold water.) But I pincushioned the thing. So unless I'm guppy diving off a boat, I'm wearing their CF200 Crushed Neo.

This Sat I did a surf entry over very rough rocks. About 1/2 way in, I had to change direction... In doing so I needed to use my legs as cams and worm along between two rocks in a 130 tank and full gear. There is no doubt I would have put yet another rip in my Tri Lam. In the CF200, it was no biggie.

Seals are something you need to think about - Latex or Neo.

Dive objectives - do you dive an HP80 baby tank and do 45 minute dives, or like is dive 130's and do 90 minute dives, or dive dubs and get 2 hours down there in 52 degree water?

Think about your diving first. Not just what you do today - but what you WANT TO DO soon. Make a list, and then talk to us about it. There are a lot of smart people here that can help you out.

Lastly - do you fluxuate in body mass? What I mean is this: do you lose 30 pounds, gain it back 2 or three years later, get motivated and lose it again, etc? If you are one of these people, you need to think about the wisdom of dropping $900 - $1500 into a DS. There is no DS on the market that can manage that kind of swing and still fit you correctly. And you will have this suit for the next 10 to 15 years... maybe more.

Lots to think about - but start with your dive objectives.

---
Ken

Wow. Just apply those three posts above mine and you're good to go!!

TSandM:

Finally is sizing -- Can you fit into a stock suit (ALWAYS a better option) or will you require custom? As far as I can tell, custom drysuits are like playing the slots. If it pays off, you're thrilled, but most of the time, it doesn't.

Click to expand...

Then I must have hit the jackpot on the first pull. My first three drysuits were off the rack, and my latest one is a custom, and I'll never do anything but custom again.

I'm not a strange size (6', 185#), but as soon as I put on the custom suit, I knew what I was missing.

YMMV

Rick Inman:

Wow. Just apply those three posts above mine and you're good to go!!



Then I must have hit the jackpot on the first pull. My first three drysuits were off the rack, and my latest one is a custom, and I'll never do anything but custom again.

I'm not a strange size (6', 185#), but as soon as I put on the custom suit, I knew what I was missing.

YMMV

Click to expand...

I'm a stock Medium DUI. But I got tiny feet. The best, and I mean THE BEST $155 I've ever spent on an exposure suit was tracing my bare foot, faxing it to Mark at Superior DS Repair and having him build custom feet for my CF200.

WOW. That suit is the most comfortable suit from the waist down. Its a LS size, so its a little big up top. But the custom feet made a huge difference. I'll never dive another DS again with bunched up new socks in my boots. I love that Mark guy!!

I made Hamburger Helper gloves out of my Dry Gloves - so now my gloves and sleeves aren't all in a bunch because I have short arms.

Mark custom made a Neo Neck for my CF200... fits like a dream.

Lots of little things you can do to tweak an OTR suit if you're 90% there.

---
Ken