Pee valve vs. Depends?

Greetings fellow SB faithful, this is a question that I have been pondering since I started diving dry. I believe there are only three options when trapped in your DS when nature calls. HOLD IT, let it go....DEPENDS, or let it go...PEE VALVE.
I like to stay hydrated but hate holding it, if you know what I mean. I am looking for advice from those who have "been there done that!"
I have heard all sorts of comfort issues, external catheter woes, bunching diaper, etc.
I just want some opinions and facts to make the best choice available for me.
Thank you for your suggestions and help with this issue.
CamG Keep diving....keep training....keep learning!

I haven't ever tried Depends, but I have tried "holding it" and a valve. I'd go with a valve.

I'm one of those people who have to p**s as soon as I get in. The cath can kind of bunch up, but as long as you prime the system prior to descending doesn't seem to cause much of a problem.

I don't think they should make drysuits without pee valves (well for guys anyway - sorry girls). I don't know how anyone dives without one.

Hunter

Pee valve is the way to go.

Rochester wide band catheters are also the best way to go. They are way better than the freedom caths every one sells as the wider adheasive ensures they so not come loose. They are also non latex and are a bit heavier so they are less likely to twist even if you end up with a bit too much room in the end (which never happens with the wide band design anyway).

Rochester gives away a free trial kit. Just go to their website, select the models and sizes you want and they will arrive in a 3-4 days. That is much better than following the everyone wears 28mm advice. That does not work. Neither does going smaller to be sure it won't come off. Too large is not great, but too small is just as bad and potentially worse as it is almost guarenteed to come off.

I ended up finding that both the 32mm and 36mm Rochester wide bands worked fine. A 34 mm would be perfect but either of the other sizes work fine, which is probably why they don't make a 34mm.

You can order them from Rochester most medical supply houises or from Amazon.com. They ran about $1.30 each after shipping wes included for a box of 50 last time I ordered them. They end up shipping slow from amazon (about 2 weeks) as they do not ship them directly, but the price was right.

In terms of a pee valve, I like the delrin version of the OMS sweet pee. It is balanced but also low profile and a bit nicer looking on the outside of the suit than the average Halcyon style pee through bolt. The mushroom valve also ensures that even if the check valve fails, or if you leave the valve unconnected, the water will stay out side the suit - and you do not have to mess with the bolt. The srew off cover over the muchroom valve also works well with my white's fusion as it can be used to sandwhich the techskin and makes for a very neat installation.

My first DS was a whites and being so proud of it, and being tight with funds I chose to go the depends route and avoid punching a hole in a new suit. If savoring in a saturated, overfilled diaper is your cup of tea, then you will be a happy diver. Lol. Keep in mind that diapers are not made for folks to open up the Hoover dam on; mostly aimed for a lil output at a time to give the material a chance to soak up the urine – otherwise the stuff will flow everywhere.

My first disgusting experience was doing my AN/DP class over a hot August weekend. Sir, I can speak with experience that it was far from pleasant. Did I mention you won’t be getting many smiles from the lady folks? Nasty, Nasty, Nasty is all I can think of. Being in the medical field since 1988, I would have to chalk it up there as being the top of nasty. Its one thing to work with patients who can’t help to use things such as depends, but to swim in the stuff while trying to enjoy a sport is just not my cup of tea.

This past March upon receiving my first custom cut DUI dry suit, I didn’t hesitate a second before taking a punch and making me a hole. It was out of the bag, hole punched, and pee valve installed in less than 20 minutes. While it took a few dives to get used to routing, learning to avoiding kinks, and most recently a hose pulled loose from the valve itself causing a minor flood, nothing comes even remotely close to the after dive aroma of having to doff your dry suit with a full, overflowed, nasty diaper.

Punch a hole in it bud, it’s only a dry suit. Just like a shot, it will be over with in a blink of an eye.

Dive safe, dive dry, dive clean!

Kenny

CamG:

Greetings fellow SB faithful, this is a question that I have been pondering since I started diving dry. I believe there are only three options when trapped in your DS when nature calls. HOLD IT, let it go....DEPENDS, or let it go...PEE VALVE.
I like to stay hydrated but hate holding it, if you know what I mean. I am looking for advice from those who have "been there done that!"
I have heard all sorts of comfort issues, external catheter woes, bunching diaper, etc.
I just want some opinions and facts to make the best choice available for me.
Thank you for your suggestions and help with this issue.
CamG Keep diving....keep training....keep learning!

Click to expand...

When I first started diving dry I would time it so that I could make it out to run the bathroom. I had few close calls.

When I did my tech training I went with adult diapers and had multiple layers. This was a stinky smelly mess but worked none the less.

When I started teaching I bought a Dive Rite pee valve and did the installation myself. I have never looked back. The condom caths are easy to attach to the silicone hose. I bought in bulk 100 or 200 at a time and they're about a $1 a piece.

Excellent investment and makes diving dry a real joy.

Hey Cam ... Go with the pee valve. No question! Several of my local buddies have added pee valves within the past year and not one has regreted it. Including me, that's four divers I know personally that have added pee valves to their drysuits within the past 12 months. Pee Valve v. Depends v. Just Hold It. It's really not a contest. Pee valve .... Do it! The only question becomes balanced vs. unbalanced.

The cheapest place I've found for Rochester Wide Bands is Lighthouse for the Blind. You can get a box of 100 shipped for around $110-$115. Plus you help an organization who provides work to those who are legally blind. IMO giving my business to an organization like that is a very cool thing.

A HUGE THANKS TO ALL WHO POSTED!
I can not say enough, I am 100% on the pee valve!
I was not convinced till I was reminded about adult diapers, actually the smell!
My work takes me into nursing homes on occasion, and with out a doubt there is always a lingering smell. The thought of that emulating from my DS is not pleasant!
You all have spared me the dignity of the testing process for I was preparing to begin diaper testing! Ha! Ha! Really I am serious!! That scares me for worse than any external cath!
Thanks again guys!
CamG Keep diving....keep training....keep learning!

I'd like to add one more option - the condom catheter with a leg bag. I know it's only a variation of the pee valve, but it allows you to try this option before you cut a hole.

The biggest problem is positioning the bag. Realize that you'll be in a horizontal position, so put the bag on the front of your shin, and get the hose length right. It only takes a minute more than applying the catheter alone, so it's an other option to try.

Cam, I have to echo the same thing stated by DA Aquamaster. A p-valve is worth its weight in gold. I went with the Dive Rite balanced relief valve a few years back and only wish I had purchased it sooner. There are a few tricks you can find by searching this and a couple other scuba sites that outline a way to install an in-line quick disconnect between the catheter and the relief valve. This will allow you to "suit-up" in private and simply snap-in once you are in your drysuit. There are some things that you don't want to get caught fumbling with at a dive site!

The Rochester Wide Band catheter is also the way to go. I went to their website and signed up for some free samples. I received the items that I had specifically requested plus a few extras that they threw in. Just don't do what I did. I forgot to tell my wife about them and she beat me home the day they arrived. Needless to say, she keyed in on the word "condom" and I had some fast talking to do!

Think about it this way. The more a diver is task-loaded, the more potential stress that dive could be under. It could be something as simple as a slight leak of the mask. Now add the urge to relieve yourself. You now have 2 stress factors that could begin to snowball into a much larger (and more hazardous) problem. With a relief valve, you can take care of business and get back to enjoying your dive. Like Forrest Gump said, "One less thing..."

Hope this helps and BE SAFE!

There are three things I fought getting, but now that I have I would never go back.

HID can light

Spring straps

Pee valve

Also, I consider a pee valve a safety item. I got bent once ("undeserved" hit), and the major cause was said to be dehydration. People with pee valves are more apt to hydrate well. I would think that a diaper you would use if you had to, but a pee valve you use when you want to.