How many dives to get comfortable with your drysuit?

bpotkin · Feb 15, 2012

I just recently purchased a new drysuit and look forward to the training.
However, I hear it could take more than 20 dives to get the hang of it.
How many dives did it take you to master diving with a drysuit?

USCScubaboy · Feb 16, 2012

I suppose part of it would depend on your definition of "mastering" diving with a drysuit. It took me about 10 dives or so to get decently comfortable with my drysuit so that it wasn't my main focus when executing a dive. I have closer to 20 dives on my drysuit now and while I'm no where near being a pro with my drysuit, I can handle myself in shallow and moderately surgy conditions without the risk of a runaway ascent.

andrewy · Feb 16, 2012

took me 50 to have some good ideas

JBRES1 · Feb 16, 2012

It took only 1 dive in really cold water to feel comfortable in my dry suit.
It took me about another 20 to 30 to get my trim tuned in to where I like it.
i now dive dry even is water that a wet suit would work for, i think I turned into a drysuit wearing wimp
I just love being able to go into 40 deg water and not getting cold.
The only time I have been cold in the past 4 years is when I tore a neck seal in 39 deg water.

Jim Breslin

Wolfie · Feb 16, 2012

well comfortable and mastering are two diferent things. In the great lakes it took me about 2 minutes to be comfortable enough to realize how uncomfortable a wet suit is in 54 degree water

It is really just a piece of gear, for someone already comfortable with diving it shouldn't take more than a few dives to be comfortable diving a dry suit. It does add one more valve to your bouyancy calculalations and 3 or 4 to your purging calculations(if things go south these calculations include some contortions). Really not a big deal. mastering is another conversation. If you "master" something should you not be comfortable doing it without thinking? If you dive without thinking, are you not putting yourself in danger? hmmm deep thoughts...

RonFrank · Feb 16, 2012

It took 14.329 dives!

Does it matter? I knew a guy that had likely 60 dives in his Drysuit and was still having runaway ascents. I have seen guys nail dry diving in a couple weekends. Average is maybe 20 divers being very comfortable. The good news, your warm and dry between dives. No more hot water down the back, or loosing feeling in the toes.

Wolfie · Feb 16, 2012

And getting done with a cold water dive and finishing with warm dry clothes still on. and refusing the offer of a dry towel. It doesn't take much to be comfortable.....

TSandM · Feb 16, 2012

I held my first safety stop at 15 feet on about my 30th dry suit dive. I held stops reliably at about 150, as long as nobody bothered me and I could see. I think it took about 300 or so before I held stops when task-loaded, or when I couldn't see very much.

cascas · Feb 16, 2012

About 5 to 10 dives before I realized i didn't have to really think about what I was doing. I took no training, just some time and effort to get the hang of it.
I started drysuit diving about a year ( and 100 dives) after OW. I haven't used a wetsuit in the last 600 dives except for some training dives with students.

In the end it really doesn't matter how many dives it took someone else to get comfortable. What matter is that you get comfortable in a drysuit whether it takes 10, 50 or 200 dives. Remember it is not a competition...

phasechange · Feb 16, 2012

After 10 dives, you need to slow ascents down further to get better control and that different undergarments will acfect your bubble control

How many dives to get comfortable with your drysuit?

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bpotkin

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