Drysuits and the weightbelt...

Olalj123 · May 2, 2012

Hi,

I recently bought my first own drysuit (unfortunately I've been ill so it hasn't been in the water yet...), an Otter Brittanic. Now, when I did the drysuit course I used my BCD with integrated weight pockets, which were very full, but now I'm thinking of switching to a weightbelt.

As the years have gone by my physique has changed so that I no longer have a waist. This means that I have to tighten the weightbelt quite much in order for it to rest on my behind and not slide down.

The question is this: Will a too tight weight belt restrict the airflow in the suit in such a way that air will be trapped in the legs or am I worrying about nothing?

Thanks for any input.

Ola

covediver · May 2, 2012

Have you considered diving with a weight harness. solves the problems of a too tight weightbelt and too much weight on the lower back that is unavoidable with a weightbelt. It can safely be worn under a BCD and distributes the weights more evenly that loading up a bcd.

TSandM · May 2, 2012

It's pretty hard to cinch a weight belt up enough to impede gas transfer through the suit. Thick undergarments generally prevent that from happening, at least in my experience (and I use a 20 lb weight belt).

Olalj123 · May 2, 2012

Well, I was thinking of dividing the weight between the weightbelt and integrated pockets, I hadn't thought about a harness. That might be something for the future, meanwhile I'll try with the belt and hope it works like TSandM suggests.

Unfortunately I won't be able to try it until next weekend. I'll let you know if it worked.

Thanks Covediver and TSandM

Ola

Olalj123 · May 23, 2012

So, I finally made it into the water with my new dry suit. I dived the following set up:

Dry suit + thinsulate under garment
BP/W (OMS IQ-harness with single tank adapter and 14,5 kg lift wing)
12 l 300 bar tank
Weight belt with pockets and soft lead (4 kg) + 2 kg on tank band

It worked fine, no problems with weight belt slipping or restricting air flow in the suit. I think I can lose some of the weights though. It was a short dive so still lots of air left in the tank, next dive I'll check properly.

Thanks for the help.

Ola

Deep-6 · Jun 1, 2012

I have a question, Is there a weight harness system that also can function as a tether line harness? (solid steel D-rings etc,) If so who makes it and what do they cost?

RonFrank · Jun 1, 2012

Next time regardless of how short the dive is dump the air in the tank to 500psi and do a weight check. There is no other way to determine if you are weighted properly.

Drysuits and the weightbelt...

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