Question on drysuit and buoyancy

[SeaHorse81]

I just started drysuit diving this year, and have 19 open water dives on it so far. I find I do far better to keep as little air in the suit as I can -- I have enough to reduce squeeze and permit warmth, and not a bit more. I'm still learning to be more accutely aware of exactly where in the suit the air is, especially toward the end of a dive when the tank may be adding to the high-feet tendency. If I start going up involuntarily (happily not happening much these days) I can dump air from the BC way faster than I can get it out of the suit, which feels like a safer alternative.

 

[Tigerman]

You serious?? trying diving double hp100 with the dry suit only, or maybe even single hp130. YOu will quickly find it doesn't work, or it is a highly sub optimal way to do it. Again, OW students are taught that only becase 1)they use smaller tank, 2)one less thing to manage becaue they are already "very" task loaded.

YES, Im serious and if you look around on this forum a bit youll see why. Hell, even the manual that came with my DS recommending just finding what suits yourself.
Oh yeah. I dive a 15l 232 bar steel tank with an empty weight of over 18kg (40lbs) and that dont BEGIN to be a problem using my suit only for..

Yes, there might be times where you want more air than what the DS can comfortably hold, but thats not the same as using the DS only as long as its possible is WRONG - nor that its RIGHT.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

The issues raised (Stability and trim when using it for buoyancy, compression at depth limiting the insulation factor, etc.) are why I quit using a dry suit. For a while I went with a Mares 6.5 mil semi-dry, essential a dry suit with no inflater, and it keep me warmer than the dry suit did. However, the weight I needed was a bit off-putting, so I then went to a 5 mil over a non-permeable 3 mil hooded vest, which keeps me plenty warm in water down to about 55F. I have made a life choice to not dive in water colder than that.
DivemasterDennis

 

[ADeadlierSnake]

YES, Im serious and if you look around on this forum a bit youll see why. Hell, even the manual that came with my DS recommending just finding what suits yourself.
Oh yeah. I dive a 15l 232 bar steel tank with an empty weight of over 18kg (40lbs) and that dont BEGIN to be a problem using my suit only for..

Yes, there might be times where you want more air than what the DS can comfortably hold, but thats not the same as using the DS only as long as its possible is WRONG - nor that its RIGHT.

"over 40 lbs" is not the tanks negative weight while in the water. Try 5 pounds. At most. There is NO tank out there that is going to be anywhere near 40 lbs negative while empty. In fact, double Worthington HP 130 tanks are only -4 lbs while empty. 40? Uhhh......


@The OP: If you are headed the technical route, you will be urged to learn to use your wing for buoyancy. If you just plan on sticking with single tanks, and recreational dives, I really dont think it is all that important. However I do think it would benefit you greatly. When I first started using a drysuit, I used only my suit for buoyancy because it was easier. Using my BC and my suit felt impossible!! And this was a BC I was very familiar with to boot. However now that I use my wing for buoyancy and my suit for squeeze only, I find that I much prefer that method. Its a little harder to learn at first, but when you improve, managing it becomes simple. And in the event of a dry suit inflation failure, you will need to be able to operate your wing. I think its best to just learn how to do it that way, but at the end of the day it really is personal preference and depends on the type of diving you are going to be doing. Cheers!

 

[Dam0]

I don't really see a right or wrong way. I use my dry suit mainly, it was the way i was taught right from the OW course. Its a bit cold here in the UK for wetsuits.

Might change to BC as the primary buoyancy control method at some point.

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Tigerman]

I never claimed the tank was 40lbs NEGATIVE. I said its the tanks EMPTY WEIGHT.
Read what I write and not what you make up..

 

[Them]

Maybe the issue is that empty weight doesn't matter in the water, but buoyancy does. Empty weight is like cost...certainly important, but it doesn't have much to do with how much air you should put in your suit.

 

[Superlyte27]

A drysuit was designed for warmth. A wing or bcd is designed for buoyancy. If you have a great wing or bcd, it will keep you in trim regardless of how much air you put into it. The same thing cannot be said.

If you are trimmed properly to begin with, fill a BCD or Wing until the OPV pops. You are still in trim. Now, try that with a drysuit. Are you still in trim? Not likely.

 

[ADeadlierSnake]

Tigerman, surface weight has nothing to do with buoyancy. If it did, then I would require a 170 lb wing just to lift my body. It just doesnt work that way....

 

[Tigerman]

Tigerman, surface weight has nothing to do with buoyancy. If it did, then I would require a 170 lb wing just to lift my body. It just doesnt work that way....

No **** sherlock??
I cant help it if you dont understand it was information to compare it to whatever tanks someone else mentioned. I wouldnt KNOW how many "cu.ft" a tank is so if you want to figure it out, do it yourself.