Venture heated vest...any experience?

[calabash digger]

I am very interested in a venture vest.. Thanks for the info!

 

[Jack Hammer]

My only experience with Venture is a very bad experience buying a heated hoodie from them. It was defective right out of the box and didn't work. Dealing with them was a poor experience. Their policy is they don't pay for returns, even on an item that doesn't work out of the box. They also have a 20% "restocking fee" to get a replacement. Pretty poor warranty and terrible customer service considering the price of their items. My only advice is to avoid them and buy from a company that stands behind their products and honors their warranty.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

 

[tbone1004]

My only experience with Venture is a very bad experience buying a heated hoodie from them. It was defective right out of the box and didn't work. Dealing with them was a poor experience. Their policy is they don't pay for returns, even on an item that doesn't work out of the box. They also have a 20% "restocking fee" to get a replacement. Pretty poor warranty and terrible customer service considering the price of their items. My only advice is to avoid them and buy from a company that stands behind their products and honors their warranty.

when was that? I just checked their website before buying one and it seems like they have since changed it
Return Policy

 

[Jack Hammer]

when was that? I just checked their website before buying one and it seems like they have since changed it
Return Policy

December

 

[tbone1004]

December

damn, interesting. That's not a good feeling

 

[Shabaday]

I bought a size XL but it was too big. I needed a L instead. They were excellent. They provided a return shipping label. No hassles whatsoever

 

[explore_DMC]

Bought one for my gf and I in December after waiting 6+ months for them to come in stock. Several friends have them as well.

You are not supposed to wear it against skin according to the vest instructions. I wear mine over a wool tshirt. I use a 200g undergarment and typically turn it to low 20-30min into the dive. I’ve only bumped it to medium once so far and I almost use it more on the surface interval. I largely justified the expense by using it frequently for non diving things for when it’s cold and I’m mostly idle.

I removed the wristband from the remote and attached a bolt snap. I secure it in my dry suit pocket and it is easy to manipulate.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Bought one for my gf and I in December after waiting 6+ months for them to come in stock. Several friends have them as well.

You are not supposed to wear it against skin according to the vest instructions. I wear mine over a wool tshirt. I use a 200g undergarment and typically turn it to low 20-30min into the dive. I’ve only bumped it to medium once so far and I almost use it more on the surface interval. I largely justified the expense by using it frequently for non diving things for when it’s cold and I’m mostly idle.

I removed the wristband from the remote and attached a bolt snap. I secure it in my dry suit pocket and it is easy to manipulate.

Pic of remote with boltsnap?

 

[JohnN]

I just took delivery of a Venture Heat, heated vest (dry or wet) and am very impressed by the overall packaging and quality of the vest. FWIW, the vest is rated for both dry and wet, I'm using it under my drysuit

Given that Thermalution appears to be out of business, and FIR no longer makes their heated vest, the choices are between Venture Heat and SANTI. The SANTI vest requires a significant investment in a new drysuit inflator/bulkhead connector, plus a battery canister, batteries, and a charger.

Yes, the Venture Heat batteries are bigger than the Thermolution batteries, but with an advertised run time of 7 hours on low, I don't mind the size.

A big plus for me is that the vest is machine washable. I've always been afraid of my Thermalution suit.

I'm going diving in a couple days, I'll post back on how it works