PSD exposure protection.

[NorthWoodsDiver]

I am in charge of researching for gear to standardize our PSD team. right now we are all volunteers and supply all our own gear so everything is well mis-matched. we would love to all have the same gear and get it paid for via a grant but I dont know what gear is best for the job. Could I get some feed back as to what other teams use. Thanks

 

[The Chad]

Most the guys I've seen and talked to Viking HD (rubber) and AGA masks. Since you can't chose where you dive. I've dove with some Commercial guys and was shocked to see them wearing Neoprene. They complanied for days that all they could smell was gasoline. If you wanna talk to a Viking rep let me know.

 

[dittrimd]

Our team is working towards a standard of fully encapsulated dry suit and full face mask with comms. In a nutshell this is the NFPA standard and we are trying to work towards compliance. It is a slippery slope becuase while we want to provide the most protection for our divers we do not want to price ourselves out of a job. A team near us just closed shop becuase the town could no longer properly fund the FD never mind the dive team. The were an active team too!!

"Fully encapsulated" is a broad term with respect to dry suits. Several dry suits can fully encapsulate a diver from the environement but to different levels. A team needs to define what level of protection or type of diving they are going to be in.

Our team just decided to go for the maximum level of protection which is vulcanized rubber suits. Hold on I am not saying vulcanized rubber suits protect against everything. Sure the suits will not protect against ALL agents. Anyone who has taken even a HAZMAT awareness class knows that different chemicals react differently with certain material.

I am just saying for the most part vulcanized rubber suits offer the greatest protection but not against everything. That is why we have dive commanders to determine whether or not it is safe to dive.

In addition vulcanized suits are easier to decon vs. other types of nylon and neoprene if you can clean them at all. I had a neoprene dry suit get tossed becuase of gas and oil that I could not get out.

To my knowledge Viking does not make a front entry vulcanized rubber suit, I am not sure about Gates or DUI.

Hope this helps.

Mark D.

 

[bridgediver]

As Mark says, I'd define what your team's mission is. It doesn't really matter what other team's are using. I've used/use all types
Having said that, IMO, wet suits are unsuited for any sort of PSD work. The contamination factor tells us that our searches are usually in areas where run off occurs and collects often in standing water. Rarely are we ever searching at a nice clean dive site at mid water depth -- we've got our heads in the muck and yuck. A wet suit may even actually trap the contaminants against our skin!
The other reason is that even in the tropics the divers risk hypothermia if they wear a wet wet suit all day and do 5-6 dives a day. Add inclement weather and the risk turns into a definite. We may not have the luxury to rehab for an hour or more between dives in a dry/warm boat cabin.

A dry suit will lower the contaminates risk and the hypothermia risk. Add a dry hood, dry gloves and a FFM and the risk goes down even more but unless you can towel off and dry the suit itself there will still be a risk of contamination (in the suit) and chilling of the diver through evaporation.
Of the 3, neoprene is the worst followed by trilam - only the rubber suits can be completely cleaned and dried in the feild. Most neoprene will never come clean even after commercial cleaning and so these may become a disposabale suit - they stay wet for days! They're usually more difficult to dive - ie bulky, buoyancy changes etc. The upside is they're usually the cheapest.
There's many different trilams now. Drying time can vary anywhere from 1-12hrs and contamination and cleaning is still a concern. Add the high price of these (nearly as much as a viking) and you don't want to be throwing too many of these out because they're dirty. Trilams do fit the best and allow the most agility.
If you have lots of divers and can rehab them for a long time in a warm/dry area and can consider the suits disposable the trilam or neoprene can work.

PSDs tend to gravitate towards vulcanized rubber because they're bulit for the job. They can be deconed for safe use after the common contaminates we're exposed to - no other suit can be 100% cleaned. Also:
- easy and fast to repair (back in the water in 10-15min)
- tough - usually take more abuse than neoprene or trilam
- fast drying - towel it off, roll it up and its ready for the next call (no need to hang it for a day or 2). This is also important in freezing temps as the suit can remain on the diver without robbing him of heat or icing up
- negative weight (viking) a tad negative in the water. neoprene has buoyancy changes with depth and is positive
- cheaper in the long run - replacement of the other suit types as they degrade/damage while these will last.
- the downside here is that they're usually priced as a higher end trilam and restrict movement much like a neoprene (not too bad though)

As far as front vs rear zips. A rear zip is most comfortable to dive and the zipper will tend to last longer. Heavy duty zips can be placed at the rear but would be very cumbersome in the front (if they're even available there). You should also have a good tender to zip the suit for you anyway whether it be front or rear so there's no conveniance lost here anyway.

hope this helps

 

[muddiver]

Excelant post Bridgediver, not much left to cover.

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

The teams in our area use the Viking suits with the AGA com system.

I have a PSD package that has been very popular lately including Viking suit, undergarment, hoses, bag, gloves, AGA, Zeagle Ranger(plus some others).....$3500......great all in one starter package

 

[dittrimd]

Holy Cr*#!! My department just paid $2500.00 for my Viking suit alone. We also just got a quote for the AGA at $790.00 without the OTS Coms. The only thing missing in your package was a tank and a first stage regulator. Very nice and it is nice to see a LDS working to supply their PSD's.

Keep up the good work!

Mark D.

 

[psdiverdave]

Great info bridgediver.... Our dive team is a volunteer organization with NO budget to speak of... we use all neoprene dry suits (Harvey Dinohydes), Halcyon Eclipse BC's, and AGA masks... we have considered the contamination risks but as we dive in mostly bays or the open ocean the contaminants are far less concentrated and we need the bouyancy in the event of a tear causing our suit to flood... our dives are on car wrecks in the rivers and the bay, downed small aircraft and overturned vessels. The presents of sharp metal and the damage it caused to our Viking suits we used to use influenced our decision to change our suits.

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

Holy Cr*#!! My department just paid $2500.00 for my Viking suit alone. We also just got a quote for the AGA at $790.00 without the OTS Coms. The only thing missing in your package was a tank and a first stage regulator. Very nice and it is nice to see a LDS working to supply their PSD's.

Keep up the good work!

Mark D.

So how many you want

JK, ya I dont understand why our competitors dont help the PSD guys...I think its fun helping pick stuff out and help set up a team plan and be surface support on calls in case something breaks or anything

 

[bridgediver]

Great info bridgediver.... Our dive team is a volunteer organization with NO budget to speak of... we use all neoprene dry suits (Harvey Dinohydes), Halcyon Eclipse BC's, and AGA masks... we have considered the contamination risks but as we dive in mostly bays or the open ocean the contaminants are far less concentrated and we need the bouyancy in the event of a tear causing our suit to flood... our dives are on car wrecks in the rivers and the bay, downed small aircraft and overturned vessels. The presents of sharp metal and the damage it caused to our Viking suits we used to use influenced our decision to change our suits.

I agree, exclusive ocean work would be the exception unless you have the potential to do harbours or marinas - they can be some of the most polluted water anywhere. I have not had the good fortune to see any of the Oregon coast but I'd imagine that your part of the coast wouldn't be too bad...
Still, even getting near a body (fresh or old) is like dumping the body fluids/tissue over us head to toe. This is enough of a known contaminant; now add all the unknown that we face

The beauty of a viking/vulcanized suit is that it can be repaired as easily and as fast as a bicycle innner tube multiple times. If you're worried about tears, any other suit would be more difficult to fix.


Unless you're using the dry suit for buoyancy control you won't loose buoyancy with a suit flood. This is a common misconception.