Using a dive skin under 7mm full suit

[NYCNaiad]

I wear a dive skin with all my wet suits from a 7mm down to a 3. Makes getting in and out a breeze. I actually have 2 skins. I'll wear the 1st one for the morning dives and then change into a dry bathing suit and dry skin for the afternoon dives. A dry one is nicer to put on and also provides a very nice SPF. Plus switching them out ensures you don't get any nasty fungus or yeast infection. Ick.

 

[Jano]

My experience is that using a skin with a semi dry completely defeats the object of the semi dry because it breaks the seals at the ankles and wrists and cold water gets in. The 2 semi dry suits I've used so far have both had wrist and ankle seals as good as any dry suit and the only water inside the suits at the end of a dive is my own sweat. When I do need extra insulation I just wear a 2mm sleeveless vest under my 7mm semi dry.

Mike, I also dive a semi-dry (SolAfx) and absolutely love it! Drysuit divers don't believe me that I'm not getting cold in the high mountain lakes I dive around here in Montana. However, getting in and out of the suit is a real chore and I got excited when I saw this post about using a dive skin to make donning and doffing easier. I had not considered that the dive skin might disrupt the drysuit seals at the ankles and wrists. Have you actually tried using the dive skin with your semi-dry and found this to be what happens?

 

[Doby45]

Lycra skin for the win!!!! I use one when I wear any wetsuit and it makes life worth living. Couple notes to keep in mind, as someone mentioned when you have just the skin on after a dive it will get cold. That can be good or bad. 95* on a boat in Florida the chilling effect is very nice and the skin dries quickly. In a more cool environment you can freeze your butt off. Also attempting to put a "wet" skin back on will make you curse the day you were born as it likes to stick to your own skin and not go on very well. But with the skin on getting into either a wet wetsuit or dry wetsuit is a bajillion percent easier.

 

[miketsp]

Mike, I also dive a semi-dry (SolAfx) and absolutely love it! Drysuit divers don't believe me that I'm not getting cold in the high mountain lakes I dive around here in Montana. However, getting in and out of the suit is a real chore and I got excited when I saw this post about using a dive skin to make donning and doffing easier. I had not considered that the dive skin might disrupt the drysuit seals at the ankles and wrists. Have you actually tried using the dive skin with your semi-dry and found this to be what happens?

Yes, I have tried using a lycra skin with my semi-dry and it did break the seals. The semi-dry turned into a normal wet-suit.

As for getting in and out of an exact fitting heavy 7mm it is all a question of developing an efficient technique.

This is a from a post I wrote back in 2009. I still use exactly this technique:

If this is a well fitting 7mm semi dry then there are definitely some tricks to using it otherwise you'll be too tired to dive after the work of donning it.
The first trick is to turn it almost inside out leaving about 6" at the ends of the legs and arms folded over. Then I use 2 smallish strong plastic bags. I put one on each foot and push them into the leg openings pulling the fold. You will then be able to just roll the suit up your legs and body with an absolute minimum of effort until you get to the height of the base of your sternum.
Transfer the 2 bags to your hands and push them through the still folded arm openings. Then just stick out both arms and the top part of the suit will roll into place. Finally head into the collar and work it down with both hands. If I'm not wet I do sometimes use the plastic bag over the top of my head - always guaranteed to produce a few smiles on the dive boat - but it really extends the life of my latex neck seal.
The combination of the strategic use of plastic bags and the rolling techniques reduces the effort to a fraction of what it would be.
You'll need a buddy anyway to close (and open) your zipper if it's the rear entry dry-suit type.
Assuming you have a buddy to unzip you, the real trick to taking it off once you get your head out of the upper part is to work the suit down a few inches around your torso before folding the suit over at the shoulders and then rolling it off.

 

[Dan]

So true. I started using a skin under my 5 mil suit last year, and it's made a huge difference in getting the thing on; it pretty much slides on now. Unlike TravisD, though, I keep the skin on for the whole dive day.

Another tip: sew a sturdy colored thread (dental floss works great) somewhere on each leg so you can get the skin lined up correctly to put on. The legs of my skin always seem to twist around. I sewed the floss on the ankles so I knew which leg was left and which was right.

My Lycra skin has zipper in the front, while my 5mm Neoprene wetsuit has zipper on the back. So, I have no problem to find which is the right or left part of both the Lycra & the Neoprene .

The Lycra has loops on the end of legs & sleeves. The loops on the legs are for looping around each heels over each ankles. The loops on the sleeves are for looping around each thumbs. Once you put them on, sliding the Neoprene comes very easy without having the Lycra to slide up with the Neoprene as you push your legs & arms into the Neoprene.

The tight fit at the ends of the Neoprene's legs & sleeves opening was a chore to push my hands & feet through. So, I sent my wetsuit to Terrapin Wetsuit Alteration to add 8" zippers to each of the 4 ends. Wearing the Neoprene since then becomes much easier.

Wetsuit Repair & Wetsuit Alterations | Terrapin Wetsuits

 

[Jano]

Yes, I have tried using a lycra skin with my semi-dry and it did break the seals. The semi-dry turned into a normal wet-suit.

As for getting in and out of an exact fitting heavy 7mm it is all a question of developing an efficient technique.

This is a from a post I wrote back in 2009. I still use exactly this technique:

If this is a well fitting 7mm semi dry then there are definitely some tricks to using it otherwise you'll be too tired to dive after the work of donning it.
The first trick is to turn it almost inside out leaving about 6" at the ends of the legs and arms folded over. Then I use 2 smallish strong plastic bags. I put one on each foot and push them into the leg openings pulling the fold. You will then be able to just roll the suit up your legs and body with an absolute minimum of effort until you get to the height of the base of your sternum.
Transfer the 2 bags to your hands and push them through the still folded arm openings. Then just stick out both arms and the top part of the suit will roll into place. Finally head into the collar and work it down with both hands. If I'm not wet I do sometimes use the plastic bag over the top of my head - always guaranteed to produce a few smiles on the dive boat - but it really extends the life of my latex neck seal.
The combination of the strategic use of plastic bags and the rolling techniques reduces the effort to a fraction of what it would be.
You'll need a buddy anyway to close (and open) your zipper if it's the rear entry dry-suit type.
Assuming you have a buddy to unzip you, the real trick to taking it off once you get your head out of the upper part is to work the suit down a few inches around your torso before folding the suit over at the shoulders and then rolling it off.

Mike, you are my hero! I just tried the plastic bag method you described and that was by far the easiest it has ever been to put on my semi-dry suit! There went the final reason for ever considering a dry suit! Thanks mike!

 

[icechip]

+1 on the lycra skin under a 7mm. Makes it much easier getting in and out of the wetsuit, especially when you re-suit up for the next dive. Same with aqua-socks and booties.