Advice on wetsuit for warm water diving

[Doctorfish]

In tropics in summer I always dive a 3mm full suit. A 5 mm in 82 degree water is overkill and more difficult to don and doff. IMO you need a full suit for sting protection and with multiple daily dives there is potential to eventually get cold. Never regretted having a full 3 mm suit on.

I would not wear a rental suit. You know what most people do in them. I'd rather be cold than exposed to other people's urine.

I like one piece as simpler, only one zipper and less potential for cold water entering than with layering. I slip the top half down between dives.

I do not wear a hood in summer, just a do rag to cover my bald spot. Gloves are prohibited in most marine sanctuaries.

I personally like Henderson hyperstretch as very elastic so that arm and leg zippers are not necessary. My advise is to go with what fits you best rather than focusing on the brand.

Go to your LDS and try a bunch on.

 

[lexvil]

I use an Akona 1mm in that sort of water and if the temps are a little lower I wear a second one over the first. Every few years I search for one on sale and leave the oldest one behind when on a trip. A beanie can help too.

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

@MAKO Spearguns the link to the 2mm suit shows male and female but once you start selecting sizes appears to be unisex.
Does mako have thin (1 or 2mm) suits for women? Maybe some polartec-like material ?

Thanks for the inquiry Ana:

We carry two piece wetsuits in women's and men's sizes/cuts. However for our one-piece, back zip 2mm suits - we use a unisex cut. We use Yamamoto neoprene in these suits and it is very stretchy and since this is a warm water suit, sizing is less critical. So we offer these particular suits in a unisex sizing. In general, you want to pay more attention to weight than height when selecting a wetsuit - particularly a warm water suit.

We off 3, 5 and 7 mm in women's and men's suits and just a 2 mm one-piece and also a top and bottom rash guard, but no polartec option. The one-piece suits seem to be especially popular with warm water scuba divers.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Howdy! When this pandemic is over I plan to be scuba diving the coral triangle area in Indonesia. In this equatorial region the water temperature is +/- 82°F 28°C year round.

I've been advised to get a 3mm wetsuit. This will be the first wetsuit I've purchased, and would like to hear from experienced divers about brands, features to look for, materials, etc.

I'd especially like to hear from those with personal experience diving in those tropical, Indonesian, Coral Triangle waters.

I understand that there is a lot of stinging marine life in those waters and I assume a full wetsuit is needed, but I was surprised that the resort recommended something as thick as 3mm.

Would a hood and gloves be needed as well for protection against the tiny stinging critters?

Would a 2-piece wetsuit be advisable- I kind of hate being topside and getting over-heated in a wetsuit with the top part pulled down.

3mm fullsuit. You may want a beanie.

 

[TMHeimer]

One odd caveat I do is at a particular water temp. (like now here in Nova Scotia) I may ditch the bottoms of my 7 mil farmer john and just go with the top, adjusting weighting & trim accordingly. With my usually shallow shore dives, I have to beware of thermoclines at times, which can be uncomfortable on the bare legs-- so at times I just go back shallower for a bit.
haven't hear of anyone else doing this, but it saves buying a 5 mil wetsuit.
The 7 mil farmer john is very flexible water temp.-wise, and I will use it all winter (but just one short dive in a day with temps. at times in the 30s F.

 

[GrafCanuck]

I have a full length 3mm ScubaPro Definition. Have used in 75F temps in a freshwater river and high 70s/low 80s in the Caribbean (Bonaire, Curacao, St Martin, Bahamas). Would definitely recommend full length. You protect your knees and elbows from bumps along the way as well as stings. I haven't been using a hoodie but recently bought one knowing that you do lose a lot of your body heat from your head. Would also recommend gloves if permitted which they are not in many Caribbean islands.

As far as brands go, I tried on a Henderson, Bare and a few others including a couple of different ScubaPro models. The Bare fit me well and the SP Definition. The others not so much. The rule of thumb here is you need to try on several brands and models to see the right fit for you. They fit all differently. I hate trying on clothes and quadruple hate trying on wetsuits.

Hope this helps.

 

[mi000ke]

If you do a search here you will find lots of "what exposure suit should I wear" threads. There really is no answer. It depends on your tolerance for cold. I dive mostly in the Caymans where the water temps range from 78 to 86 year round. I wear a 3mm full until the temps drop below 85 then I go with a 5mm full. On the other hand, most folks here wear nothing in the summer and a 3mm shory in the winter. But to my point, when I first started diving here I was on a boat in the winter - water temp about 80 - and divers were wearing anything from bathing suits, to 3mm shorties, to me in my 5mm, to the dive master in a dry suit (!).

 

[Altamira]

I usually wear a 3mm full suit with beanie or lycra hood in the tropics. On rare occasions, I will dive in a full lycra skin, but prefer the 3mm for better stinger protection. If I am doubting my tolerance for the water temperature over numerous dive days, I will take my 5mm full suit. I have never been too warm in a wetsuit, but I sure have been too cold during my distant past colder water diving days. Having to pee in my wetsuit just to get a little extra warmth is no longer my idea of a fun dive.

 

[living4experiences]

I'm a warm water diver, so I have a dive skin for ease of don and doff and a full 3 mm wet suit. I wear a full wet suit for all my diving, which provides warmth and rash protection for the stinging critters. And remember, stinging critters don't have to be swimming. It looks like you're a new diver, so you will most likely bump into something that will scrape your skin as your experience grows and bumping into fire coral is not fun...so I've heard. It hasn't happened to me, but I've seen divers who have been stung. I take my gloves on every dive trip, again for warmth and rash protection. If I'm not allowed to use them, they are left in the hotel room.

Here's an anecdotal story: Cozumel doesn't allow gloves, so in my early days, I lost my situational awareness of the surroundings while looking at a lobster and my hand hit something sharp and put a gash in my finger. Have you ever bled at 60 feet? You bleed green! That tripped me out so much, I forgot how painful it was!