Going to make a wetsuit hanger, but... which way to hang suit on it?

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Blue Sparkle

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I'm up to three wetsuits now, and I no longer have the space to drape them all loosely over an old sofa :wink:

I searched and read a number of older threads, and I'm planning to make a hanger with some sort of support inside a larger (~5" diameter) pool noodle.

My question is: What's the least harmful way to hang a fullsuit? I was just thinking I would use the usual shoulder way (like hanging a shirt), but then in another SB thread I saw a link to a commercial hanger that was made so that you basically draped the suit over it at the waist. It claimed to be better than the shoulder method (which was somewhat warned against). I think I'm skeptical of that because wouldn't it make creases along the sides since the suit would be flat ?

Here's a photo of that hanger:
wetsuitonhanger009.1.jpg
wetsuit hanger, Hang your wetsuit from the waist, the slidehanger wetsuit hanger was developed to eliminate shoulder wear. Wetsuit, Surf gift, links to surf shops, wetsuit care products.

(Whichever way I go I'll be making my own, so that's just an example.)


Then I remembered how people used to hang "slacks," which was by the ankles, upside down. Hmmm, my suits have double ankle neoprene, plus I wear booties, so any slight crease or problem right at the bottom of the ankle would not really be an issue. Then there would be no weight pulling on the shoulders. The only problem I can think of is that unless I did something special with the arms, they would be hanging on kind of a "pulled" angle.

Alright, so now some of you are probably thinking "Sheesh, just hang up your suit and be done with it!" I hear you. But... I shudder to think of how much it would cost to replace three fullsuits now :shocked2: so storing them seems worthy of some thought and care.

Thank you!

Blue Sparkle
 
I just use the "standard" UK heavy duty wetsuit hanger. regarding that one you have posted, I'd think the same as you, that you may get a crease across the middle of the suit that way - though i suppose if you used something thick - 2" PCV or something like that, you'd increase the surface area and reduce the chance of creasing
I remember seeing the posts regarding that hanger - If I remember correctly, the person touting it's benefits was the hanger's maker so you should take that recommendation with a grain of salt (a big giant one - more like a large rock of salt).
 
Yeah, I was a bit skeptical, but figured I'd see what others knew. I don't worry about making a crease at the waist, because the 5" noodle will give a nice gradual bend. Where I could see a problem would be in the armpit to ankle dimension along each side. Seems the suit would be flat there and so you would get a crease on each side.

No "angle hangers" here?
 
I've seen people warn about hanging from the shoulders but I've been hanging an Xcel 9/7/6 on a UK Hang-Air fan drying hanger for a bit over 2 years with no noticeable problems. I dive often and having my wetsuit dry within a few hours is a huge plus for me. My 3mm will dry overnight no problem but the big boy takes 3 days in the garage to dry without the fan...
 
Use the chunkiest hanger you can find and then jam or tape a 500ml water bottle on each end.
(This would probably work with larger bottles, but I only had 500ml available)

This helps air to circulate better and increases the surface area that the wetsuit is resting on, therefore preventing creasing/stretching/damage to the neoprene.

BOOM!

Nic
 
Yes, I am the guy with the waist hanger. After over 40 years of using wetsuits, I have found that hanging from the waist has the least amount of wear or creasing than other methods of hanging. Many divers know this. They hang there wetsuit over the boat railing. There is a lot more fabric at the waist so when doubled over a wide circular bar there is less stress and wear. The SlideHanger is 1 1/2 " wide and circular. Many major wetsuit manufactures indorse hanging from the waist. There are lots of good DIY hangers that are great. I started by hanging my wetsuits over a length of PVC after blowing out the shoulders on my wetsuits. Those noodles work great too.
If Blue Sparkle or anyone else from scubaboard would like to try a SlideHanger, contact me direct. I'll send you one as a demo. You only pay the shipping.
Take care,
Glide
 
I have always used 2 or 3 plastic hangers for each part of my Farmer John style. I usually store them inside out for drying until my next dive. If I do not use them for a while, I turn them right side out. I always turn them right side out for travel so they do not get damaged. I am skeptical about the bending in middle. But my 9/7/6mm one piece is so heavy, I think this would be safer to bend in the middle versus hanging from the shoulders. I think I will try this method and post later this summer about it.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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