mask leak

[Andrew Gorton]

Hi all, I just joined I'm from New Zealand. Needed a new mask so searched best masks 2016 and decided on a venom arc mask. It had pretty good reviews so got one online last week. Tryed it out twice and both times it leaked. Did some more research and found they had leaking issues grrrrrr. Found how to identify age of my mask by the little round stamps on either side of the inside nose silicon. It's got 11 on the left hand stamp and 12 on the RHS stamp so Im thinking 11th month of 2012 I'm waiting for the shop to reopen but wanted anyone's opinion please. I've tryed many masks over the years none have leaked on my face. Paid $360 NZD so much more than my mares x vision I had. I broke the glass on the mares so had to buy another mask. The Arc has great clarity and feels great but leaks every time. I tryed to see if the seals around the lens was dodgy but everything looks ok to me. Any other advise from you guys

 

[David Wilson]

I feel your pain as I've experienced the same misfortune of using an old familiar well-fitting mask for many years and then moving on to a new mask that proved to be ill-fitting and leaky. Over the years I've noticed many masks being advertised as fitting most or all faces and I knew instinctively that mine would be the face those masks would not fit.

I think the problem lies with the fact that very few masks nowadays are "sized" albeit that when Cressi brought out its "Sirena" mask in the late 1940s, it came in three versions: small, medium and large. Some manufacturers, particularly in the Far East, publish the dimensions of their masks, focusing on the width and height of the skirt, measurements that are key to a good match between the mask and the face, e.g.:

The "132 mm" skirt width is a useful dimension to know when judging whether a mask bought online is likely to fit. It's a shame that too few manufacturers follow suit and provide their customers with a little more dimensional transparency.

I hope you can return your leaky mask as it is unfit for snorkelling purposes. Go instead into a good "terrestrial" diving or sporting goods store and try on each of the masks they stock, applying them to your face, breathing in through the nose to create a vacuum and seeing whether the mask stays in place without the support of the strap. It's not a foolproof method of gauging fit, but it should eliminate mask options with "space-age" features but an inability to fit everybody's physiognomy. We aren't all the same size and that includes our faces. So don't limit yourself to a particular model, make or price range; often the cheapest basic mask turns out to be the best for you. I hope you eventually find your dream mask. Discovering what it is will be something of an odyssey, not unlike the search for perfect fins.

 

[The Chairman]

Yeah, that happens. Here's how I test my masks. The strap gets pulled so it's in front of the lens. I look straight up and gently place the mask on my face. Only gravity should be seating the mask on my face. I then gently inhale through my nose. If the mask gently seals on my face and holds the partial vacuum, then I have a %95 chance of it being a good fit in the water. Don't seat the mask forcefully: that's how most dive shops fit you. If the weight of the mask isn't enough, then it's not right for you.

Remember, in the water, the mask is trying to lift off your face. Nothing in the shop can replicate that force.

 

[JimmySnorkel]

Hi all, I just joined I'm from New Zealand. Needed a new mask so searched best masks 2016 and decided on a venom arc mask. It had pretty good reviews so got one online last week. Tryed it out twice and both times it leaked. Did some more research and found they had leaking issues grrrrrr. Found how to identify age of my mask by the little round stamps on either side of the inside nose silicon. It's got 11 on the left hand stamp and 12 on the RHS stamp so Im thinking 11th month of 2012 I'm waiting for the shop to reopen but wanted anyone's opinion please. I've tryed many masks over the years none have leaked on my face. Paid $360 NZD so much more than my mares x vision I had. I broke the glass on the mares so had to buy another mask. The Arc has great clarity and feels great but leaks every time. I tryed to see if the seals around the lens was dodgy but everything looks ok to me. Any other advise from you guys

I agree and advise many people on this issue. I advise people to really do the research before deciding on these masks. I've lost count on the number of times I've had people tell me they wished they would have researched before purchasing their equipment. I personally know someone that nearly lost their life from not purchasing the right equipment from snorkeling. Too many people taken it too lightly and anything can happen when out in the waters. When you are out there, all that you have is your physical ability and your equipment to depend on. You definitely want to make sure that the equipment is the best it can be.

 

[Ojai Diver]

Agree with NetDoc, but would just add that if you dive with a hood, wear it to try on masks. You will look like an ass, but some masks seal fine without the hood, and do not with it--that happened with mine.

 

[Marie13]

And take your snorkel along to try on masks with it in your mouth. It can change the shape of your face enough to affect mask fit.

 

[JimmySnorkel]

As David Wilson mentioned earlier, there are too many masks on the market today that claim to have the proper fit for anyone. Again, as I mentioned earlier about safety, I can't stress enough the importance in the steps to choosing your gear. I talk about this in one of the blog posts named How to choose Snorkel Gear. I hope I can lead people in the right direction.

 

[kelemvor]

I've put probably 200 dives on that mask in my profile picture. It cost me $20 USD (about 28.40 NZD). Snorkel pro.

Whatever fits will work just fine.