Mask leaking in OW dives

[Marcos]

I just got my open water certification at Dutch Springs last weekend and I'm going back this weekend for my Advanced open water certification. Everything went great on all of my check out dives except my mask constantly leaked and I had to keep on clearing it. I think the hood was breaking the seal the mask makes with your face. I have done about half a dozen resort dives in the carribean and never had a mask leaking problem. Of course I wasn't wearing a 7mm hood either. Is there a technique or a way to wear the hood/mask to eliminate or minimize the leaking? It always seemed to come from the left side of my face too. Not a real problem, but more of an annoyance. Any suggestions will be appreciated. I did try on the hood and mask at home to try and look at the problem in the mirror. Then I used my snorkel and stuck my head in the tub to try and reproduce the problem. It didn't leak then and my girlfriend saw me doing this and now officially thinks I'm nuts. Anyway the bath tub is one thing, but being in Dutch Springs at depth with scuba gloves on trying to fix your mask leak/seal is another. Anyone else have this problem?

Thanks,

Marc

 

[MISFIT DIVER]

They only suggestion that I would have is to make sure that the hood is not behind the mask skirt. One you have your mask on, run your finger around the outside of the skirt and hood to ensure the hood is not behind it. The hood should not hinder the mask performance at all. Not to many moving parts. I can"t think there would be any thing else causing it. Tell your wife that the tub is part of the AOW training.

 

[ppo2_diver]

You might want to try loosening up your mask straps. I could be that with the hood on, your mask is too tight and can leak.

I had this trouble with my hood. I didn't like the hood so I switched to a beanie.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Laser]

I've found that with my face, it matters where the strap is on the back of my head. Too high or too low, and it will leak.

 

[PaulB]

I agree with MISFIT DIVER. Make sure that the hood isn't under the skirt of the mask. Also make sure it isn't pushing against the seal causing the seal to break.

 

[Wristshot]

The obvious answers are (as given) to check that the hood isn't interfering with the mask skirt, and to make sure that you don't have hair under your mask. Have your buddy (you do dive with a buddy, right?) check your maks before you go in.

jhnsndn has probably nailed the real reason. A mask that is too tight can leak. Adding the thickness of a 7mm hood can make the strap too tight. Loosen it a little bit when you dive with a hood.

Also, the way the mask fits your face can be distorted slightly by the hood itself.

Now here is the trick that they showed me at a shop in Monterey that makes custom wetsuits: grab a handfull of the back of your hood (without grabbing hair) and pull it together like a fist. That pulls the sides and top of the hood away from your mask, allowing your mask to seal onto your face. Then when you let go, the hood will (should) slide on over the top of the mask skirt. It seemed strange, but it really works.

Hope that helps.

Wristshot

 

[NurseShark]

that causes leaks. If its not the obvious hood under mask skirt, loosening your mask strap may help but I have also found that the position of the mask strap on my head makes a difference. If the strap is too close to the top of my head, the hood rides up bringing the strap with it & the mask leaks. The best solution I have found is to use a neoprene mask strap. The wider strap & neoprene material tend to stay in place once you find the "sweet spot" for where your strap needs to sit to stop the leaking.

 

[herman]

Don't overlook the possibility that your snorkle is putting a strain on your mask/strap and causing the leak. That's the reason I removed mine years ago. If I have to have it for some reason (dive op or class requires it), it's attached to my BC and not my mask.

 

[Marcos]

Thanks for all of the advice everybody. This forum is really helpful. I actually did everything everyone said to here and I fixed the problem. No more mask leaking. I loosened the mask strap and made sure the hood was OVER the mask seal prior to every dive. I completed my AOW certification without a hitch. Thanks again everybody.