talc for gaskets / seals e.g drysuit

[Schwob]

So what exactly is one supposed to use on those frysuit gaskets? If anyone still dares to speak to it, I sure would like to know... (not who dares to still speak to it, but what to actually use and why / when / how)

Johnson & Johnson to pay $4.7bn damages in talc cancer case - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44816805

Edit: That's what, about $213 million per person...

 

[Kermit98]

Unless you are putting that drysuit seal somewhere unusual you appear to be fairly safe.

Even if you ignore the application location, and if you believe most of the worse case sensible info out there you are look at raising the risk of ovarian cancer by something like 1/3. Given its quite a rare cancer (something like 20s per 100,000 women) and tends to be a later life cancer I would say the risk of putting a bit on a neck seal a handful of times a year its pretty much non existent.... certainly in comparison to other risks associated with diving!



Edit: UK Stats from CancerResearch UK 23 cases per 100k in 2015

 

[Outbound]

The J&J case is from women dusting their lady bits with talc every day. Your wrists and neck aren't mucosal membranes, so unless you are dusting it with so much talc that you cause a big cloud and inhale a bunch of it every day, I wouldn't worry. I guess you could always use cornstarch. But we'll probably find in 30 years that cornstarch causes some other form of cancer in certain people.

PS: I'm going to start referring to my suit as a "frysuit" too when it's 90 degrees outside and I'm sweating getting geared up

 

[Schwob]

PS: I'm going to start referring to my suit as a "frysuit" too when it's 90 degrees outside and I'm sweating getting geared up

It certainly is not exactly a drysuit anymore then... frysuit sounds about right

@Outbound & @Kermit98
While I personally of course have no lady bits (of mine) to worry about and while my drysuit seals never go there if I did and while I rarely use a drysuit (even if it was for every dive, which it is not, it still would be rarely), I am sticking my face (nose, mouth) through that neck seal. Now I have my mouth closed when I do those contortions and my seals aren't dripping of powder... you mostly cannot really tell there is any, but, those claims that talc is or might be contaminated with asbestos give me a little pause... not enough to stop (talc seems to work better / feels more right than cornstarch), but enough to wonder...

 

[Lorenzoid]

I would consider that you're not using the talc every day, and not inhaling the talc all day like people who went to work in asbestos factories/mines. There are probably more contaminants in the water you're diving in to worry about than in the thin dusting on drysuit seals. There are probably more contaminants in the air you breathe when you pass through certain places. Ever inadvertently inhale gasoline fumes when you fill your car? Car exhaust? These things probably aren't cause for concern you if you're not doing it that frequently. I would keep in mind that, apart from the ladies who dusted their bits with it, people have been using talc for decades and decades for a multitude of things without reports of widespread illness. Cornstarch? Maybe it's contaminated with minute traces of Roundup?

 

[Schwob]

I would consider that you're not using the talc every day, and not inhaling the talc all day like people who went to work in asbestos factories/mines. There are probably more contaminants in the water you're diving in to worry about than in the thin dusting on drysuit seals. There are probably more contaminants in the air you breathe when you pass through certain places. Ever inadvertently inhale gasoline fumes when you fill your car? Car exhaust? These things probably aren't cause for concern you if you're not doing it that frequently. I would keep in mind that, apart from the ladies who dusted their bits with it, people have been using talc for decades and decades for a multitude of things without reports of widespread illness. Cornstarch? Maybe it's contaminated with minute traces of Roundup?

Considering all that of course...

Those sums in those kind of lawsuits really have me think that if I was a manufacturer (of talc or seals that benefit from a dusting) or a store selling either (or anything really) that kind of lawsuit going that way would have me (personally, I am not speaking for any real such individuals / entities) consider changing any and all verbage about using anything for anything. Even more supid disclaimers that may have a friendly hint buried in them may become the norm if that sort of litigation keeps yielding mord and more unreasonable sums.
Like:
Dear customer:
Not reading this could harm you. So could reading this.
Read at your own risk. It is your choice to read or not to read this:
Some people might choose to periodically lightly dust our neck and wrist gaskets with talcum powder to ease slipping in and out, to possibly prolong the life of the gaskets and to prevent "stick together'" especially prior to longer periods of (dry) storage. We no longer carry such powder. It is your decision alone how and if you use talcum powder or any of our products or the air in our store. They may or may not enable you to do the things you want to do. However this is your decision alone. We do not recommend that you do any thing and you are herby informed that anything you use, anything you are exposed to, anything you do or do not do can lead to mild or severe and possibly chronic sicknessor death. This includes the air you breathe or the device you use or anything else you might be exposed to or in contact with while / for reading this.

 

[Schwob]

All: Sorry guys, due to the possibly possible legal implications, my inner pseudo-lawyer strongly advises against me liking any posts in this thread...

 

[Scuba J7]

Diluted baby shampoo in a spray bottle. Works 100 times better than talc and also helps get into wetsuits, works as mask defogger, and if you’re camping on the divesite and forget shampoo you’ve got a supply!

Talc really didn’t seem to help me at all, with baby shampoo you slide right through.

 

[claymore]

Switch to water based personal lubricant, KY lubricant, for your seals.

 

[AfterDark]

That big yellow thing in the sky causes cancer also. Cancer is caused by living, dead people can't get cancer. Stop worrying, silicone spray is also an option. Oh and wear a hat in the sun.