Wetsuit or drysuit for Ontario diving

[NorthernShrinkage]

Of course if your Built like elevatorguy2 you can dive the Arabia in a Shorty

HIGHJACK OVER

 

[Diver Rick]

.....I'm thinking of buying a cold water exposure suit for diving in places like Ontario. I am thinking of getting either a drysuit or a 7 mm wetsuit.....

.....If I get a drysuit, are there some areas in Ontario that would be too warm, or some seasons where it doesn't make sense to wear a drysuit? Your comments are welcome.....Also, I believe that it's difficult to travel with a drysuit. Is this true?

My 2 cents worth: I've been diving in Ontario for 23 years. A dry suit is almost mandatory in some places, IMHO. However, there are many places too warm for a Dry Suit! Most dives in the St Lawrence for example, are 3mil shorty dives for me by mid July. However, I wouldn't do anything prolonged in less that a 5 or 7 mil wet.

And I wouldn't do Toby or deep Kingston wrecks without my Dry Suit!

Others may suggest differently I am sure! Ontario is a big place! Weather and water temps vary drastically from season to season and from place to place and from surface to depth.

Answering your questions specifically: Yes there are seasons and dive sites where a Dry Suit is totally UNnecessary, and locations and season when one is absolutely necessary.

I have also travelled domestically and abroad with my dry suits, my various wet suits, and every combination of both, and it is no more difficult to travel with the dry suit than anything else. However, add ankle weights to you package rentals are hard to find) and assume one more piece of luggage & dive gear bags with your dry suit!

I know the answer isn't "black and white" but I hope this info helps!

If you can narrow down your most likely dive destinations, the answers could be easier to offer. If you want to dive just about anywhere in Ontario, and be 100% comfortable, you need the following:
1x 3mil shorty WS
1x 3mil full coverage WS
1x 5mil one piece wet suit
1x 7mil two piece full coverage wet suit
1x Dry Suit, pick your style with appropriate thermo coveralls:
- Tri-Laminate (several choices of materials
- 7mil Neoprene
- 4mil crushed Neoprene
- Vulcanized rubber

Each may require different thermal protection, depending on style of suit, and dive conditions

Now, I also have about 5x sets of gloves, each or different water temps and conditions!

Rick

 

[Diver_Wulf]

Since I got my cert I have been diving in Ontario which is going on 15 years. I live in the Niagara Region so we dive the River, Creek, Canal alot. From April to about mid June ill Dive a 7mm, then ill switch to a 1.5mm until the end of August. I also dive quite a bit in Toby and just dive my 7mm, even when we are up there camping in October and the snow is flying. However I have alot of friends who have gone over to the drysuit side and they love it. And like everyone else I have seen an over abundance of people go dry with out the experience and have more problems then benefits. I'm going to concur with the rest and say wetsuit experience is an asset before going Dry. Having said that the next stage in my diving career will take me to a drysuit out of necessity rather then just because.

 

[DrownedRat]

I personally find a drysuit is comfortable all year round in these parts. The river can warm up quite a bit in the summer (think 78F) but a lot of the lake diving is below the theromocline (sometimes two or three) and can get down right chilly (high 30's to low 40's). Dove with both neo and shell suits. The neo suit is a little warm in the river during the high tems, but on long dives I enjoyed the heat. In winter it couldn't be beat with a few layers added. Shell suits I believe are ideal as you can layer as much insulation as required by the temp.
As for getting wet.. Proper undies will midigate some of the risk accociated with a flood. Type-B marine thinsulate can retain upwards of %90 of it's insulating value while completely wet. I've had flood issues in cold water and the thinsulate jumpsuit really saved my bacon.
As for weighting. Someone here mention that you need to add more weight with dry diving. I'm not sure I agree with this, although weighting is really a personally body type and comfort thing. Personally with a shell drysuit and a 100cf HP steel tank I'll use about 11lbs on my belt, AL plate is about 1lb and my STA is another 1.5-2lbs. Grand total without tank is 13.5-14 lbs. Even with this I'm a little on the heavy side (but not much). My new suit has neo socks and rock boots. I now find that even in full thermal undie mode for 36F water and a LP 120 I'm carrying around 10lbs on my belt with the same plate and sta. I'm still playing with this config and I'll probably shave a few more lbs from the belt.
Note this applies to shell suits In my neo suit which is a 7mm compressed to 5 I wear significantly more weight, I think I was up into the 20-25lb range for weighting.
Cheers

 

[DeepBound]

A drysuit is a lot nicer if you can afford it. Especially when doing multiple dives, because you can stay warm in the DS between dives on the boat. If you were in a wetsuit between dives on the boat you'd just get colder and colder.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Go dry man! I dive mine in anything under 65 or so. I can dive it up to 75 or so by reducing the amount of undergarments. As for weighting I use less. I have never dove a 7 mil because I went dry at about dive number 30 when we did the fla springs and I did not have a 5mil. With my sizing a 7 would have to have been full custom anyway for a proper fit and it made more sense to go dry for a bit more money. Average wetsuit life is around 5 years for most that I've talked to based on 100 dives or so a year. As long as I don't pork up and do regular maintenace, replace seals etc, I could expect to get 15 years or more out of my dry suit. In the long run cost wise it's more economical and much more comfy under and above. If you're technique is good and you get a proper fit weighting should be no problem and forget about ankle weights. I just dove this past weekend with my shell suit, BPW, DSS weight plates, and steel 95. I needed 4 lbs on the belt and had no issues with feet, trim, or overall buoyancy. If properly trained a stuck inflator is an easily managed minor problem. Exhaust valves while mechanical and subject to failure can be minimized as a problem by regular maintenance and service. Like any other piece of gear you need to keep up on it. A wetsuit you hang, rinse, and get the pee smell out once in awhile. A drysuit is more demanding care wise but to me worth evry bit of time it takes.

 

[ovarygirl]

If money isn't an issue, then go dry. I caved and bought a used trilam drysuit when I had 50 dives last November. At the time, the water was 55 F and I found a 1 hour drift down Lock 23 to be too cold on my hands. Although you do need a good feel for buoyancy, trim and skills as a new diver, throwing in a drysuit isn't that big of a deal IMHO. It took some some minor modifications to my skill set and lots of practice dives in Morrison's Quarry at 25 ' before I got the hang of it.

I found my 6.5 mm Whites wetsuit + 6.5 mm shortie to be fine for diving in the St. Lawrence between late April and October (55-72 F), so if your dive season is typically between these months, you should be fine with a thick wetsuit.

Although the amount of lead will vary quite a bit between diving wet vs. dry, it isn't really a major factor if you can already handle your gear with ease. I find the difference to be marginal but it really depends on your physical fitness, strength and the presence of any existing injuries etc.

 

[Elevatorguy2]

Lol I though those guys were going to flip when I told them I wanted to do the Wetmore without a hood.

 

[Warren_L]

The wetmore's nothing in the summer at 20 ft. Try early season at the stern of the Forest City without a hood.....

 

[Elevatorguy2]

I'll pass on the FC anytime without a hood. Did you really do this Warren and more importantly why? Did you lose a bet?