What's the best suit for the tropics?

[lanun]

i think the temp here is between 27-31C. i wear a fullsuit with booties and gloves, no hood.

my activities are typically low effort - lazy frog kicks for propulsion, photography, peeking at cleaning stations, staring at the clown fish, etc so i probably don't generate that much heat that the 3/2 would bother me.

on the boat ... i strip . if warm, i pour cooler fresh water into my wetsuit.

oh, when i hit thermoclines i sure can feel the difference.

 

[Otter]

So I use a SeaQuest 3/5/3 full suit. My first dive in 80 water was in swim trunks. Next was .5 mm and finally a 3mm. For a night dive in Fiji last year, I added a 5/4 hooded vest to the 3mm but really prefered having my head less constricted, but liked the warmth enought that I dived with it the rest of the week. When I 'came upon' the 3/5/3, I dumped the vest and have been warm ever since...even in 75F Cenotes...but never got hot.
YMMV

Otter

 

[kingprawn]

I brought a 1 mil and a 3 mil to Cozumel last month 80 deg. The 3 mil was too buoyant for me. I was plenty warm in the 1 mil. Several people were in t-shirts. With the 1 mil I had my buoyancy down to the point where I did not add any air to my BC at all.


Mmmmmmm Cozumel……

 

[skynscuba]

kingprawn once bubbled...
I brought a 1 mil and a 3 mil to Cozumel last month 80 deg. The 3 mil was too buoyant for me. I was plenty warm in the 1 mil. Several people were in t-shirts. With the 1 mil I had my buoyancy down to the point where I did not add any air to my BC at all.


Mmmmmmm Cozumel……

With a bouyancy swing of 5 pounds as you consume your
air (assuming 80cf), your bouyancy is not "down" if you
are not using your BC.