A 5 mill was working...

[The Free Spearo]

Up here in Nova Scotia it gets cold enough... I have a 5 ml open cell suit that I love and it keeps me very very warm. When I get out of the suit it feels like I get out of sauna wether I'm in a pool or a cold lake. However I also plan on vacations to places like bahama's, Florida, Hawaii so on. I hear that 5 mil can cause you to be overheated in those conditions. It's a long story but I could swap out the 5 ml for a 3 mil of different color (which I like). There are no other thicknesses available besides 3 mil and I'm not sure if I can muster up the money for them both. What do you guys think?

It's a difficult question and I feel like I should be talking to a teller instead of fellow divers but any help would be greatly appreciated.

Regards

James

 

[Apneaddict]

I have a 5mil for Canada and a 3mil for tropical / Caribbean waters.

 

[Apneaddict]

A 3mm in Canadian shallow lakes, mid summer can work great... But for "all season" use in the great lakes or oceans... A 5mm is a must IMHO.

You can try a cheap triathlon suit (might be able to find for $100-$150) for warm water / vacation diving, if the price of an extra 3mm suit (about $250 for a custom made suit) is out if budget.

 

[The Free Spearo]

Why pay 250 for custom when you can pay 209 for mako I'm thinking maybe because it's mid winter and I really only dive during summer up here I might just get 3 mil now and maybe if it's not working for up here I'll just save up and get 5 mil after a couple pay days.

 

[cdavis]

Full summer in the Caribbean or S. Florida and you need no suit at all. A cheap zip up shorty is fine in June. By early october, the water is cooling down and a 3/2 surfer suit is sufficient. A 3 mil freediver suit is fine for winter in the Caribbean, severe overkill in summer. If you try the 5 mil, maybe it would work in winter with only the jacket.

Hawaii has cooler water, not my area.

Keep your 5 mil and buy a cheapy for the aCaribbean/Florida summer. One suit can't do it all. Winter diving in those areas and you will probably want the 3 mil, but you might get a 3/2 surfer with a vest inside to work .