heated wetsuit vest

[jerseymike]

Hope to soften the shock of the first few dives.
Ive seen these adverstised eg Thermalution -but no retail outlets.Anybody got hold of one? Are they any good?

 

[Jon]

I used to have an electrical heated pad that would fit under my wetsuit and into my drysuit through a special port hole I had put in. I used it for about a season and then gave up on it when it died. In the end I didn't find that it kept me that much warmer and it certainly wasn't worth the $400 I paid for it at the time. I ended up switching to better drysuit underwear and argon for my technical dives.

For my wetsuit dives I switched to a real freediving wetsuit and stayed warmer than i ever thought possible in a wetsuit. For my winter/ice dives I'll bring along a jug of hot water. I'll pour the water down my suit after the dive to warm up. If I was going to jump back in I'd flood my suit with the hot water before I go in. I also like to use it to re-warm my wetsuit mitts in-between dives if I'm going to be out for a long time.

This method doesn't always work out the best for winter spearfishing, where we swim a good distance, but it does work fantastic for ice diving where you just cut a hole and dive in one spot. We can actually fill a whole cooler full of hot water and stand in it if we need to. :inlove

For normal dives that jug to flush the suit after I get back to my car seems to work really well when the water is 33F and the air is -35F.

YMMV

Jon

 

[apneaboy]

If you get relaxed enough on constant weight dives you can p*** yourself and that keeps your core nice and warm feeling whilst the limbs remain cold. Ideal. Cost... 79pence for a bottle of drench water.

Bargain!

The aaaahhh sound you make also helps with mouth fill.
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[Old Man Dave]

Somewhere, a while back, there was some discussion on using those chemical gel heat packs available from angling stores. Can't for the life of me remember what the conclusions were but as I've seen little info on them I guess they were not a success.

You could try a search under "heat packs" or some variation.

Dave.

 

[scottmcblue]

www.ripcurl.com/hbomb/ Not a spearfishing wetsuit I know but if they develop the range maybe to include a heated vest to go under your normal spearo wetty that would be petty handy.

 

[devondave]

I seem to remember an incident with one of the chemically heated back warmers .
It involved a scubadiver wearing a dry suit , the chemical pack got ruptured and he suffered severe burns , not much you can do in that situation and if you've got deco' to clear , well . . .ouch .
This must be a rare event , if not a one-off , I'll see if I can find the article for more details .

 

[Pav]

I use the kidney gel pads for surfing on the coldest days.
They do take the edge off the cold. You still will feel cold, but it avoids the cold to the bone feeling! , and when I use them I always warm up afterwards a lot quicker.

 

[deathbyspear]

I found this site Heated Wetsuits | Less Wetsuit... More Warmth!. If somebody gets to try out a thermalution plz post. I'm not sure if I want to spend that much money but would be nice if it works

 

[efattah]

Heat packs and heated vests are not very useful. I have been cold water diving for 13 years and there is only one method that is of any real use.

Get out of the water, fill a garbage bucket with hot water (42-45C). Take off your gloves and socks and put your hands and feet into the hot water. Keep adding small bits of boiling water (from a thermos), to keep the water warm, since it will cool off quickly. Do this for 30 minutes and you will be toasty warm and you can go back in for another entire dive session. While rewarming your hands and feet, drink super hot water at the same time. I do not recommend pouring hot water into the wetsuit.

To perform this method I bring a lightweight plastic garbage bin to the dive site, and then I bring 1.5L of warm water in a jug, and 3 to 4 x 1L thermos filled with boiling water.

Then I can dive for 90 minutes in cold water, until I'm very cold, get out, rewarm for 30 minutes, then go back in for 90 more minutes in the cold water again.

 

[deathbyspear]

That sounds like a lot of work to do when you are 45 miles off shore and you want to do 3 dives. If a heated undersuit works I would rather have that. Have you tried the Thermalution? I keep seeing the product on different sites and I have seen good reviews on it.

 

[GiantSquid]

I bought one for my wife at the beginning of the dive season. I have to admit, I was quite skeptical. But, if there was any chance it would keep her from complaining about the cold while I'm trapped on a boat with her....I was gonna try it. :duh.

After the end of this summer's dive season, she LOVES her Thermalution vest. The battery lasts her around 2 hours on the low setting, and 1.5 hours on the medium. It is perfect for her to do two full dives and not run out of battery. She was never previously really up for more than one dive per day due to the cold, but she has no fear of the thermocline anymore. She will even bring the charger to recharge it on the boat to wear it for the boat ride home, ha ha.

"If Momma Aint Happy, Aint Nobody Happy" Needless to say, I'm stoked! :king

 

[ReefTroll]

This thread is terrifying!!! Cold water diving? Eek! Cold is below 24c here!!
I will say though having ridden to the point of total loss of feeling in extremities, (makes it nearly impossible to brake!!) only warm water heats me back up.


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[Fondueset]

These so called 'people' who design these battery operated shirts are PUSSIES.
There is no substitute for the joy and empowerment when you stick your face in 2C water and willfully squelch the urge puke on the spot.

Then, once you've miraculously acclimated; enjoying the wonders of utterly lifeless but crystal clear waters and, after a few fascinatingly miserable dives, driving home while shaking so violently you can barely stay on the road. The blessed sensation of a car heater at such a time is enough to make you question the value of women.

 

[ReefTroll]

Mate, you are insane. I'll leave it at that!!


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[foxfish]

I must say that vest appeals to me, we very often spend lots of time just floating around or static hunting underwater & I can get very cold in the winter months.

 

[deathbyspear]

Heated Wetsuits | Less Wetsuit... More Warmth! just put up a $100 off sale for black friday. I gotta try one it is getting cold!! hopefully its worth the $400 bucks.

 

[derek.broussard]

I Purchased the Quiksilver Cypher Heated Vest PS+ while diving in Washington.

It was the crappiest $180 I have ever spent.

 

[deathbyspear]

Just got some clear water here in North Carolina so I got to try out my new heated shirt. I love it! The shirt gets super hot and last for a while. Kept me pretty warm in 60 degree water in my 4/3. If you got the money and you do some diving I would recommend it.