So, how cold is it... really?

[Berritt]

I'm getting SO nervous about the water temperature. I know I can barely put my feet in the sound without wanting to cry.

I'm starting my certification in about 2 weeks and am scared, excited, nervous... I did several dives in the bahamas, One was a resort dive. one was for certified divers with sharks, but I had to hire a divemaster as a babysitter. Not saying that was the best idea, but I didn't know better. Not sure why I am so scared now because I wasn't scared then... I am going to complete the course.

Tell me it's not that bad!! I really loved diving in the warm water and I want to love it here too, because if I have to stick with warm water, I'll be diving very infrequently.

[Dashrynn]

With the proper hood and exposure suit these emerald waters can seem like tropical waters. Heck I have even went an hour in the summer and I was still burning up. The cold water on the face is a major shock though.

[2loud4u]

I guess it really depends on the suit you plan on using. I was fine in the wetsuit during class, it took a minute or two to get warm...when I first hit the water it was cold, but once I was moving around I warmed right up. For me, the worst part was the surface interval (time between dives) really cold during winter months anyways, probably not so bad during the summer though.


Brendan

[Dashrynn]

Oh and please do yourself a favor and buy a drysuit, screw a wetsuit its too friggin cold for that mess! As far as type...that's another thread but currently owning a neoprene drysuit I like it but I can't use it in somewhere like the tropics or somewhere I will need less insulation.

[Berritt]

I do hope to get drysuit certified, but one thing at a time. I'm freezing just thinking about it.

[ljjames]

you'll love it!

its tolerable, and as soon as you see all the cool stuff, you'll forget about the temp.

people start getting colder as they 'settle down' in the water and stop working as hard to do the little things... you'll be fine

[jeffgerritsen]

Spend the money and cry once - not two or three times like I did.
Buy the dry suit and take the dry suit class as part of your OW certification dives. This is quite common and most instructors recommend this for those who don't tolerate the cold. I was always cold until I got the dry suit. Really good entry level dry suits can be had for around $900 - $1,100 (such as the Bear Next Gen) as where a good wetsuit will be around $500.

In summary, and I can't emphasize this enough, cry once and get it over with and make your diving experience a real joy!

Jeff.

[Tangfish]

How tall are you and how much do you weigh? If you're like 5'2" and 105lbs - you're probably gonna be chilly. But, when you're doing your OW you'll probably be thinking about so many other things, with your adrenaline pumping that you won't notice the cold till you're between dives.

[spatman]

I do hope to get drysuit certified, but one thing at a time. I'm freezing just thinking about it.

as long as you stay warm on the surface, your dives will be fine. if your instructor isn't already, bring a cooler full of hot water that you can pour down your wetsuit and soak your hood and gloves in after your exit and before you start your second dive. also being a thermos of hot beverage as well, and a long warm coat you can wear over your wetsuit. don't take your wetsuit off between dives if you can help it. just keep the wind off of you with the long coat, drink your hot beverage, and wear a knit hat.

you'll be fine, we've all been there and made it through.

[funkydiver]

Spend the money and cry once - not two or three times like I did.
Buy the dry suit and take the dry suit class as part of your OW certification dives. This is quite common and most instructors recommend this for those who don't tolerate the cold. I was always cold until I got the dry suit. Really good entry level dry suits can be had for around $900 - $1,100 (such as the Bear Next Gen) as where a good wetsuit will be around $500.

In summary, and I can't emphasize this enough, cry once and get it over with and make your diving experience a real joy!

Jeff.

That's what I did and my OW Cert the weekend of January 31st... stayed totally warm. I've done something like 20 dives since then and I've never been cold. Honestly, with the proper gear, the water temp isn't bad at all... course, people have used the "no sense, no feeling" words with me frequently, but you can just ignore that

[Mongodives]

Have a plan to stay/get warm on the surface.

[psundquist]

I never dove in Puget Sound wet and never plan to. Matthew from Northwest Sports Divers told me when I was purchasing my dry suit that there is no reason to be cold... I was skeptical at first until I learned with experience that he is completely right! It comes down to getting the right clothes underneath the dry suit. Lizard0924 told me she'd never dive here in the cold and now she has two dry suits and her Weezle is on order. My limit here is typically 2 dives to stay warm throughout, and have done an occasional 3. I haven't figured out how to stay warm throughout the entire 3rd dive but I think I can solve that one as well. To be fair, I haven't figured out how to stay warm throughout the 4th dive of the day in 80 degree water either - but I think that is also solvable.

[smike]

Best advice I got before my OW cert dives was to 2 liters of beverage before the dive. Gross as it sounds, peeing in your wetsuit is very helpful. Don't be shy (but wait till you're in the water ), and rinse well afterward. BTW, pee is more sterile than the water you are diving in... OK, so even if you don't like the pee thing, hydrate well, starting a day before the dive. I am a large body (235 lbs), and I need a gallon a day to be well hydrated. You will stay warmer if you are hydrated, and it makes diving safer and more comfortable.

Like others have said, the surface interval between dives is critical. Some people stand in the cooler of hot/warm water, and others pour gallon jugs of hot water over themselves and into the tops of their suits. After cert, you may find that you can do one dive a day just fine, without the hot water to keep warm. However, even with a dry suit, many divers around here take the warm water with them just to rinse their suit and all of their equipment off, it is often easier to rinse everything before you pack it up to take home or back to the shop.

OK you all - Now I dive a dry suit, only sea water gets in it.

[Pinkpadigal]

Many dive stores offer OW course in a drysuit and the drysuit rental is part of the fee. Normally it is a little extra, but well worth the money. Pay the extra...you will be happier and have fun.

[Penopolypants]

I'm with Amy, if you have the option of doing it in a dry suit then go for it! I did, and while I still wasn't toasty warm I can't imagine having done it in a wetsuit. I should point out that I've never been in the Sound in a wetsuit so I have no basis for comparison.

Even if you're freezing cold, though, you'll be too distracted to worry about it - there's a lot going on during class! And your first dives aren't too long anyway. I'll second/third/fourth what other people have said about keeping warm during the surface interval with hot water for your hands, gloves, and hood, and warm beverages too.

[Berritt]

Thanks, you guys.

I do plan to get dry suit qualified asap. Unfortunately, I won't be able to buy my own suit for a while.
The shop does rent them, and does the cert, but suggests learning wet first, then going dry. That's fine with me. What's a bit of cold, right? (My new mantra... trying to make myself believe!) I'm definitely not 5 feet and 105 lbs, but not a big girl either. Not sure the padding I have will be of any help. I could use that as an excuse to eat a few more cupcakes, though.

Do most people pee in wet suits? I am going to have a tough time with that!

And thanks for the tip on being well hydrated. I'm pretty bad at keeping hydrated on a regular day. Better start now... I know it's a good thing. I just forget to drink water. And I am sure coffee doesn't count.

[ljjames]

despite the old adage "there are people who pee in their wetsuits and people who lie about it" No, not everyone pees in their wetsuits. ya, pee is sterile when it is in the bladder, but not for long. It is composed of excess water and soluble waste that our body doesn't want inside it, so why should we want to be bathed in it? those waste products (urea, etc..) are what feed stinky bacteria and stuff that WILL give your suit an odor. Urea can be an irritant to skin.

"Urine is sterile until it reaches the urethra where the epithelial cells lining the urethra are colonized by facultatively aerobic Gram negative rods and cocci [1]. Subsequent to elimination from the body, urine can acquire strong odors due to bacterial action. Most noticeably, the asphyxiating ammonia is produced by breakdown of urea."

and for those who say "don't worry about it if its a rental suit" come on! some poor shmuck has to wash that suit when you bring it back. eeew.

Thanks, you guys.

I do plan to get dry suit qualified asap. Unfortunately, I won't be able to buy my own suit for a while.
The shop does rent them, and does the cert, but suggests learning wet first, then going dry. That's fine with me. What's a bit of cold, right? (My new mantra... trying to make myself believe!) I'm definitely not 5 feet and 105 lbs, but not a big girl either. Not sure the padding I have will be of any help. I could use that as an excuse to eat a few more cupcakes, though.

Do most people pee in wet suits? I am going to have a tough time with that!

And thanks for the tip on being well hydrated. I'm pretty bad at keeping hydrated on a regular day. Better start now... I know it's a good thing. I just forget to drink water. And I am sure coffee doesn't count.

[Nwbrewer]

Thanks, you guys.

I do plan to get dry suit qualified asap. Unfortunately, I won't be able to buy my own suit for a while.
The shop does rent them, and does the cert, but suggests learning wet first, then going dry. That's fine with me. What's a bit of cold, right? (My new mantra... trying to make myself believe!) I'm definitely not 5 feet and 105 lbs, but not a big girl either. Not sure the padding I have will be of any help. I could use that as an excuse to eat a few more cupcakes, though.

Do most people pee in wet suits? I am going to have a tough time with that!

And thanks for the tip on being well hydrated. I'm pretty bad at keeping hydrated on a regular day. Better start now... I know it's a good thing. I just forget to drink water. And I am sure coffee doesn't count.

The hydration thing is good for helping to stay a little warmer, and it helps with efficient off gassing as well. Very important to hydrate the day of and the day before you dive.

Don't worry too much about getting cold during the certification class, the dives are short, and you'll be so distracted that you won't feel it much as long as you're in a decent wetsuit. As others have suggested a cooler full of warm water helps a lot on the SI. I did several years of diving year round in Puget Sound before I got my drysuit. As long as you're only doing 1 dive, it's not THAT bad, even in the winter. The SI during the winter can really suck though....

Have fun!

[smike]

despite the old adage "there are people who pee in their wetsuits and people who lie about it" No, not everyone pees in their wetsuits. ya, pee is sterile when it is in the bladder, but not for long. It is composed of excess water and soluble waste that our body doesn't want inside it, so why should we want to be bathed in it? those waste products (urea, etc..) are what feed stinky bacteria and stuff that WILL give your suit an odor. Urea can be an irritant to skin.

"Urine is sterile until it reaches the urethra where the epithelial cells lining the urethra are colonized by facultatively aerobic Gram negative rods and cocci [1]. Subsequent to elimination from the body, urine can acquire strong odors due to bacterial action. Most noticeably, the asphyxiating ammonia is produced by breakdown of urea."

and for those who say "don't worry about it if its a rental suit" come on! some poor shmuck has to wash that suit when you bring it back. eeew.

Two kinds of wetsuit divers, those who pee, and those who say they don't (This is the OLDEST, CORNIEST diving joke, it WILL come up in class).
But for OW cert, when your 60 feet down and you have to go, don't worry about it. It might just be easier than dealing with one more thing. I ALWAYS cleaned the wetsuit before I returned it, yeah I wouldn't subject other people to that.
But, yeah, all these drysuit people (and most of the wetsuit people) have either learned to go just before, or hold it, or take other extreme measures (search here for "pee valves", or ask lljames, she's an expert on peeing ).
Hydrating is one of the very best things to learn to do, and just more important when diving. I believe now that I would be in better health now if I had learned earlier in life to hydrate every day. 8 - 8 oz glasses of water, plus for every coffee, an equal amount of water. Make yourself do it every day for 2 weeks, and it will become a habit. Make sure you have water available before you sit down to a job, and you will automatically stop and pick up the water. Your body knows it needs it, we just ignore our body a lot of the time.
More you can do to make yourself comfortable, the better. I dove wet for first 20 dives or so, until I could afford a drysuit, but in truth, almost all of those dives I was warm enough. Keep on top of your heat during the surface interval, easy to stay warm with the warm water, harder getting warmed back up.

You'll be fine, your going to LOVE it!

[lizard0924]

I'm definitely not 5 feet and 105 lbs, but not a big girl either. Not sure the padding I have will be of any help. I could use that as an excuse to eat a few more cupcakes, though.

It does matter, I think. I lost a significant amount of weight since Christmas, and I am much colder now diving here than I was before I lost the weight. Hence the Weezle I have on order.

I don't know about diving here in a wetsuit, as I've never done it (and never, ever intend to). All my dives here have been in a drysuit, thankfully. Understanding that (and also understanding that I don't tolerate cold very well)....here goes my take on how cold it is......I cannot say that I never get cold when diving here, I do...each and every time I dive. The water is cold, really cold. The bite on your exposed skin is traumatic at first. For me, that has always only been my face, but still, sometimes it feels like ice picks being drilled into your cheeks and forehead. Surprisingly, you do get accustomed to it and tend to forget about it during the dive, so I suspect the same is true when diving in a wetsuit. You get used to it while underwater. However, I don't believe that equates to being warm while you are diving. Numb maybe, but not warm.

I am usually cold 1/2 way thru my dives, even with excellent undergarments and brand new drysuits (I have purchased two in my quest to stay warm underwater). As a result, I am known by my regular dive buddies (affectionately, I hope) as one-tank Liz. I just usually don't want to do two dives back to back here.

All that being said, I really enjoy diving here as there is cool stuff to see. Plus I love diving and couldn't imagine only diving when I get to the tropics (which isn't often enough). I just accept that I won't be super comfortable underwater here(temperature-wise), and enjoy the diving anyway. There are a ton of great people to meet in the local dive community, and it's all good in the end.

Hope to see you in the water locally sometime! Welcome.

[smike]

Oh, yeah. Just after you put your mask on, push the top of the hood down, slide it to the top of your mask (wetsuit or drysuit). That takes away most of the "cold on the face" shock.

[ljjames]

(one redbull and two shots of espresso)

i did my first 40 dives in a wetsuit. We dove multiple times a week but generally single tank days, swimming the edmonds underwater part or some other 'active' dive. (we were going cover to cover in Northwest Shore Dives book, starting with beginner dives and working "up")

I got a drysuit the day after my OW 2 class when i did my first 'real' 3 dive day, an 80' dive, followed drift dive in agate passage, shore to shore, followed by a night dive at slack on the bridge pilons. I wasn't sure i'd ever warm up. I thought my instructor was a sadist. I spent my savings at the time (broke college student) and lived on raman noodle for the next month or two.

I got a harvey's neoprene that worked like a champ for a couple hundred or so dives (I was doing 400 dives a year i was so nuts about diving) yes, it seeped, yes the neoprene seals never really worked well for me, but i was HUGELY warmer than in the wetsuit. problem was, on deeper dives 60-80, the loss of insulation was noticeable. At 80-130 it was brutal, but since we were diving air, it wasn't a huge issue because the bottom times were so short. By this time i was working weekends at my LDS as a tank monkey and in the leadership education (DM/AI) program so was able to get a good deal on a size 00 viking pro that they'd ordered and gotten stiffed on years before Shell suits rock until they break your heart and leak and then unless you have thinsulate, you don't even have the fluffy neoprene to keep you warm :( fast forward to 1994 and got a typhoon pro which lasted about 3600 dives (now backup suit). Currently i've got a CF200 that i adore, but will get a TLS or CLX at some point for travel.

I've been doing this for coming up on 20 years now and I love it as much now as I did back then. All but about 15 of my dives have been here in the northwest, i have not dove tropical. I don't have much padding to keep me warm. I'm totally a thermal whimp. after those original 40 dives, i think i've done all of... 1 dive in a wetsuit. I intended to do a wetsuit dive annually to remind myself what i was putting students through, but after one those i said "$%*@ this silliness!" There is a fairly significant contingent that take their shell drysuits with lighter undergarments to warm water with them.

One thing you'll learn is that you will end up replacing gear. Things like undergarments and suits are consumable. you'll dive and you'll learn and you'll likely replace your gear a few times. Regs seem to last forever so get a good one. For the most part, you get what you pay for. if you are a starving college student or just kinda broke but have a bit of spare time, there is no shame working in a dive shop part time to get good deal on some gear. I bough all my gear basically the same time i signed up for class, that is how sure i was that i was going to LOVE diving. Although I didn't end up diving that gear for more than a year or so, and it would have been nice to make smarter choices from the outset, having my own gear allowed me to get out and DIVE DIVE DIVE!!!!! (far far more diving than if i'd been renting) We (on this board) will give you the best advice we can re: what we consider 'good' gear and what not to bother with, but you will have to make the decision which path is going to be best for you... less expensive gear/used gear at the outset knowing you'll upgrade as time passes, or renting/borrowing and then buying as you can afford the 'good' gear.

so, the short of this long winded answer... ya, it can be cold, but its tolerable.

[Dashrynn]

good gawd laura, if we fed you just one more redbull we could get rid of gas and nuclear power plants and just put you in a giant over sized gerbil cage.

im a skinny fart (5 ft 9 155 lbs) and a drysuit is the only option after 30ish dives, i was shaking underwater on my first dive and it sucked and i hated it. then i bought my own nice wetsuit but that still wasn't enough for the new style i had grown accustomed to (floating not kicking). I'd say more but our hyperactive friend has pretty much covered this subject and a few others lol :roll:

[smike]

You want your wetsuit to be tight fitting, too loose and water sneaks in.

[trevorrowe]

You want your wetsuit to be tight fitting, too loose and water sneaks in.

I want to emphasize what smike said. If you are diving wet, make sure the suit is form fitting. Even seemingly small bubbles/pockets of air will fill with very cold water. The thinner the layer of water between you are your wetsuit the warmer you will be.

That said, nothing beats a drysuit. I replaced my semi-dry suit I paid $500 for after only ~20 dives, and I'll never look back.