Dive Essentials - Exposure Protection

When scuba diving, one of the most important aspects is to ensure you are relaxed and comfortable at all times as this improves your buoyancy, air consumption and most of all your enjoyment of the dive. One aspect that will ensure you are comfortable is the type of exposure protection you choose to ensure you don’t get too hot or too cold during your dive. There are so many different types of exposure protection from the simple and humble rays guard to a full on dry suit - but what is best for scuba diving int he tropical waters of southeast Asia? We take a look at what is available and what is best for the beautiful region in which we live.

Sharkskin top and shorts - a great combination for diving around southeast Asia

What is exposure Protection?

Put simply exposure protection is anything that you wear whilst diving to help protect you from the elements, whether that’s staying warm, staying cool, preventing cuts and scratches or anything else its essentially what you wear. The classic, and most well known form of exposure protection is the wetsuit, traditionally made form neoprene, they come in all shapes and forms. However, its there is far more to choosing the right exposure protection for you than just looking at wetsuits and we’ll take a look at the different options in a bit more detail in the next section.

Types of Exposure Protection

Although there are numerous types of exposure protection available these days, for simplicity we’re going to categorise them into three broad categories - drysuits, wetsuits and rash guards. However, within each of the categories there is a huge amount of variation and we’ll try to cover the important aspects of each.

Wetsuits

When people talk about exposure protection most of us will automatically think about the classic all rounder - the wetsuit. But what exactly is a wetsuit and how does it work. Wetsuits are made of neoprene which is made of small closed cells which contain air providing insulation against the cold water - the wetsuit works by trapping a small layer of water between the neoprene and your body which is warmed by your body temperature and prevents you from losing too much heat during the dive. It is because of this mechanism that it is important that wetsuits fit snugly and aren’t baggy otherwise they won’t keep you warm. You can find wetsuits in a range of different thicknesses, the thicker they are the greater the insulation effect they will have, but the classic diving thicknesses are 3mm, 5mm and 7mm. However, one thing to be aware of when choosing your wetsuit is that the greater the thickness the greater the buoyancy effect (due to the trapped air) and thus you’ll need to add extra weights to maintain neutral buoyancy in the water. The general rule of thumb for wetsuits is as follows:

3mm wetsuit - 5% of body weight

5mm wetsuit - 10% of body weight

7mm wetsuit - 10% of body weight + 1.5 - 3kg

Of course this may vary for different people but it is a good starting point from which to work.

The other aspect to consider with wetsuits, especially 3mm wetsuits in the tropics is whether you want a full wetsuit or what is known as a shorty. Shorty wetsuits provide the same level of insulation around your torso, but are shorter around your limbs (legs and arms) and give you greater flexibility compared to a full suit. These are often a great option for diving within southeast Asia and are offered by most dive centres.

Finally you may see a lot of divers wearing hoods and gloves - hoods are great for those who dive a lot and keep your head warm - dive guides will often have brightly coloured hoods to help their divers identify them in the water, especially on popular, crowded dive spots. Gloves are more controversial as while they may keep your fingers warm they may encourage divers to feel they can grab onto coral without getting scratched or stung. In fact, a lot of destinations these days have a ban on diving gloves completely and personally I feel that in southeast Asia there isn’t really a need for them.

Drysuits:

A dry suit does exactly what it says and keeps you dry and provides insulation by stopping the water entering and providing a layer of air all around you. Depending on the materials the dry suit is made out of you may be required to wear a thermal base layer below it. They are most generally used when diving in cold water where the temperate is below 15 degrees C and it is almost certain you want need to use one when diving here in Asia. For this reason we won’t be going into much more detail, save to say that the buoyancy effect with a dry suit is much, much more than that of a wetsuit and you would need to wear more weight.

Rashguards:

Rashguard

Rash guards are incredibly cheap compared to wetsuits and dry suits and have the added advantage of not requiring you to add additional weight to compensate for increased buoyancy. A lot of dive sites in and around southeast Asia have water temperatures of around 30 degrees C and so simply rocking up to the dive centre with a rahsie and board shorts is a great option.

Sharkskin top

These days, with advances in materials science there are a range of exposure protection options that offer the same warmth as a 3mm wetsuit without the increased buoyancy, these are often great, if slightly more expensive options for divers who want the comfort and warmth without the hassle Example of these are brands such as Sharkskin that offer different types of tops and shorts which are made of composite materials to trap the warmth. Personally I think these are the best option for divers in southeast Asia and is what I normally use - they also come in a range of styles which give different levels of warmth.

Whats Best for Southeast Asia?

I know this sounds like a little bit of a cop out, but it really does depend on what you feel most comfortable with and the kind of conditions that you’ll be diving in. Its fairly safe to say that for diving in southeast Asia that you won’t need a dry suit, as described earlier these suits can be uncomfortably hot if not used in the right conditions and they also make buoyancy difficult. When I first started diving in southeast Asia I normally just dived in a rashguard and a pair of board shorts, which if just doing one or two dives in warm water is more than sufficient. However, if you’re going to be doing multiple divers over several days it is important to keep warm and comfortable. for this reason I decided to invest in a Sharkskin top and shorts - the advantage of this is that it offers the warmth of a 3mm shortie wetsuit without the additional buoyancy and thus extra weight. I find that this a treat in most conditions around the region. Having said that there are circumstances, such as when diving in Anilao in January or Nusa Penida (Bali) when a 3mm or even 5mm wetsuit is advisable. In Anilao I found that even in a full length 3mm wetsuit I was still cold as the water temperature was only 26 degrees C. A lot of divers, where ever they are diving opt for the warmth of a 3mm shortie or full wetsuit, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this and again it comes down to how much you scuba dive and personal preference.