gore-tex vs. nylon drysuits

[Guest guest]

Hello there NSPNers!

I have a question regarding material choice for drysuits. Has anyone out there had any trouble with Gore-tex drysuits becomgin "not-so-dry" after a while? I know some of my gore-tex ski jackets just don't seem to stay in shape after a few years, and was wondering if anyone had such an experience with drysuits? Would nylon be better in the long run? I know that gore-tex is breathable, which is nice if you start to sweat, but if the weather/water is such that you need a drysuit, i'm thinking that i won't be doing too much sweating. Any thoughts? Thanks.

Alan

Necky Looksha IV - orange

Dagger Id 6.9 - blue/black

"You are never alone in this Universe. The force that guides the stars, guides you as well."

[Brian Nystrom]

I use my dry suit 7+ months out of the year and it's on its forth season and with zero problems. The fabrics used in dry suits are specifically designed for aquatic applications and are quite durable. There is absolutely no comparison between breathable and non breathable dry suits in terms of comfort. "Dry suit" is somewhat of a misnomer when applied to non-breathable fabrics, as you WILL get wet from your own perspiration. Sweat accumulates, drips and puddles and there's no way to get rid of it without removing the suit.

Probably the best testimony is that I don't know anyone who's regretted buying a breathable dry suit, but I know several who've regretted buying non-breathable suits. Spend the extra money once and be done with it.

[Guest guest]

are not so dry. You sweat in them; you get wet. What is worse your insulation gets wet and conducts heat to the water and air. It is much harder to endure the contrast between warmer air temps and water temps that require lots of insulation in a non breathable suit. Not that goretex suits are magic, the contrast mentioned above is often problematic. Some of us have seen the new drysuits from Natick Labs, they apparently are almost magic. but will not be available to the general public for a long while.

Most serious winter paddlers around here use goretex suits unless they are seriously strapped for cash. Consider the ravenspring option, many are happy with them. Go used if it is the only way. Check out sierratradingpost.com.

Get booties, sooner or later goretex are most durable, latex are much better than gaskets for my money. Thats my nickel.

[Guest guest]

>I have a question regarding material choice for drysuits.

>Has anyone out there had any trouble with Gore-tex drysuits

>becomgin "not-so-dry" after a while? I know some of my

>gore-tex ski jackets just don't seem to stay in shape after

>a few years, and was wondering if anyone had such an

>experience with drysuits? Would nylon be better in the long

>run? I know that gore-tex is breathable, which is nice if

>you start to sweat, but if the weather/water is such that

>you need a drysuit, i'm thinking that i won't be doing too

>much sweating. Any thoughts? Thanks.

You would be amazed at how much you sweat even when you are doing nothing. Start paddling, and it gets much worse. Last year I used a breathable drytop with a non-breathable dry bib. As far as water getting in, it didn't, even when I was swimming. However, the sweat pooled in the pants of the dry bib even before I got the drybib on over it.

The difference between the areas of exposed breathable material (just my arms), and the rest of my getup was dramatic. The sweat would get wicked away from my skin by my fleece, then it would condense on the inside of the non-breathable bib. When I got off the water the pants would be dripping inside, yet my arms were barely damp. One time I thought that I had a leak because, as I was hanging out upside down under my boat, water was dripping up (down?) my neck. Afterwards I realized it was sweat from my pants.

Some say that your bottom half doesn't breath much in the boat. If that's true than the pant legs breath a lot when you get out. The first time I wore my Ravenspring suit, I was amazed at how dry I was when I took it off.

Dee Hall

Impex Currituck, Blue over Smoky Ivory

[SeaBass]

That would be : (warm and dry) vs (chilled and clammy)

[Richard N]

Listen to Dee, Peter and Brian.

Read the posts 3 (or more) times.

Note that they have personally used coated nylon, wet suits and breathable waterproof garments.

Remember, this is a matter of safety first.

Image and comfort are secondary.

Spend a few minutes to make a list of the comfort and safety advantages and disadvantages of wet suits, coated nylon and GoreTex. Consider the real possibility of paddling with air temperature at 70 degrees (or more) and with water temperature below 50 degrees.

You will quickly notice that a GoreTex suite with Gortex booties has NO disadvantages.

IMNSHO - Having also used the other materials......Gore-Tex is the ONLY way to go!

Richard

Living to learn.

Romany White, Blue trim

[Brian Nystrom]

...this looks interesting:

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/xq/asp/ba.../qx/product.htm

It'll probably run $75-$100 to have a relief zipper installed, which I would recommend highly, but it's definitely a good suit to start with. If you like, you can install latex booties easily. The high, fleece-lined collar sounds like an interesting feature. I can certainly think of many occasions where I would have liked one.