How to choose the right wetsuit for your needs?
If you want to find wetsuits for sale online you are welcome to my website WetsuitsForSale.net. It aims to provide a lot of useful information and guidance what factors should be considered when choosing the right wetsuit for your particular needs. There is a lot of things to learn there and I highly encourage you to read this info before making any decision which design/thickness/type/quality/finish would be the best for you.
Wetsuit properties
A wetsuit is usually made of foamed neoprene, providing thermal insulation, abrasion resistance and buoyancy to those engaged in water sports like divers, windsurfers, canoeists, etc. The insulation properties depend on bubbles of gas enclosed within the material, which reduce its ability to conduct heat. The bubbles also give the wetsuit a low density, providing buoyancy in water.
Wetsuit, unlike a drysuit, conserves body heat by trapping a small amount of water inside the suit, so the fit is the crucial point determining how the wetsuit will perform as a thermal insulator. If it’s too tight – will be uncomfortable and restrict your ability to move, may cause breathing problems, and there is a risk of damaging your wetsuit by stretching the neoprene too much. Too loose wetsuit will not protect you from cold, will collect water inside, cool the body and drag you down. It is tricky sometimes to find that good fit as we all have different bodies and obviously non custom made wetsuits can’t fit everyone well. It is also worth checking sizes tables of different manufacturers as they may slightly differ. If happens you have discovered that the fit or size of your new wetsuit is not very good (if not perfect) then don’t wait for further disappointment and return/exchange it.
Types of wetsuits for different uses
Different types of wetsuits are made for different uses and for different temperatures. We can find suits ranging from a thin (2 mm or less) “shortie”, covering just the torso, to a full 8 mm semi-dry one, usually complemented by neoprene boots, gloves and hood. So before choosing a wetsuit you should decide which of that broad selection of wetsuits would serve best for the particular environment and/or sport you wish to use it for.
A full body wetsuit is ideal for cold water. It protects the arms, legs, and torso, and sometimes has a hood attachment for the head. For warmer waters there are spring suits available with 3/4 length sleeves and legs and so called “shorties” that can be used in even warmer water, where the suit protects mainly torso, with very short arms and legs. You can choose one piece suit or two piece suit that is easier to put it on. Although for diving and surfing in colder waters one piece garments are recommended as providing better thermal protection.
Thickness of the wetsuit is obviously closely related to the temperature of the water we aim to engage with and is measured in millimeters. A thicker suit gives more protection in cold water but also restricts freedom of movement. In warmer waters, thinner wetsuits can be used giving much more flexibility in motion, especially needed for surfers. Wetsuits may be uniform in thickness or with the torso part thicker than arms and legs. This is expressed by set of two numbers given in millimeters. For example, 5/3 wetsuit will have torso of 5 mm thickness and 3 mm at arms and legs. This is a typical suit thickness for cold waters. To get it right, it’s worth checking what are the average temperatures of the water you are going to spend time in and then choose the right protection for yourself using temperature tables. More on this subject in wetsuit material thickness.
If you are going to spend quite a long periods of time in water invest in good quality wetsuit, and maybe also a rash guard worn under a wetsuit to prevent chafing and skin irritation. That happens especially in salt water around areas where the suit is bent, like the knees and elbows. A rash guard could also offer extra insulation when being in very cold water. It’s a good idea to get a wetsuit which is lined inside for better feeling when spending a lot of time in it. For even better insulating properties, a thin layer of titanium between the neoprene and the inner nylon lining can be sandwiched, helping reflect the body heat back inwards.
Quality of wetsuits
The price and choice of the wetsuit manufacturer would correspond to its quality and finish. A good quality wetsuit should have blind stitching, and the seams should also be treated with glue. This type of stitching does not penetrate through to the other side of the neoprane that prevents creating thousands of small holes in it and letting water to leak through. Being totally waterproof, those wetsuits are best for winter and end-summer.
Cheaper wetsuits are sewn with flatlock stitching, that is flat and comfortable against the skin but can let small amounts of water through the seams; not a problem in summer. The least expensive and the least effective form of wetsuit stitching is an overlock stitching. In addition to water penetration through little holes formed, this type of stitch forms a ridge inside the wetsuit that is uncomfortable. Generally, this is not advisable to buy wetsuits with overlock stitching unless you are really on a budget, and those wetsuits are not suitable for winter conditions.
We should be aware that the quality of neoprene used in wetsuits also differs and is obviously reflected in the price. Usually, a more expensive, top-end suit will consist entirely of very flexible neoprene while an entry level suit will be made from a basic neoprene with maybe a few stretch panels for better flexibility. It is always advisable to invest in a good wetsuit, what usually means – more expensive one. However, this highly depends on where and for what you want to use it, and many times cheaper wetsuits can perform very well or well enough for our needs, as reviewed by many happy users.
Buying wetsuit online
Is it recommended to buy your wetsuit online? Well, it depends. Buying a wetsuit is generally not an easy task, even if you make a trip to the specialists shop. The reasons for that is that the fit should be very good, not too tight and absolutely not too loose, but everyone has different body and also different manufacturing companies are shaping their wetsuits a bit differently. If you don’t know what you should be looking for, you might buy a wrong wetsuit even spending hours in the shop and trying different ones. So all that is about experience and knowing your body and your needs, understanding what elements are important. We recommend checking the wetsuit guide video.
Buying a wetsuit is especially difficult if you are first time buyer and have no idea how the correct wetsuit should feel when measured for the first time and not being wet. Your wetsuit should feel really tight and fit quite well in strategic points like cuffs, neck, under armpits, at your wrists and uncles. But if your wetsuit doesn’t allow you to stand straight and is pulling you forward – it’s too small. There are plenty of wetsuit sizes available, considering different body types and here you should also be able to determine whether you are S, M, L, XL and all variations of those, for example is your body regular, quite toll or quite short for your weight. Get acquainted with the detailed guide on wetsuit sizes. Some manufacturers use very well stretching neoprene, allowing for much more flexibility and their wetsuits are available in less broad range of sizes, as they are supposed to cover more different body types within one size. Another thing is that finding a perfect fit is almost impossible and having a quite good fit will do the job.
When you are already a wetsuit owner and you’ve got your favorite make and model – buying online is both saving time and money. If you are a first time buyer who lives far from any specialists shop, it would be worth spending some time doing your research and reading other users reviews before trying to buy your first wetsuit online.
I will gradually update the information here until it becomes a fully comprehensive guide on wetsuits.