Well My statement was that wetsuits typically offer better insulating properties than drysuits. That is true, you can look up the R-values (if the drysuit guys even publish them). Paddling drysuits aren’t really meant to provide much insulation – it makes them more versatile.
Yes, when it gets cold, you add layers under the drysuit, just like you can add layers over a wetsuit. Some newbies don’t understand the importance of those insulating layers under the drysuit, they think if they stay dry, they’ll be fine during a swim.
Drysuits are certainly more practical in very cold weather and cold water as long as you add those layers.
Modern drysuits are very reliable, especially when maintained, but my point is that they require more effort:
Wetsuit:
Put it on/Zip it up
Wash occasionally to remove funk
Drysuit:
Check/maintain/replace gaskets
Check for damage
Put it on/Zip it up
Burp it
Check for leaks
Store properly
You should test both on a regular basis by walking into cool water, but it is more critical with the drysuit because they have the potential to fail more dramatically.
One of our whitewater guys forgot to rezip after a restroom break, then swam, and almost drowned when his drysuit filled with water . That wasn’t the drysuit’s fault, but it is something the user has to be very aware of.
Depends on what you want to spend You might want to google Reed Chillcheaters. Their stuff is custom made and really good prices. I use a wet suit and dry top combo with a good roll and I’m fine, Reed hood when it’s really cold. I paddle until the water is frozen over. What ever you do check out eBay if your not in a hurry you can find some good deals. I bought my wetsuit (NRS) for $40 and my dry top (IR) for $50. Both brand new with tags. A good wet suit will last you several years before you decide if a dry suit is for you. At the Great Lakes Sea Kayak Symposium I know they had demo dry suits, you might want to go there next July and do some demoing and then decide.
top and bottom combo In terms of price, Stohlquist has a dry top and dry pants that work VERY well. You can use them separately or combined as a dry suit, and the price is not bad a little under $400 for the set.
The FreeRYDE Dry Top and the Mooners II pants are sold separately but are made to fit together.
I live in South Tx, not exactly great lakes weather. But I like playing in the surf year round, and on a 50 degree day with a 20 mph wind and 80% humidity, you get pretty chilly pretty quick.
Stop wasting time defending the inferior performance of Goretex compared to eVent.
eVent breathability has been shown to be superior to Goretex by the US Army.
eVent is trusted to be waterproof sufficiently so to be used in altitimeter systems in civil and military aviation. 100’s of peoples lives depend on that.
Durability of goretex or event depends upon the surrounding materials, not the membrane layer.
Any goretex warranty claim begins with a “discussion” with goretex, not an RMA number. Plenty of people have has issues with it. Google it. And why did your Goretex FAIL anyway?
Finally, there’s very few things which have been around for 40 years and have not been improved. Most people want an improved product, not improved marketing hype.
Two piece systems are generally not dry enough for prolonged immersion in really chilly stuff for me, talking water temps similar to what the OPer probably is dealing with in the high 40’s come spring. And they work best if you have a roll so can limit the actual immersion.
The only ones I’ve heard people routinely say keep you dry is Kokatat’s one, with a bib top. But at that price you might as well get a dry suit from somewhere like NRS, and they are cranky to get into.
Stop touting a product with almost no track record, no warranty and no waterproofness data.
Breathability is only one of many considerations for a dry suit fabric. Durability and waterproofness are more important in a dry suit.
Quit trying to confuse the subject by referring to irrelevant applications.
Durability means more than abrasion or tear resistance. Does the fabric perform long-term. Gore-Tex has a track record, eVent doesn't.
eVent hasn't been out long enough to have any real durability record.
The Gore warranty is real and eVent offers nothing. No company can make everyone happy, but I have personal experience with Gore and it's been 100% positive.
eVent fabric will fail too, it's just a question of how long it will last. No one knows that yet because it hasn't been on the market long enough.
So far, the only thing we hear from eVent is "marketing hype" about breathability and nothing else.
Give it up, B… Clearly WS has an agenda; trash Goretex and any manufacturer who uses it.
I remind you WS, that the military goes with low bidder. No one cares what fabric is used on sensors.
I done know with whom you have a bone to pick, but obviously you intend to pick it clean. You’ve made you point, however clumsily, that you like the new shiny Event fabric. You made it clear that you believe, flying in the face of a 40 year track record of performance, that Goretex is crap. You’ve muddied the water with chatter about military testing, barometric sensors and how lives are saved by this miraculous fabric.
Congratulations! I won’t use Event. Irritatingly enough, your ranting and raving about Event vs. Goretex isn’t the first I’ve heard, but you lot have managed to put me right off this new amazing fabric that will save my life in a military lab or, perhaps, serving as a barometric sensor.
Possessed by Marketing F*S Dude go get the US Army lab test report and stop arguing. Its on the net. Kudos, Goretex Marketing Department for the brainwashing of B.
Marketing? My information regarding Goretex does not come from any marketing campaign. It comes from long experience. And inferior to what? What criteria are you using? You’ve completely missed the parts of the discussion where it’s been mentioned that one of the things you get from Gore is the lifetime warranty against failure of their product.
I’m not here even to try to defend Gore’s product so much as to try to provide a counterpoint to you. I don’t know what your agenda is but you’ve got your work cut out if you think you’re going to go head to head against Goretex.
Speaking of my experience with Goretex, it’s gone with me to Denali, Yosemite for bigwalling, all over the Cascades and the Rockies, South Pole Station, Antarctica for winter as well as general everyday wear not to mention my kayaking gear. That’s 21 years of Goretex for me in some of the most miserable conditions…in the world (think South Pole in winter that’s -100 before windchill). without incident or failure including my mountaineering equipment which I’ve been beating on for 20 of those years and is still keeping water out. SO, until some of the other fabrics can have that sort of performance record, Event and others can suck it. It’s Goretex for me.
You really drank the eVent Kool-Aid It’s really funny that you accuse me of buying into marketing hype, when I’ve got 35 year of actual experience using Gore-Tex garments. How long have you been using eVent?
The ONLY thing on the eVent website is HYPE about breathability. Fine, eVent is more breathable than Gore-Tex, OK? So what? That’s only one consideration for a dry suit. There is zero data about eVent’s waterproofness and it has no significant durability track record. You’ve swallowed their pitch about breathability hook, line and sinker, then you accuse others of buying into Gore’s marketing? That’s rich! Really, could you possibly be more of a hypocrite?
At this point, eVent is just another fabric in a VERY LONG line of products that have CLAIMED to be superior to Gore-Tex. Where are the others now? Most are dead and buried because they didn’t live up to their promises and those that remain sell only because they’re cheaper, not because they perform better.
Wear whatever you want, but I’ll stick with a product that has PROVEN to work long-term until another fabric comes along that’s actually equal or better in ALL aspects AND has a decent warranty. eVent is NOT that product, at least not yet. Time will tell and I can wait…