With water whisking away your body heat, it is essential to invest in some sort of thermal protection.  Thermal protection ranges from very thin (See our Dive Skins section) to very dry (Visit our Drysuit section).  In between is a wide range of wetsuits, starting with 2mm for the warmest water, all the way up to 7mm for coldwater diving.  They come in one piece or in two pieces.  One piece is easier to don, but two pieces offers you greater coverage and warmth in the trunk of the body, or your “core.”  With such a vast selection, the questions becomes:  “Which wetsuit do I need?”  The answer may well be that you need more than one wetsuit.  Some bodies of water vary greatly in water temperature from season to season.   Also, with air travel making far away places easier to visit, you may dive in a variety of conditions.  Here are some basic guidelines to assist you.  As always, if you have any question about which wetsuit would be best for you, please call us, and one of our expert sales associates would be happy to advise you. 

Shorties:  Shortie wetsuits such as the Edge 2mm Baja are handy if you are going for a quick snorkel in very warm water or if you are going to do a little surfing or wakeboarding in a warm water location; however, they are not recommended for most scuba diving, as they do not provide protection on the arms and legs from all of the floating stinging critters, nor from the incidental brush with coral.  Another good use for a shortie is to add over your 3mm wetsuit when the day turns a little cold, or after your third dive, for some additional warmth to your trunk.  Dolphin Scuba Center features the Edge Baja 2mm shortie in both men’s and women’s sizes. 

3mm – 5mm Wetsuits:  These wetsuits are ideal for diving the Caribbean, the South Pacific, and much of Indonesia.  This thickness will even keep you perfectly warm in the Red Sea.  Available in standard neoprene or the new “Flex-Tec” super-stretchy material, these wetsuits are a dream to put on while keeping you warm fur multiples dives a day.  Offering full body coverage to avoid stings of critter or coral, you have uniform thermal protection.  Another excellent option offered at Dolphin is the 3/2mm wetsuit, which gives you 3mm of warmth in the core, where you need it, but added flexibility in the arms and legs with only 2mm of material.  Choose from the Edge Cozumel 3/2 wetsuit, the Edge “Flex-Tec” or the O’Neill 3000X.  For a slight increase in protection, try the Aqua Lung 5mm Flex wetsuit.  Of course, all of these choices are available in both men’s and women’s sizes.