[Closed] How cold is uk diving?

Most (all) regulars would use a drysuit, but I made do with a 7mm Suit with a 5mm shortie on-top. I was as warm as the drysuit people underwater.
But when on the surface they just needed to unzip and they were warm and dry again but in a wetsuit, that was when the cold suddenly hit you and I needed to take wetsuit off

So you can easily be warm enough to enjoy the dive and stay down as long as your air lets you.

something like this + matching shortie
http://www.mikesdivestore.com/products/oceanic-mens-pioneer-5mm-full-wetsuit?variant=571074637

In a modern semi dry well fitting wet suit in Sept, comfy. But most will use a dry suit. Then its fine. Warm in summer OK other times, nippy in winter.

I use a dry suit, fine for an hour + in 5-6 degrees.

Depends on how easily you get cold.
I have spend 2.5 hours in 4 degree water in a 4mm wetsuit and was fine.

'kin cold - it's alright until you know better (a bit like potty training)
once you've lived somewhere with warm water you can't go back to peeing yourself just to get warm

Just wear a dry suit and don't pee in it.

You will be warm as you like then.

When I dived around 15 years ago I used a thick neoprene dry suit and balaclava, as did most of the club I was in. We were diving mostly off the coast of Yorkshire and Northumberland down to around 30m. I was generally fine but I remember struggling to get my fingers to unclip my BCD after at least one dive, my fingers were that cold (despite gloves). I also remember a training dive at Stoney Cove where the puddles around the quarry were frozen over. Mask-clearing exercises were not pleasant. I don't generally feel the cold too badly. In winter I ride in one merino layer, plus a Paclite jacket if it's sub-zero.

A dry suit makes any UK water comfortable.

I used to dive the NE coast and it's significantly colder than the water of Cornwall. You get the benefit of the Gulf Stream on the West side of the UK.

As above, it's not really the in water temperature that gets you, it's when you get out and are exposed to wind chill etc.

Depends on how easily you get cold.
I have spend 2.5 hours in 4 degree water in a 4mm wetsuit and was fine.

You must have plenty of 'natural neoprene'!

 

As warm as anywhere really. You wear the the right suit for the water temp. I've had cold dives in Egypt and plenty of warm dives here. The big difference is when you get out. Sitting on a boat in the freezing wind and rain is no fun. Do it on a sunny day and the process is usually: Too hot while carrying the gear to the beach, cooling as you jump in the water, just right while diving, strip off on the beach and sit in the sun. Doesn't always work like that though.

I have spend 2.5 hours in 4 degree water in a 4mm wetsuit and was fine.

Underwater or on the surface? There's a big difference.

I have spend 2.5 hours in 4 degree water in a 4mm wetsuit and was fine.

Blimey, I am at total wimp. I have done 3 dives today in a 5mm wetsuit in 28 degrees centigrade water and I was shivering on my 5 metre stop.
OP, Cornwall has a wide range on sea temperatures throughout the year but most UK divers will use a dry suit all year.
wait4me, I presume you were openwater surface swimming rather than scuba diving. The vast majority of scuba divers would be hypothermic wearing a 4mm wetsuit in 4 degree water for an hour. Scuba divers loose a massive amount of heat just through breathing underwater.

[b]Water Temp For Normal Divers [/b]
(29 C) and Above Dive Skin to 2 mm shorty
(26-28 C) 2 mm shorty to 3mm full wetsuit
(22-25 C) 3 mm shorty to 4 mm full wetsuit
(18-21 C) 5 mm full wetsuit to 7mm full wetsuit
(10-17 C) 7 mm full wetsuit t0 8/7 mm semidry
(Below 10 C) 8/7 mm semidry or drysuit

The cold isn't the problem, it's the 8000 lumens of torches you have to take to see anything*

*may be some exaggeration.

Depends on how easily you get cold.
I have spend 2.5 hours in 4 degree water in a 4mm wetsuit and was fine.

Was that in elevenerife?

Decent well-fitting wetsuits are perfectly warm whilst in the water, though you seem to cool down alot once you're out of the water, this is were a drysuit comes into its own (or maybe a decent semi-dry - i've never used one). Drysuits are fine. For recreational diving we used to dive for about 40 mins at a time a few times a day and I used a pretty cheap drysuit and thermals and never felt the cold. Though it was summer diving, though due to the temp lag of the oceans it was during the coldest part of the year as far as water temperature goes.

I wasn't diving in the 4mm I was commenting on previous post and made a hash of the quote. So have probably proved my inability to comment on anything!

So you were lounging around in neoprene for 2.5 hours 😉

I've diving in 4 degree water in a drysuit and quilted undersuit. I was more in danger of overheating than getting cold and I had to seriously resist the urge to want to unzip the front (the zip was actually across the back which makes it even more bizarre!)!!
You need to make sure your regs are cold water rated and even if they are don't breath them too much on the surface.
If you have to take your mask off you'll get a shock as the cold water hits your face!

thanks guys, really interesting.

i surf year round so have an idea what its like on teh surface but under is another thing.

and in general terms of feeling the cold i freeze.

As others have said, a drysuit with a reasonable undersuit and you'll be toasty year round. I love diving here in the UK, the only thing that puts me off is the extra time getting kitted up, and the extra effort involved in getting to the water and getting in/out.

Doesn't have to cost a fortune for the kit either, I'm using an Outer Edge drysuit that was about £400 for the drysuit, undersuit and hoses etc and it's been brilliant.