Wetsuit Thickness Guide for Arizona Divers: What to Own for Every Condition

Wetsuit Thickness Guide for Arizona Divers: What to Own for Every Condition

Published on
By Ben Lair
In Blog, Equipment

If you live in Florida or Hawaii, buying a wetsuit is pretty simple. You buy a thin one, you put it on, and you dive all year. But being a diver in Arizona requires a bit more strategy.

Our “local” diving includes everything from the sun-baked surface of Lake Pleasant to the chilly, deep thermoclines below. Then, we regularly pack our trucks and head south to the Sea of Cortez, where the water can be 85 degrees in October and 60 degrees in February. If you try to dive all of those environments in a single wetsuit, you are either going to boil on the surface or shiver your way through your air supply.

At 72 Aquatics, we firmly believe that your thermal protection is just as important as your regulator. If you are cold, you are miserable, your air consumption spikes, and your risk of decompression sickness increases. Here is the breakdown of what thickness you need for the diving you want to do.

The 3mm: The Tropical Traveler

If you are the type of diver who only gets wet when the water is crystal clear and bath-warm, the 3mm is your best friend. This is a highly flexible, lightweight suit that is incredibly easy to pack in a carry-on.

  • Where to wear it: Cozumel, Fiji, the Caribbean, and the Sea of Cortez (San Carlos/Rocky Point) from late July through October. It is also the perfect suit for doing your Open Water pool sessions right here in Tucson.
  • The Reality: A 3mm offers minimal thermal protection. Its primary job is to protect your skin from the sun, stinging hydroids, and accidental scrapes against the reef. Do not bring a 3mm to Lake Pleasant unless you are strictly doing shallow surface skills in August.

The 5mm: The Arizona “Goldilocks” Suit

If you can only afford to buy one wetsuit right now, make it a 5mm. It is the Swiss Army Knife of exposure protection for desert divers. It offers a massive jump in warmth over a 3mm, but it isn’t so stiff that it restricts your movement.

  • Where to wear it: The Sea of Cortez during the “transition” months (May, June, November). It is also excellent for Southern California summer diving, and Lake Pleasant during the summer when you plan to drop below the first thermocline.
  • The Reality: A 5mm is incredibly versatile. If you get a little too warm on the surface, you can easily pull the neck seal open and let some cool water flush in. If you get a little chilly at depth, you can add a 3mm hooded vest underneath it to instantly upgrade its warmth.

The 7mm: The Local Workhorse

If you want to dive Lake Pleasant year-round, or if you run cold and want to dive the California kelp forests or the Sea of Cortez in the dead of winter, you need a 7mm suit.

  • Where to wear it: Arizona lakes from October through May, San Carlos in January through April, and the Pacific coast year-round.
  • The Reality: A 7mm is thick, heavy, and extremely buoyant. You will absolutely need to add more lead to your weight belt to get down. Because the neoprene is so thick, putting it on dry can be a bit of a workout (pro tip: use a little diluted hair conditioner or leave your dive socks on to help the legs slide over your feet). Once you are in the water, though, that thick layer of armor will keep your core incredibly warm.

The Ultimate Upgrade: The Dry Suit

Let’s be honest: taking off a freezing, soaking wet 7mm wetsuit in the wind at the lake in January is no one’s idea of a good time. If you become a hardcore local diver, you will eventually find yourself staring longingly at the folks in dry suits.

A dry suit does exactly what it says: it keeps you bone dry. Instead of a layer of water, you are insulated by a layer of air and thermal undergarments. You step out of the suit at the end of the dive wearing the exact same dry fleece you put on that morning. If you want to dive 12 months a year without ever shivering, taking the SSI Dry Suit Specialty is your next step.

Fit is Everything

Here is the most important rule of buying a wetsuit: it does not matter how thick it is if it doesn’t fit properly.

A wetsuit works by trapping a microscopic layer of water against your skin, which your body heat warms up. If your suit is baggy in the armpits or the lower back, cold water will constantly flush in and out, washing away your heat. A wetsuit needs to fit like a second skin.

Don’t guess your size online. Come into 72 Aquatics, tell us where you plan to travel, and let us put you in a few different brands. We will make sure you get a suit that fits perfectly so you can focus on the dive, not the temperature.