drysuit drying and storing

[spatman]

i'm getting a little confused about the different ways to hang a drysuit to dry and store it.

for drying, i've heard of using a wide shouldered drysuit hanger, a hanger that suspends the suit by the boots, or by hanging the suit over a bar at the waist.

for storing between dives, i've heard of the same hangers as above, and also rolling up the suit and storing in a bag or bin.

one of the local dive shops sold me one of these wide shoulder hangers, telling me that it was good for both drying and storing the suit:

<img src="http://www.scubatoys.com/store/accessor ... hanger.jpg" width="100" height="105">

someone at a different shop told me that storing the suit on a hanger like that would put strain on the zipper when closed. (it doesn't seem to make sense to store it that way with the zipper open)

i also heard that storing the suit rolled can create kinks in the zipper if not rolled properly.

SO, my questions to all of the scuba gurus out there:

i assume all 3 drying methods mentioned are acceptable, provided the suit is stored as soon as it's dry, correct?

as for storing it, are the claims of straining and kinking the zipper true?
is there a preferred way of storing in general?
if rolling the suit to store it, is there a best practice to prevent damage?
if hanging the suit by the boots to store it, are there potentials for damage?

any other things i should be taking into consideration for both drying and storing?

thanks, everyone!

[kwbyron]

I was under the impression that you don't want to store it with the zipper closed, so I hang mine on the wide shouldered drysuit hanger with the zipper open and let it be.

[spatman]

I was under the impression that you don't want to store it with the zipper closed, so I hang mine on the wide shouldered drysuit hanger with the zipper open and let it be.

i had thought that storing it that way would strain the ends of the zipper. i take it you've had no problem, then?

[sparky]

Well being on the dive team I keep mine in the truck in between dives
I keep mine in a bag rolled up and yes I do store it with the Zipper open
I think it is mostly up to you one method is as good as the next.

as for drying I made a rack out of P V C pipe that I hang my dry suit on by sliding the boots on over the top I can hook a blower up to it
to move air through the hole works if I wanted to

hole thing cost me like $ 25.00 at most to make

Have to put a picture of it in the doing it your self thread
Sparky

[bnboly]

Like Sparky I built a hanger for my suit - it allows me to hang my suit upside down - my hanger fits inside my suit - also made of PVC - I can attach a small shop vac (it's only used for drying the inside of my suit) to blow fresh air into my suit for as long as I want. When it's dry I usually powder all my seals, wax my zipper and then roll my suit up and store it in the canvas bag it came in - with the zipper open. So far have had no problems.

[spatman]

for drying I made a rack out of P V C pipe that I hang my dry suit on by sliding the boots on over the top I can hook a blower up to it
to move air through the hole works if I wanted to

Like Sparky I built a hanger for my suit - it allows me to hang my suit upside down - my hanger fits inside my suit - also made of PVC - I can attach a small shop vac (it's only used for drying the inside of my suit) to blow fresh air into my suit for as long as I want.

any chance you guys can post a pic or diagram of your drying racks? it sounds like a great idea.

[Sergeant Pepper]

Drysuit manufacturers advise not to store your suit with the zipper in the closed position as it keeps the zipper in a constant compressed state.

[Aquanautchuck]

I have some plans for a dry suit dryer in a pdf format. Does anyone know how I would attach or paste it here?[/img]

[sparky]

I will post a couple pictures of my rack after work tomorrow for you its realy easy to make a little pvc and some pvc glue and your all set

Sparky

[spatman]

I have some plans for a dry suit dryer in a pdf format. Does anyone know how I would attach or paste it here?

PM sent. we'll get that pdf up for other folks to see.

I will post a couple pictures of my rack after work tomorrow for you its realy easy to make a little pvc and some pvc glue and your all sety

awesome. thanks, sparky.

[Seth T.]

VMac and I are planning on making our own drysuit hangers. I'm not about to pay $27 for one!

[Tom Nic]

Storing? Drying? What?!? Your suits actually get dried and put away?

[Seth T.]

In theory, Tommy. This is just speculation.

[spatman]

Storing? Drying? What?!? Your suits actually get dried and put away?

some of aren't so lucky as to be able to dive any day of the week...

[Zen Diver]

Storing? Drying? What?!? Your suits actually get dried and put away?

Thank you! I'd been thinking the same thing. My suit dries over the shower rod, then goes back in the bag, into the car, to the dive site, rinse repeat etc.

-Valerie

[bnboly]

Well here is a few pics of how my siut relaxes between dives:

This is a pic of the base:


This is what the completed rack looks like:


Here is one with the suit on it:


The 'arms' come off and the 'body' can be taken apart. It really makes it much easier to rinse the suit off between dives - also lets me dry out the inside of the suit - esp after leaks!

[Seth T.]

Whoa, that's cool!

[Tom Nic]

Yeah, very cool Bill!

[spatman]

wow, that's a great design! it's hard to tell in the pics, but are those small holes drilled in he pvc to allow air through?

[sparky]

Still working on mine but the idea is the same cheap to build to thats what i like

Sparky

[spatman]

you guys have inspired me. i'm taking some measurements and getting some PVC as soon as i can.

thanks!

[Tom Nic]

The low pipe pointing out at the bottom is used (I assume) to put a vac hose on for blowing into the suit. Very nice.

[hoover]

this is the first one of these i have seen. it has a hookup for air so it dries from boots on out.

http://skooba-spot.blogspot.com/2007/07 ... -rack.html

probably best way to keep the suit fresh besides waxing the zipper is the rinse in fresh water with some anti stink, then get it on a drying rack like you guys are building. if you have air flow going, it will be dry quick.

[sparky]

The low pipe pointing out at the bottom is used (I assume) to put a vac hose on for blowing into the suit. Very nice.

Yep yep you got it Tom I my self for now just hook my shop vac in there and let her blow for a bout 30 minutes I found that by setting the hole works out side it don't take long at all to dry

Sparky

[Scott]

What are the dimensions do you need for the pipe so it doesn't break?