Dry suit questions

[Suzanne Stofflet]

Hello all. While we’re on the subject of gear, here’s a question: About a year and a half ago, I bought a Kokatat dry suit and sadly have not used it yet. Do I need to treat the neoprene cuffs and neck yet? And if so, what do you recommend? I know Kokatat recommends 303 protectant. What else should I know about the care and feeding of dry suits? Thanks! —Suzanne

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[Daniel Spada]

Suzanne,

Kokatat indicates that you should use the 303 protectant on your latex gaskets every 4-6 weeks.  I usually treat my latex gaskets (neck and wrist) once at the beginning of the season and once just before I put the suit away.  Are your gaskets latex or neoprene?  I don't have a neoprene gasket but I believe that you can maintain it just by keeping it clean, but 303 probably wouldn't hurt.  All these gaskets should be stored dry, cool and away from UV.  The other part of the drysuit that needs extraordinary care is the zipper.  Check out this link for zipper maintenance information:  https://kokatat.com/support/product-use-care.  I've had good luck with beeswax and I always adhere to the zipper pull positioning information during storage.  My Kokatat suit is 6 years old and I just had to replace the neck gasket this year.  I'm sure my wrist gaskets will need replacement before next season. Good luck.

Dan

On Sun, Mar 26, 2023 at 11:56 AM Suzanne Stofflet <suzanne....@gmail.com> wrote:

Hello all. While we’re on the subject of gear, here’s a question: About a year and a half ago, I bought a Kokatat dry suit and sadly have not used it yet. Do I need to treat the neoprene cuffs and neck yet? And if so, what do you recommend? I know Kokatat recommends 303 protectant. What else should I know about the care and feeding of dry suits? Thanks! —Suzanne

Sent from my iPad

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[Blaine Martin]

Another consideration on dry suit care is to store it away from any electrical equipment and your furnace.  According to the dive shop in Burlington, the ozone from these sources can degrade the latex gaskets and turn them gummy.  You can also use talc powder on the seals to protect them from ozone.  

The Waterfront dive center in Burlington is a great resource if your suit needs to be repaired.  They can replace all gaskets as well as small punctures if your suit gets damaged.  

Blaine 

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On Mar 26, 2023, at 6:34 PM, Daniel Spada <spada...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Paul Lefebvre]

If the seals are neoprene (cloth-backed spongy rubber), your suit is a semi-dry and just needs to be kept clean of sweat, salt, etc. If they are thin black rubber (formerly latex, now they use some synthetic) then it’s a full drysuit and yes, occasionally treating with 303 is good when the suit is in regular use. When stored, keep it in a dry dark place, away from any electrical motors like laundry machines, as they can generate ozone which can degrade various kinds of rubber. 

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On Mar 26, 2023, at 7:38 PM, Blaine Martin <blaine.lo...@gmail.com> wrote:

Another consideration on dry suit care is to store it away from any electrical equipment and your furnace.  According to the dive shop in Burlington, the ozone from these sources can degrade the latex gaskets and turn them gummy.  You can also use talc powder on the seals to protect them from ozone.  

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/vtnordicskating/4258F355-7115-46FE-9A85-89D6F9AC9EB6%40gmail.com.