Immersion Suits

[Carl-T705]

Has anyone actually suited up and had to go into the water in one of these? I found a source to buy Stearns Emmersion suits for $50.00 and picked up two of these. They are new condition but old stock, 2006. These things weigh a ton, I can"t imagine donning one of these and trying to work to save the boat, nor can I imagine slipping one of these on as the boat is going under. just curious.

[IslandHopper]

Practice Practice Practice....

We have both Immersion and Exposure suits. Not sure if yours have built in floatation, but some also require the wearing of a lifejacket as well, best you check that out....

[cal40john]

Look on youtube, there are vids showing fishermen and coast guard training to put on suits. Regular survival suits are for one thing, get in suit, jump off sinking boat. I have one like that and one that has 5 fingered gloves and fits tighter. I believe that it is a suit more designed for being able to get some work done.

[SaucySailoress]

Whilst I have never seen a survival suit in real life, we do have sailing drysuits (we're beachcat sailors as well), and have every intention of taking them with us when we go. I appreciate they don't have the same insulation value, especially around the head and hands... but then again, neither of us has any intention of going where the water is freezing!

[cal40john]

Originally Posted by SaucySailoress

Whilst I have never seen a survival suit in real life, we do have sailing drysuits (we're beachcat sailors as well), and have every intention of taking them with us when we go. I appreciate they don't have the same insulation value, especially around the head and hands... but then again, neither of us has any intention of going where the water is freezing!

I keep my sailing drysuit (for sailing my Hobie 20) on my big boat so I can jump in for repairs if needed.

John

[Carl-T705]

These are the suits with fingers, yes, they require a PFD, more bulk, They also had the exposure suits, those are $12.99 NOS.
I know a couple years ago a sailor was pluck out of SF bay after his boat sank, he was lucky enough to have one of these suits on board, if I remember correctly he was picked up by a passing fishing boat the next morning. He was floating along asleep when the a crew member on the boat poked him with a stick to see if he was alive, he was, he was sleeping and didn't have his hearing aids with him. Lucky man!

[minaret]

An old friend here in Seattle is a crabber, they had a long tradition of getting in their immersion suits and jumping in the bay at Dutch with a six pack or two each and getting drunk while drifting around after a successful run. If any of you have seen Dutch Harbor you know how crazy this is. After one trip a not very popular crewman apparently passed out while drinking and drifting and was abandoned by the rest of the crew, who claimed they "forgot" him. The CG found him drifting around on the second day, and he was still alive! In the Bering Sea no less. It made the papers at the time. Just goes to show how good they are. Remember you will die of hypothermia even in fairly warm water after enough exposure without a suit.
I paid way more for my auto inflating harness, the same one most use, than I did for my suit. It's about $350 for the harness, more like $150 or less depending on model for a good suit. Given that they cost less than a good quality PFD, I think everyone should have one. They stow away pretty small in the dry bag they come with. I even have two childrens size immersion suits for my kids, I was shocked to find they make such a thing. They also have great features like built in strobes and built in lifting points for recovery. With a PLB I think they might rival a crappy liferaft for offshore worst case scenario survivaviblity and reliabilty, theres nothing to deflate or fail. Obviously you'd want both...

[Cormorant]

I'm a volunteer firefighter and we do ice rescue drills in the dead of winter. I have suited up in one of the thick neoprene "gumby" suits and jumped into a hole cut in the ice. I learned early on . . . when it's 10 degrees out and windy and a bunch of guys are standing around doing an ice rescue drill, the warmest place by far is to put that suit on and jump in! Not sure of their utility on a sailboat versus a liferaft, or in conjunction with a liferaft. . . .

[RDW]

so where did you get the suit for $50?
rdw

[Carl-T705]

Suits come from India, bought off EBAY. The seller is involved with ship demolition and scraping. Shipping to the US takes about a month but they are accurately described.

[Bash]

A dive boat I used to work on had gumby suits. I can assure you of one thing: five minutes after you climb into one of those suits and jump into the water, you're going to have to pee.