Extend Your Dive Season: How to Stay Warm, Safe, and Comfortable in Cold Water
Paul Lenharr Nov 30, 2025
Diving in colder weather or cooler water opens up an entirely different side of the underwater world. Visibility often improves, marine life changes with the seasons, and popular sites feel quieter and more untouched. The tradeoff, of course, is temperature—cold exposure hits faster than most divers expect, affecting comfort, gas consumption, and concentration. When you’re prepared for it, though, cold-water diving becomes not just doable but deeply rewarding.
Thermal protection is the foundation. A properly fitted wetsuit works well for milder temperatures, especially when paired with a good hood and gloves to reduce heat loss at the extremities. As the water drops into the more serious “cold” range, a drysuit becomes essential. A drysuit keeps you insulated by maintaining a barrier between you and the water, and when paired with quality drysuit thermals, it creates a warm, stable micro-environment that makes even winter diving feel manageable. The right exposure protection transforms a cold, uncomfortable dive into one you can enjoy from start to finish.
Many divers upgrade their gear long before they upgrade their training—cold-water environments reward doing both. The PADI Drysuit Diver course teaches you how to control buoyancy inside a drysuit, manage emergency procedures, and set up your gear for real-world conditions. With proper training, a drysuit becomes an incredibly capable piece of equipment that expands your dive season instead of limiting it.
For divers who want to stay active year-round, Southern Maryland Divers stocks everything needed for cold-water comfort: wetsuits, drysuits, hoods, gloves, drysuit thermals, and professional training to match your new gear. Cold water shouldn’t end your season—it should open a new one.
Cold-water diving gets a whole lot better once you understand how different drysuit materials behave. Trilaminate suits are the go-to for flexibility and customization. Think of them as a durable shell: lightweight, quick-drying, and easy to layer under. They don’t provide insulation on their own, which is actually a strength—your warmth comes from your thermals, so you can fine-tune your setup for anything from 60°F quarry water to winter ocean diving. Neoprene drysuits take the opposite path. They insulate by themselves, fit more snugly, and feel familiar to divers stepping up from wetsuits. They’re warm and robust but a bit heavier, and buoyancy changes with depth can be more noticeable. Rubber and vulcanized suits—still popular with commercial and public-safety divers—prioritize durability over comfort. They’re nearly bombproof, easy to decontaminate, and shine in harsh conditions, but most recreational divers find them stiffer and less flexible. Bag-style drysuits are a variant of trilaminate with extra room in the torso and legs, built for mobility and layering but with a bulkier feel.
Seal materials matter just as much as suit construction. Latex seals have been the standard for decades: stretchy, tight, and inexpensive, but they degrade over time and can tear without warning. Silicone seals are the modern upgrade—hypoallergenic, more comfortable, more flexible, and far less prone to sudden failure. The tradeoff is that silicone can’t be glued directly to a suit, which leads naturally to the next topic: replaceable seal systems. These systems use a mechanical ring to hold seals in place, letting a diver swap a neck or wrist seal on the spot without adhesives or a repair shop. They also open the door for silicone, since silicone simply clicks into the system. Permanent seals, on the other hand, are glued directly to the suit. They’re lower-profile and slightly more streamlined, but once they’re damaged, replacement requires tools, adhesives, dry time, and usually a professional technician.
For divers who want reliability, field repairability, and comfort, silicone paired with a replaceable seal system is the current gold standard. Those who prioritize simplicity or the lowest possible profile may still prefer traditional glued latex. Either way, understanding how these materials differ helps divers choose a suit that matches their diving environment, skill progression, and comfort needs. It’s the kind of knowledge that transforms cold-water diving from something you endure into something you genuinely enjoy—and that’s exactly what the right drysuit setup is supposed to do.
We sell a full line of thermal protection to incldue Aqua Lung, Apeks, Mares, and Fourth Element. Contact us to get fitted for your next adventure.
Cold Water Diving FAQ:
Q1: When should I switch from a wetsuit to a drysuit for cold-water diving?
It depends on how cold the water gets. The article says a well-fitted wetsuit plus hood and gloves can work in milder water temperatures. When the water drops into “serious cold” range, a drysuit becomes essential — because it completely seals out water and, with appropriate undergarments, creates a warm micro-environment that keeps you safe and comfortable for longer dives.
Q2: Are special gloves, hoods, or undergarments needed for cold-water dives — or is the suit enough?
Yes — the suit alone often isn’t enough. According to the article, protecting extremities matters: a hood and gloves are critical to reduce heat loss through your head, hands, and feet. Moreover, when using a drysuit, quality thermal undergarments make a big difference — they provide insulation inside the dryshell.
Q3: Is training necessary before diving in a drysuit — or can I just buy one and jump in?
Training is strongly recommended. The article highlights that upgrading gear without upgrading training is common — but cold-water diving rewards doing both. The proper course (for example, a “Drysuit Diver” course) teaches you how to control buoyancy inside a drysuit, handle emergency procedures, and configure gear properly for cold-water conditions.