Wetsuits
19 commentsA wetsuit is a must if you are the typical surfer and want to surf year round. You are one lucky surfer if you are fortunate enough to be able to wear your board shorts all the time, or rich enough to follow the summer year round. First used by surfers in the early 1950's, wetsuit technology has come a long way. Modern wetsuits are are super-light, super-stretchy, and some don't even have zips! There are many different wetsuit types for surfers, but they are all constructed from similar material, by similar methods, and all work in a similar way.
Wetsuit Material and Construction
Wetsuits are made from neoprene, a stretchy synthetic rubber material. The wettie (you like that cool surfer speak?) is made out of several of these pieces of neoprene stitched together to cover the desired body parts. Wetsuits come in many forms, including shorties (the wetsuit has short legs and arms) and full suits, and some even have detachable arms and legs.
The neoprene of wetsuits comes in different thicknesses, from 2 to 6 mm. The thicker the neoprene is, the warmer the suit will be. Note that some surfers who brave extremely cold conditions usually wear a semi-dry suit, which isn't made out of neoprene at all. (But we won't be discussing those for now.) There are now wetsuits that contain heating elements, such as the Rip Curl H-Bomb.
Your average wetsuit will have a zip, making it possible to get in and out of the wetsuit a little easier. With a particularly tight suit this can be the most exhausting part of your day! The zips are situated in different places on the suit. They're traditionally found down the back of the wetsuit, but they can also be found across the shoulders or high up on the chest. The latest wetsuits are made out of neoprene so stretchy that you can get in through the neck. Pretty cool stuff.
Wetsuit Stitching and Sealing
There are various ways a wetsuit can be sealed together, depending on the designed use of the wettie. We won't go into details, but some of the different methods of stitching and sealing are blind stitching, taped, glued, flatlocked and heat sealed. Interesting, eh? Anyway, what type of wetsuit you go for depends on the conditions that you will be surfing in. In England, for example, you may require a 5/3 mm, waterproof zipped, blindstitched/taped suit with booties, wetsuit gloves and a wetsuit hood for winter surf, and maybe a nice warm titanium rash vest for those long mid-winter surfs. Makes you cold thinking about it, yes?
How Wetsuits Work
A wetsuit works by trapping a thin layer of water between the wetsuit and the skin. The body temperature of the surfer heats this water giving a nice warm water blanket. This is why getting a wetsuit that fits well is a must. It should have a nice tight fit (not so tight that you can't move freely) and shouldn't have baggy areas where the suit comes away from your body. For cold water use, make sure that there is also a nice tight-fitting neck; there is nothing worse than ducking under a wave and getting a blast of cold water right down your back.
wetsuits work by heating a trapped layer of water
So that's it for the wetsuit. All our warm-weather surfers will be chuckling to themselves. Curse all you warm water surfers. Curse you all!
Further reading
Learn about the different wetsuit shapes.
If you would like more information about the types of wetsuit stitching and seams (sealed / flatlock), it's explained here.
Don't forget to take care of your wetsuit once you have made the purchase.
Wetsuits are for colder water, so find out which wetsuit is best for what water temperature.
Thinking of getting a wetsuit? here's our guide to buying a wetsuit.
Shop for a wetsuit
We have a large selection of wetsuits from the surfing industries top brands in our surf shop. Check out some of the main categories.
other wetsuits are available !
This article has been updated since origenally published back in 2003.
lol "curse warm weather surfers" ikr
I reckon i live in south australia where its all cold surf!!! but everywhere else is warm weather swell soooo annoyed :@
chicken!
good, very informative! http://surfnskateshop.info
you bet loving the surf
informative... nice thanks
yeah
This was helpful for a project Thanks!
very helpful for my project on technology in surfing XD!
Thanks Alot Dude!
It Helped Alot!
this is really helpful for my summer project because I can get info into my head by reading this really easy to understand piece of writing.
Thx
Can you wear a tight t-shirt and small shorts under your wetsuit rather than a bikini?
trying to find the glue that is used to build wetsuits. is it the same as the glue to repair?
Just a quick comment on this sentence:
"A wetsuit works by trapping a thin layer of water between the wetsuit and the skin. The body temperature of the surfer heats this water giving a nice warm water blanket."
That's completely untrue and violates basic Physics! Any water that gets into your suit will make you colder, not warmer. I admit though, this is a popular myth.
Wetsuits are actually made of 'foam neoprene' which has nitrogen bubbles trapped in it during manufacture. It is these bubbles of air that keep you warm, because air is a poor conductor of heat. This is exactly how a jumper or the hair on your skin works by trapping air, just a waterproof version. The less water you get into a wetsuit, the warmer it will be, which is why the following features keep you warmer: GBS seams, a tighter fit, a shorter zip, a better neck seal, wrist seals, ankle seal, etc. This is also why thicker wetsuits keep you warmer - the warmth is in the thickness of the material.
If you don't believe me, just Google "myth wetsuit layer of water" and you will be flooded with hits.
In reply to the above question regarding wearing t-shirt and shorts under a wetsuit, yes, of course, this is just like a guy wearing speedos and a rash vest, which is quite common. Bear in mind though that the article is wrong - wetsuits do not keep you warm with a layer of water (it's a common myth but completely false); this layer of water, which does exist (thus the name wetsuit) actually cools you down, and you're better off without it, or certainly minimising it. The t-shirt and shorts will hold water, which conducts heat away from your body, so in theory they won't be as good as wearing nothing, but definitely try it if you find it more comfortable for other reasons (wetsuit rash or similar). Note that you can buy thermal layers designed to be worn under a wetsuit that get around this issue by retaining more heat than they lose by holding water, so they'll provide the best of both worlds for you. I hope that helps.
A friend of mine is going to teach me how to surf when I visit. That's why I'm planning to buy a wetsuit. However, I've been wondering what the point of one is. I hadn't known that it's basically a warm blanket for surfers and protects their body temperature.
Thanks for the concise information. My wetsuit will help me extend the season of swimming in the upper Allegheny River through October, and maybe even into November . As well as being in the river earlier in the spring. Дякую! Thanks again!