Choosing the Best Spring Wetsuit for Your Location

For non-underwater sports like wakeboarding and surfing, a spring wetsuit is probably the best wetsuit choice because it offers more flexibility to the wearer compared to full body wetsuits.

While it’s convenient to jump right in and purchase the cheapest wetsuit or the one with the most popular brand, here are a few things you should first look at:

Does it have the right thickness? Although any spring wetsuit would be made from neoprene, a fabric that allows water to be trapped between the suit and your skin for insulation, not all of them have the same “heating capacity”. Simply put, a spring wetsuit with thicker fabric can provide you with more protection from the cold water. The marking temperature is usually 70ºF, although this can of course vary depending on your threshold to cold temperatures.

For water temperatures below 70ºF, you should look for a spring wetsuit that has a thickness of 3mm to 4mm. On the other hand, temperatures ranging 70ºF can we handled well by a 1mm to 2mm wetsuit. Your wetsuit might not have the same thickness all around. The important thing is that the thicker parts of the suit should cover your core.

Does your spring wetsuit fit you well? You have to remember that you can’t allow any “breathing room” when you’re choosing your wetsuit. Your suit should always fit snugly on all parts of your body, especially near the openings. Just make sure that your wetsuit doesn’t suffocate you or restrict your movements because this is also dangerous. When the suit is too loose, it will let in too much water, which can lessen the “heating ability” of the wetsuit while you’re in the water.

Even if you’re mostly on top of the water’s surface, you always have to consider the possibility that you’ll be thrown into the water. A “water slush” when the water’s below 70ºF is the last thing you want to experience. Make sure that you’re paying for your money’s worth with that suit by finding your perfect fit.

How do you know if your wetsuit is too tight for you? As dangerous as a wetsuit that is too loose is a suit that’s too tight. When you wear a suit that’s too tight-fitting, you torture the seams which also decrease the suit’s ability to keep water out.

When you’re fitting the suit, make sure that the seams aren’t too strained, or the zipper too hard to pull up. It’s usually hard to zip up a wetsuit especially when it still hasn’t been in contact with water (wetsuits usually come loose once they’re wet), but your zippers should close without snagging on your flesh.

The fit of your wetsuit couldn’t be stressed enough, which is why it’s not recommended for you to buy used or second hand wetsuits, unless you do your homework.

Spring wetsuits, even the best and most expensive ones, wear out in time. You wouldn’t want to be wearing a suit that’s actually thinner that it says on the tag because it’s old. Also, these suits tend to “adapt” to their owners’ bodies. Unless you have an identical body form with the former owner, there’s no way that a used bodysuit will fit you right. It’s bound to bag or loosen in all the wrong places, and these loose parts will invite an unwanted water slush.