Staying Dry All Season

Drysuit Maintenance

Drysuits are an investment you will want to last.

To get the most out of your money, take care of all three components, those being: gaskets, zippers, and fabric.

Gaskets;

Gaskets are going to be the first thing to go almost certainly. They can be replaced pretty easily with a form, but with some care, they can last a couple of seasons.

Some things are bad for the rubber, like UV damage, sunscreen, jewelry, watches, fingernails, and overstretching.

Avoid sunscreen on the gasket, and keep them covered whenever possible. Avoid pushing your hands or head through a gasket with watches, rings, or your crown on.

Cracks may form when the gasket is getting tired. Silicon rubber conditioner can get some extra miles out of the gasket, but the cracked edges of the gasket can also be carefully trimmed with sharp scissors.

Zippers:

There are plastic and metal zippers, but there isn’t make much of a difference when caring for them. Zipper wax is a thing. Use it whenever there is whenever the doesn’t glide well. It’s also a good idea to clean the teeth from time to time. This will prevent the zipper pull from wearing out as fast.

Look at the Build Up in the Zipper Teeth

Fabric:

There are some heavy use areas of the fabric that will always take the beating first, but some strategies will help prevent damage.

Socks are going to get holes, I guarantee it. Rocks and sand get into shoes and wear holes. They will last much longer with high top shoes that do not have much mesh. Sand and rocks will be the enemy of any fabrics you want to be waterproof.

UV damage is also going to fade suits. Sprays can help protect the fabric, but simple things like keeping them out of the sun to dry. But it is always better to have a dry drysuit than a wet drysuit when it goes into storage.

One of the best ways to keep the suit happy is to rinse them after use, especially saltwater. Washing the suit is a good idea, but I tend to hand wash with a soap made for drysuits. If you do decide to machine wash, do not run the spin cycle. A dry suit full of water spun can damage the suit or even the washer.

McNett is my go too for maintenance products, but I am sure other products are just as good. For product-specific questions or more detail, manufactures often have tons of helpful information.

Happy Paddling!