Wetsuit Care

evil-monkey

Should I be taking measures to look after my wetsuit??

Should I be doing anything to it before / after surfing?? I've heard someone mention a WS drum??

Any tips greatly appreciated

WithCheesePlease

All I generally do is rinse it out afterwards. I don't have a bath so I rinse it under the shower in luke-warm water for a bit, inside and out.

But you can buy stuff to rinse it in like Piss Off by Rip Curl (note: I am NOT plugging the site, just included the link), or alternatively you can just put a few drops of detol in a bath and use that to rinse too.

And then hang it up (out of the sun) to drip dry. That's pretty much my lot.

No idea what a WS drum is...

Well that's my input anyway!

TheTubes

according to google this is a WS drum:


yes, you need one of these, it is very important.

gearoid nailed everything else tho.
although i would add that stuff like piss off, detol (and baby shampoo) dont need to be done that often, every few months imo, depending of course on how much you use your suit.
and dont use a wire hanger, try to use something like those big wide plastic ones that women use (i robbed one off the misus)

that reminds me, make sure you put it down on the sand and piss all over it before you put it on the first time, it helps to, um, protect it, and stuff....

WithCheesePlease

TheTubes wrote: »

that reminds me, make sure you put it down on the sand and piss all over it before you put it on the first time, it helps to, um, protect it, and stuff....

Haha, brilliant!

c - 13

I've got a big water butt in the shed (from any garden centre), fill it up with water and a small amount of milton. Give them a slosh around in that and then hang them up.

Macanri

Great tip c - 13. I just rinse the suit down in the shower. But my old suit used to stink, mouldy like. I'll be robbin some of me 13 week old son's Milton so.

SnowMonkey

I had a rip curl ultimate 5-3 that last 3 years never had one nick in it and was probably th ebest suit ive ever had, i did the exact same thing as C13 into a bigish buket, soak for a fe minits out of th ebuket on to the cloths line... rinsed it off with the garden hoose and into the house as I have a dehumidafire . or leave it some where wher eitle dry and its not in direct sunlight...and i allways dried them inside out....

My current wetsuit doesnt fit me as ive lost a lot of weight but it reaceaves the same treatment....

Crumble Froo

oh man, is that all that necessary? i keep mine in a mate's garage, so it just gets a thorough rinse down with the garden hose wehn im done (most of the time, sometimes by the time i've gone from the beach to her gaf, and gotten dried and dressed, im too cold to even contemplate anything that doesnt involve a warm cup of cocoa at a nearby cafe.)

evil-monkey

grand job, doing alright so. by the by, what's milton??

Crumble Froo

steriliser thing... i tend to associate it with baby bottles.

c - 13

Crumble Froo wrote: »

oh man, is that all that necessary? i keep mine in a mate's garage, so it just gets a thorough rinse down with the garden hose wehn im done (most of the time, sometimes by the time i've gone from the beach to her gaf, and gotten dried and dressed, im too cold to even contemplate anything that doesnt involve a warm cup of cocoa at a nearby cafe.)

Probably not necessary but when i'm after forking out for a wetsuit I want it to last so ill do a bit to keep it in good condition and not smelling nasty.

It often ends up in the cleaning barrel for days at a time though because i'm too lazy to take it out and hang it up

evil-monkey wrote: »

grand job, doing alright so. by the by, what's milton??

"Milton is a stable solution of sodium hypochlorite which completely destroys all viable micro-organisms including spores. It is non-toxic and non-tainting and when in contact with protein, breaks down to form Water + sodium chloride (salt). Milton is therefore totally safe to use and can be applied directly to the skin – even swallowed – without harm."

Milton

Would I be correct in saying you're quite young if you dont know what Milton is Evil-Monkey ? Bet you dont know what gripe water is either ?

Crumble Froo

i remember being force fed gripe water as a yung'un... god, parents suck

but yes, i think i might give that once a month milton thing a go... must confess though, didnt even wash my wetsuit out today, 2.5hrs of surfing, and fuuuuuuuuck it was cold. i could dress myself i was shaking so much, i wasnt about to hose that thing down. i was running to the nearest supplier of hot drinks. though my wetsuit has yet to start smelling nasty, so i guess i should be greatful. my bro canoes and i used to hate going into the bathroom when the wetsuit was hanging up, the smell was just dreadful.

spaddywaddy

Theres a good video guide about wetsuit cleaner and how to look after your wetsuit here http://wetsuitcentre.co.uk/advice

Notch000

dont bother with all the cleaning products sh**, just dunk it when you get home in a bucket with cold water with a touch of washing up liquid, then throw over the line, dont hang by pegs, if it raining or not drying outside hang up n the shower and leave to dry, works fine for me for hte last few years

Once left a wet suit outside on the wall for 6 month over the winter, removed the slugs & power hosed it off and it was grand again

spaddywaddy

doesnt this ruin the wetsuit? how long have you used washing up liquid? I guess its antibacterial? Interesting would like to know. Before i spend 10 euros on wetsuit cleaner.

Mickeroo

spaddywaddy wrote: »

doesnt this ruin the wetsuit? how long have you used washing up liquid? I guess its antibacterial? Interesting would like to know. Before i spend 10 euros on wetsuit cleaner.

Nah washing up liquid is very mild, the likes of fairy and that.

ratticus

I would say hang the rinsed wetsuit over a broomstick or something else wide propped up over the shower ( cubile is ideal for this). Hangers, even wide ones, put a lot of pressure and the shoulders of the suit.

uberalles

ratticus wrote: »

I would say hang the rinsed wetsuit over a broomstick or something else wide propped up over the shower ( cubile is ideal for this). Hangers, even wide ones, put a lot of pressure and the shoulders of the suit.

Good idea for stretching the shoulders on wet suit if it's too tight !

Decos

I wouldn't be using washing up liquid on a wetsuit! Would be too harsh I'd imagine. Johnson&Johnson baby shampoo is the one people recommend if your not buying the wetsuit cleaner coz its mild. I've used the baby shampoo and its fine.

keryl

Dunk it and add a small amount of dettol (tiny amount) and rinse it out, wack it on a strong clothes hanger on the line and let our amazingly crazy wind dry it in 2-3 minutes.

promethius

i bring it home and feck it up over the side of the shower in the spare bathroom (or over the fence outside if it's dry), hope it's dry when i go surfing again, and repeat.........

TopOfTheHill

I usually dunk in the bath when I get home (sometimes it can take a couple of days to get around to it), and then hang it in the shower or outside, depending no the weather. Every couple of months I throw some milton into the bath with it.

Hanging in the shower usually frightens the bejezus out of unsuspecting visitors to the toilet

afkasurfjunkie

TopOfTheHill wrote: »

I usually dunk in the bath when I get home (sometimes it can take a couple of days to get around to it), and then hang it in the shower or outside, depending no the weather. Every couple of months I throw some milton into the bath with it.

Hanging in the shower usually frightens the bejezus out of unsuspecting visitors to the toilet

yes, the dead body in the bathroom we call it.

JimmyCrackCorn

TopOfTheHill wrote: »

Hanging in the shower usually frightens the bejezus out of unsuspecting visitors to the toilet

I never get used to that and had to hang it outside.

Timmyboy

ratticus wrote: »

I would say hang the rinsed wetsuit over a broomstick or something else wide propped up over the shower ( cubile is ideal for this). Hangers, even wide ones, put a lot of pressure and the shoulders of the suit.

Don't hang the 'suit vertically. Not good for it at all. It's effectively being stretched by the weight of water in it and if your suit is of the larger sizes because you're a larger person then it's quite possible that your properly fitting suit will loose shape and no longer fit snugly - and in this country that means more water ingress and more water means more cold.

I use a cheap 10 euro steel clothes drier and I lie out the wet suit on the grid of its bars horizontally. Then it can dry out in the fresh air at the back of the house in the wind.