Geotrouvetout,…
Great comments on dry-suits, much appreciated.
I agree, bright colors do add safety; however it’s a tough sell as 99% of customers ask for black, blue etc. We are working brighter colors for next year,…but not necessarily yellow for a safety color..
The problem with Yellow:
In high wind conditions, with sun and white caps, yellow blends into the ocean. This problem gets worse the brighter yellow – neon yellow being the absolute worst. Red/orange is the best,...the dominant color used in survival suits, life rafts ect,..so if you your concerned about being seen,..get a red or orange drysuit.
For safety on the Soul we’ve added 3m reflective piping strips that wrap around the neck and down the front. Very effective in dark conditions, especially when hit with artificial light.
Regarding breathable materials, Gortex is a solid brand and have made a great name in breathable materials – heck they invented it!
However, for use in salt water, the field is not dominated by Gore. The Teflon technology that Gore made their name on (in jackets, pants etc,) is not necessarily the best material to be used in drysuit’s,..ie exposure to salt water.
At Ocean Rodeo we use Gelelnots membrane – it’s a PU based film that works on a heat differential process rather (think wicking) rather than small cracks or openings expanding/contracting in a Teflon film to let vapor out. Having said this, Gore do offer various membranes and may have some form of PU membrane in their line up to meet the challenge of salt water.