The Water's Warming Up — Suits, Hydration & the Saggy-Pants Truth

It's that lovely time of year again. The Maltese water is climbing into the low twenties, the wetsuits are coming back out of the cupboard, and the whole island's getting that summer-diving buzz. But before you get carried away — let's have a quick, honest word about staying hydrated. Yes, including the bit nobody likes to talk about.

Right now we're sitting around 21–23°C on the surface, and warming nicely. That's the point in the year where the recreational crowd happily switches back to wetsuits and Malta starts to feel like the postcard again — clear, warm, blue, and busy with divers grinning on the boats.

Suits are coming back out

For the shallower, warmer stuff, the wetsuits are reappearing and it feels great to ditch the heavy kit for a bit. But here's the thing for the technical divers among us: the deep dives are still drysuit, all year round. It doesn't matter how warm the surface is in June — drop down to the deep wrecks and it's cold down there regardless, and you're in the water a long time. So while everyone up top is in a 3mm and a smile, those of us heading deep are still zipping into the drysuit.

The bit nobody talks about

And that's where the real message of this post comes in: hydration. This is one of the most overlooked safety factors in diving, and it matters more the deeper and longer you go. Being well hydrated genuinely lowers your decompression stress — dehydrated divers carry a higher risk of DCS, full stop. It's not optional faff; it's basic safety.

Here's the problem I see all the time, especially on long drysuit dives: people deliberately under-drink so they don't need to pee mid-dive. Please — don't do that. Turning up to a deep, long dive already dehydrated to avoid an awkward moment is exactly the wrong trade. The need to pee isn't the danger. The dehydration is.

So… how do you not pee in your drysuit?

Glad you asked. There are plenty of options, and no need to be squeamish about it — every experienced tech diver has sorted this out one way or another.

I can only really speak from the blokes' side of things: I dive a drysuit with a pee valve, plumbed in with a conveen (a sort of external catheter — google it if you must). Sorted. You hydrate properly, you go when you need to, you carry on enjoying the dive.

And for the ladies — well, a lot of the women I dive with simply wear adult nappies under the suit. No drama, works a treat, and honestly? The slightly saggy-pants look under a drysuit isn't so bad 😂. Whatever keeps you hydrated and comfortable on a long dive is the right answer.

My hydration setup

For what it's worth, here's what I personally do. I'm a sucker for flavoured water, so I chuck Bolero powders in mine — the coconut flavour is unreasonably good and it's sugar-free, so I'll happily drink loads of it through the day. My wife got me a 2-litre water bottle for my birthday that keeps everything ice-cold, and it's become a permanent fixture in my kit bag. Bonus: it's also heavy enough to double as a weapon for fending off any split-fin users who wander too close. 😂

Find a routine that works for you — start hydrating the day before, keep topping up on the boat, go easy on the things that dry you out (you know the ones), and have your pee solution sorted so you never feel the need to ration your water.

Warm water, good visibility and long dives are on the way. Make the most of it — properly hydrated, properly comfortable, and properly safe.