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Full Face Snorkel Mask

S

suzanne

Tug Review Crew: Rookie
TUG Member
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I see a lot of these masks lately on FB and Amazon. Has anyone on TUG used one? If so how well do they work? I am looking to get one for the Night Manta Snorkel Trip in Hawaii next month. I like the idea of the full face as I wear dentures and these don't require the usual mouth piece that traditional snorkel tubes have.

TIA,

Suzanne
 
Make sure you do your research and understand the pros, cons, and potential risks with a full face mask. You can't dive; you shouldn't exert yourself too hard while wearing one; if you don't have a good seal, water leaks into the mask and there is no easy way to clear it; and there is a possibly of CO2 buildup because they don't exchange as much air as a typical snorkel. Here is one link that details some of the pros and cons - http://www.tropicalsnorkeling.com/full-face-snorkel-mask.html

That said, I haven't used one. What I have read has turned me off even trying one.
 
I went to Costa Rica last winter with my 80yo mother. I had done some research before our trip because I knew mom would not have been able to manage a conventional snorkel with her dentures. Now I understand it is possible but I was pretty sure this wouldn't work for mom. I had contacted the place where we wanted to go diving and they did not supply full face snorkels. I got a full face snorkel for her and we took it to a local pool to practice. After that I ordered a second one for myself. They worked fine and we went snorkeling for the first time last winter. The full face snorkel was comfortable and we had a good time.
 
My SIL left one in our house and I tried it on our Caribbean cruise trip because it's smaller to pack. It worked fine.
 
My wife has one and loves it. She has had it for years now. She hasn't experienced any of the negatives listed above.
 
My wife took water in on it first snorkeling attempt and didn't enjoy it. When we got home I ordered the full face one. It worked very well for her and was easy to use. Other than it's a pain to carry around when not using it. I think I could sleep face down in it, lol, but I wear scba's for my job so I'm more accustomed to them already.

Sent from my XT1635-02 using Tapatalk
 
We saw & then talked to a guy using one last winter in Caye Caulker (Belize). He thought it was fantastic and had no trouble adjusting to it from his previous traditional style snorkelling mask.

I am thinking of getting DH one, as after nearly 25 yrs of being a firefighter and breathing through his nose with a SCBA (fire mask), he just cant get used to breathing through his mouth while snorkelling. He thought he was going to suck his eyeballs out of their sockets when he tried snorkelling for the first time 2 years ago. :eek:
He just isn't a 'mouth breather'!


~Diane
 
I looked at the full face masks but we opted not to get them. My concern was regarding the air exchange. Breathing through your nose, there just doesn't appear to e enough air pushed out with each breath and you end up just breathing the same air over and over again.
 
dioxide45 said:
I looked at the full face masks but we opted not to get them. My concern was regarding the air exchange. Breathing through your nose, there just doesn't appear to e enough air pushed out with each breath and you end up just breathing the same air over and over again.
Click to expand...
The one we purchased let's you breathe through your nose or mouth. Not sure if they all do it not.

Sent from my XT1635-02 using Tapatalk
 
LurkerBee said:
Make sure you do your research and understand the pros, cons, and potential risks with a full face mask. You can't dive; you shouldn't exert yourself too hard while wearing one; if you don't have a good seal, water leaks into the mask and there is no easy way to clear it; and there is a possibly of CO2 buildup because they don't exchange as much air as a typical snorkel. Here is one link that details some of the pros and cons - http://www.tropicalsnorkeling.com/full-face-snorkel-mask.html

That said, I haven't used one. What I have read has turned me off even trying one.
Click to expand...

I agree, a good seal is essential and I am more comfortable with water leaking in on a regular mask than with the full face one. I have trouble finding a mask that fits well, so doubt a full face one would fit any better. I saw them at Costco in Honolulu, and tried one on...felt much more claustrophic for me :shrug:
The Costco price was $45.
 
maddog497 said:
The one we purchased let's you breathe through your nose or mouth. Not sure if they all do it not.

Sent from my XT1635-02 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
I believe they all do. One thing I did like about them that I read is that fogging was not an issue with full face masks. I just get the impression that you don't want to exert yourself too much when using it since you are breathing in a higher concentration of CO2 and can tire more quickly.
 
Thank you all for your help. I think based on all I have read, I t hink I will try one. I am doing the night Manta Ray Snorkel on my trip to Hawaii. Its been on my bucket list for years. Due to dentures, a regular snorkel is jusy uncomfortable for me. I really want to enjoy it and not worry about losing my dentures.
Suzanne
 
We bought a couple for our trip to Hawaii. They weren't supposed to fog but the fogged as bad as any snorkel mask we've ever had. Next time I'll make sure to use some of the anti fog spray for snorkel masks
 
dougp26364 said:
We bought a couple for our trip to Hawaii. They weren't supposed to fog but the fogged as bad as any snorkel mask we've ever had. Next time I'll make sure to use some of the anti fog spray for snorkel masks
Click to expand...

The best anti fog stuff I ever found is plain old Johnson's Baby Shampoo. When Diving in the Islands a Dive Master turned me and my husband onto it. Hubby's mask was always fogging. Just rub a small dab in the mask and rinse well and your good to go. I always carried a travel size bottle in my dive bag. Cheaper and no stinging the eyes.

Suzanne
 
I bought one of the French-made ones. Did not like it, mainly because it was too tight a fitting for me, and I was unable to make it looser. One of our guests (a beginning snorkeler) used it and liked it, though. It did not seem to fog up for her.
 
I bought a triboard easybreath 4 years ago while on vacation in Europe. Got a lot of strange looks back home because they had not yet been released for sale in the US. It has worked fine for me. The only criticisms I have is that sand gets stuck along the seal between the eyes and the mouth. Also when I breath in, it makes a very faint ghost-like sound. These are very minor issues and I have enjoyed using the mask.
 
suzanne said:
. . . I like the idea of the full face as I wear dentures and these don't require the usual mouth piece that traditional snorkel tubes have.
TIA,
Suzanne
Click to expand...
Aloha,
I use this snorkel which has a couple of advantages over traditional snorkels: http://www.finisswim.com/Swimmers-Snorkel
Properly adjusted, it requires no (zero) bite pressure; all you have to do is remember to keep your lips closed.
Due to its center-line design, if worn properly, there is zero jaw fatigue even when swimming full throttle for over an hour (my pool work out). If worn improperly (off-center), it will vibrate/shimmy until properly adjusted.
If you want the check valve at the end to keep water from splashing in, it is an option http://www.finisswim.com/Dry-Top-Attachment
For reasons irrelevant to this thread, I don't use the dry top attachment so have no first hand experience with it.
Jack
 
suzanne said:
The best anti fog stuff I ever found is plain old Johnson's Baby Shampoo. When Diving in the Islands a Dive Master turned me and my husband onto it. Hubby's mask was always fogging. Just rub a small dab in the mask and rinse well and your good to go. I always carried a travel size bottle in my dive bag. Cheaper and no stinging the eyes.

Suzanne
Click to expand...
Aloha,
Years ago I did extensive web research on anti-fog products. I've been using 500psi ever since with high satisfaction.
https://www.google.com/search?q=500....1.69i57j0.13406j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Jack
 
suzanne said:
I see a lot of these masks lately on FB and Amazon. Has anyone on TUG used one? If so how well do they work? I am looking to get one for the Night Manta Snorkel Trip in Hawaii next month. I like the idea of the full face as I wear dentures and these don't require the usual mouth piece that traditional snorkel tubes have.

TIA,

Suzanne
Click to expand...
After first trip to Hawaii, watching my wife freak out trying to use regular mask and snorkel I decided not to push her.
Problems were, she wasn't comfortable in the water, didn't like breathing thru mouth and snorkel was uncomfortable due to her smaller mouth.
A frien sent me a video for Tribold so decided to give it another try.
On our 7th trip last October she snorkeled with the full face mask.
She had no problems with leaks, co2, etc.
She isn't over her apprehension about water, so wore belt and hung on to me. For the first time she was able to see what I had been talking about
 
rjbeach said:
After first trip to Hawaii, watching my wife freak out trying to use regular mask and snorkel I decided not to push her.
Problems were, she wasn't comfortable in the water, didn't like breathing thru mouth and snorkel was uncomfortable due to her smaller mouth.
A frien sent me a video for Tribold so decided to give it another try.
On our 7th trip last October she snorkeled with the full face mask.
She had no problems with leaks, co2, etc.
She isn't over her apprehension about water, so wore belt and hung on to me. For the first time she was able to see what I had been talking about
Click to expand...
Thats awesome. Glad she gave it another chance. I ordered the mask. I will try it out in pool before taking to Hawaii. Hope the small size fits, if not I have time to return for the large before my trip.
Suzanne
 
riverdees05 said:
Do they work with beards?
Click to expand...
My husband reports, "Yes and no. It worked but the seal isn't as good as w/out a beard." He said he is OK with it but finds himself draining the mask more often than one that isn't full face.

(We bought a full face mask from Costco early this summer. I don't recall the brand ...)
 
We ordered some from Amazon (the least expensive ones we could find), and used them last year in Hawaii. It was a revelation. It was like all of the down sides of snorkeling disappeared for me.

We haven't been snorkeling since then, but I loaned our masks to a co-worker who used them in the Galapagos, and he pronounced them, "life-changing."
 
onenotesamba said:
We ordered some from Amazon (the least expensive ones we could find), and used them last year in Hawaii. It was a revelation. It was like all of the down sides of snorkeling disappeared for me.

We haven't been snorkeling since then, but I loaned our masks to a co-worker who used them in the Galapagos, and he pronounced them, "life-changing."
Click to expand...


Glad to know they worked well for you in Hawaii as that's where I will be using them for the first time. Which Island and where did you use the masks? We will be on Oahu and The Big Island end of this month. I am the only one of us 3 that will be snorkeling. I plan to use the mask for the night Manta Ray Snorkel trip on the Big Island. Any other spots you could give me for shore snorkeling would be helpful.

Suzanne
 
We were on the Big Island and we took an afternoon snorkeling excursion to Kealakekua Bay, which folks say is the best place on the Big Island for snorkel.
 
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