A note to the men who have never snorkeled before

[Jungle Jane]

Just thought I'd pass this info along...a guy on a snorkeling tour with us had a real hard time getting a good seal on his mask, tried a few different ones and then the guide pointed out that the trouble was due to his mustache. The guide gave him some vaseline, said somehow that helps establish a seal with the mask, but the guy kept having to stop and put more on, he was pretty frustrated and didn't seem to have a great time due to the mask not sealing and having a face full of vaseline.

 

So if you are a mustachio'd dude, you might want to shave it off if you plan to snorkel.

[runner15km]

If you can not part with your facial hair you can try the eye goggle style. Bring a rubber band to connect the air tube to the eye goggles.:)

[Voxy]

Too bad for the guy... but the mental picture I formed had me laughing pretty hard! :P

[dirvin0500]

I have a mustache and I've found that if I trim it close to the skin and aways from the bottom of my nose (so that hair doesn't go all the way to the nostrils), I don't have a problem with sealing. Maybe his 'stache was too thick or ran up into his nose. No way to get a seal there.

[Jungle Jane]

Maybe his 'stache was too thick or ran up into his nose. No way to get a seal there.

 

Ewwwwww lol! Makes him sound like Captain Nosehair! LOL!

 

Nope, this guy was well trimmed, but his 'stache hair was pretty full, like trimmed nicely but not like you described. If you're gonna trim it down that much wouldn't it look funny and be better just to get rid of it for the week? I don't know what I'm talking about since I don't have a mustache LOL but I'm just sayin'...

 

Didn't catch their names but I'm talkin' 'bout you 2 cuties from ?Kansas? with the 3 kids-you left them home, it was just the 4 of us on the tour and we were all so happy to find out that we all spoke English! Then we met up again at Senior Frogs! :eek:

 

Sorry we didn't meet up earlier in the week, we coulda had a bunch more laughs :) Sorry your 'stache screwed up your snorkeling!

[Daycare Provider]

My dh trims his stash pretty tight before we cruise...this helps with the snorkel mask:D

[xSandman3`]

It first bothered me when I started diving, but I don't even think about it anymore. If it hadn't been the stache, he woulda been having issues with something else. It's more often than not being uncomfortable in the water than a true gear problem.

 

BTW...if you have this problem, just breathe out through your nose.

[scubaran]

Actually the problem was probably the mask. I have a full mustache and short beard which I keep trimmed and have no problems at all with snorkeling or diving with MY mask. I admit it took two or three tries to find a mask that fit my face well but like I said, no problem. My brother-in-law went snorkeling with me two cruises back and he didn't have any facial hair but none of the rental masks he tried on stayed dry. It really depends on the age, and flexibility of the "skirt" of the mask (the liner that goes around the inside of a mask). If the skirt is hardened (which vaseline will do, shouldn't use it as it interacts with the silicon) or is too small the mask will leak regardless. So guys, make your statements by having your facial hair and enjoy scaring the animals in the sea, I know I do! :)

 

Randall

[jetskier]

I dove with the head chef on the NCL Spirit in Aruba. He has a pretty good sized handle bar mustache. He also greases it down to get a good seal.

 

Remember everything looks 25% larger underwater. :)

 

Dave

[blindrid]

When you are researching mask and gear, they normally suggest a purge valve on the mask if you have facial hair as it is tough to get a seal.

[IAMAMT]

I used some tricks that Randall gave me last year and he is right. I now take my own mask and I use some food grade grease made from mineral oil that is used in food processing areas for bearings. It cleanse up easy after and does not taste to bad if you get it in your mouth. You wouldn't want to eat to much though, it loosens everything up " if you know what i mean!"

[topspot]

I also have a mustache and just trim it just below my nose. I use my own mask that I have had for 25 years.

 

No problems, man

[TrqoisWtrs]

I have a friend who uses something like this. Doesn't mess with the silicone mask, although I don't know how good it tastes. :)

 

does not taste to bad if you get it in your mouth