snorkel mask with a mustache!!

[thebets57]

We are planning to snorkel at Castaway Cay and Nassau during our upcoming Disney cruise. My husband has a mustache, and always has a terrible time getting a good seal on his face mask. His snorkel time is always cut short by frustration and discomfort with the mask leaking. Does anyone know how to rectify this problem without shaving off the mustache?? I would appreciate any words of wisdom from those who have had this experience.

 

[Kimnicki]

My DH has a mustache and had no problem at all snorkeling at Castaway Cay. He trimmed it down a little bit before we left, I don't know whether that made any difference or not.


Kim

 

[mrsfuzzmo]

If you really want a good seal, go to a dive shop and purchase a mask for him with the help of a dive professional. You can purchase masks (like my husband did when he had a mustache) with very soft rubber that seals incredibly well, and is very soft and not tight up under your nose. OR, another suggestion is to take a little vaseline and rub it on his mustache around where his mask will be and that may help as well. Good Luck. My husband ended up shaving his off and doesn't have the problem any longer.

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

When my wife and I did the snorkel thing at CC, I had a problem with water leaking through because of my mustache. Last year we bought a complete set of snorkel gear for my son, wife and me and I asked the person helping us if he knew of a solution to this problem. It was shave the mustache off.

He stongly suggested NOT using vasiline because of how difficult it would be to remove it should it spread anywhere else, like the glass.

I shaved it off after having it for 23 years. My son had a good time teasing me. It took a long time for ME to get use to the new face looking at me in the mirror.

Good luck to your husband, which ever method he chooses

 

[MarkRG]

I too have a mustache. And I have used the gear at cc and I can guarantee it will leak.

I followed the same method suggested by mrsfuzzmo and went to a dive shop and was fitted for a good quality mask. They have masks that will fit your face better to stop leakage from facial hair. Bought snorkels that don't turn into ocean drinking straws when you go under too, as in ones that self seal. The additional cost of a professional mask is more than worth it to me, doesn't fog and the clarity from them is much better. One note, you don't need to buy fins. CC and other places that do offer snorkeling will rent you just fins alone.

 

[hydster]

I too would suggest going to a store where you can at least try the mask on to see if the fit is correct. When we got dive certified they taught us how to check to see if the mask is the right size for our face

Take the mask and place it on your face but WITHOUT the strap in place. Put the strap above the mask or anywhere where it wont be in the way and dont put it on your head. Once the mask is on take a deep breath through your nose and hold it. If the mask falls off or you can feel or hear air leaking out of it the seal isnt going to work and your mask will leak! If it stays on your face with no air leaking or without falling off or needing to be held on by your hand it wont leak. It should be tight enough that you can tell it's on there pretty good.

We had many snorkel trips ruined because of an improper fitting mask. Dive shops will sell you the best mask but sometimes they can be pricey! If your husband loves to snorkel and you think it is worth the extra $$$ I'd definitely suggest going to a dive store rather than Costco or somewhere where you cant try them on plus most dive stores the people selling them would be able to tell you for sure if it fits correctly.

Also I wouldnt ever suggest putting vaseline on your mask. It can make it leak worse and if it gets up in the eye area it can make your mask hard to see out of. We were told by our dive instructors to never use anything like Vaseline on our masks as it poses a lot of other problems as well. My brother and father both have mustaches and since we got them dive shop masks they havent had a bit of problem with their masks leaking..they just found a mask that fit their face with the mustache.

HTH
Heidi

 

[tvguy]

I have a beard and didn't have much of a problem. But I stayed on the surface most of the time, except when I dove down to touch the hidden Mickey statue!!