Lifejacket leaking - Hanmar Automatic

[Ammonite]

Two of my Crewsaver lifejackets need the gas cylinder replacing this year so I'd thought I'd set one of them off just for fun. It's fitted with the Hanmar A1 hydostatic firing mechanism that is marked replace in 2012. It inflated fine but there is a leak from the valve (to be precise, from the bit with the yellow plastic grill on it which I'm assuming houses the pressure sensor) and it lost pressure pretty quickly. Has anyone else experienced this? Thanks

 

[Ammonite]

Re: Lifejacket leaking - Hammar Automatic

Have resurected this thread as its happenned again! It was fine when tested last year but this year air is streaming out of the pressure sensor grill, not where it seals to the jacket which I could understand. I will take some serious convincing to ever buy a hammar equipped lifejacket again. The inflation unit is in date and obviously a completely different batch given its several years apart. No unusual use etc...

Meant to add that i inflated the jacket manually this time which is what i also did the year before and it was fine. If im in any way at fault id love to know how but its not as if its a servicable item

 

[sarabande]

as this is such a critical issue, I think it's worth going back to the maker of the LJ to raise a safety issue with them.


Please keep us up to date with the consequences.

 

[Ammonite]

I intend to

 

[bedouin]

I have experienced this same thing. I inflated the Crewsaver LJ by hand this year and found it going down slowly (but still worryingly fast). Immersing this in the bath showed it was leaking from one end of the yellow Hammar fitting.

As this is an old fitting that is about to be replaced I have not done anything about it but I will test the replacement and if the same thing happens I will contact crewsaver. I suppose it is possible that this is intended and had the LJ been triggered it would not have leaked.

 

[Ammonite]

It's not meant to leak. The first one i had fail on me was when pulling the inflation cord and you couldnt do a conventional inflation test if it was designed this way. I also have an identical jacket that is working (at the moment) to compare it against.

Thanks for posting. Lets see if any others find the same thing

 

[pandroid]

I had the same problem. I sent the LJ back to Crewsaver who replaced the hammar unit which they said was out of date anyway. Maybe they have a built in self-destruct mecanism!

 

[Ammonite]

I've spoken to Crewsaver who have confirmed it is a known issue and one they say is resolved with the later MA1 rather than A1 Hammar units (which unfortunately don't fit my circa 2008 vintage jacket). Statistically the chances of it happening are apparently very rare which is why it's not been more widely reported and hasn't resulted in a recall and it tends to occur towards the end of the life of the unit when dirt has become trapped in the pressure sensor seal and/or the spring has softened. They said it was first reported in the fish farming industry where dried fish scales result in a fine dust which gets logged in the sensor - salt and other debris can cause the same thing. They suggested that regular cleaning and more frequent inflation tests (quarterly) will help prevent / spot any potential problems. Obviously the situation is far from ideal but they were very open about the problem and it was nice not to be fobbed off. They are also sending me a couple of replacement units.

 

[bedouin]

I've spoken to Crewsaver who have confirmed it is a known issue and one they say is resolved with the later MA1 rather than A1 Hammar units (which unfortunately don't fit my circa 2008 vintage jacket). Statistically the chances of it happening are apparently very rare which is why it's not been more widely reported and hasn't resulted in a recall and it tends to occur towards the end of the life of the unit when dirt has become trapped in the pressure sensor seal and/or the spring has softened.

Ah -so if I fall in there is a good chance my lifejacket will work. How reassuring.

That seriously undermines my confidence in Crewsaver who I used to regard as a reliable manufacturer.

 

[Ammonite]

It's not specific to Crewsaver. The problem is with the Hammar unit which has been used fitted by a wide range of manufacturers. Crewsaver did stress that the chances of it failing are extremely rare, but I appreciate that doesn't help the person it happens to.

 

[bedouin]

It's not specific to Crewsaver. The problem is with the Hammar unit which has been used fitted by a wide range of manufacturers. Crewsaver did stress that the chances of it failing are extremely rare, but I appreciate that doesn't help the person it happens to.

They say it is rare, but we have two examples here from a comparatively small population. I am not sure how many people regularly do an inflation test and leave it inflated long enough to notice.

In fact I am no longer sure Hammar make sense for lifejackets as they are expensive to replace and now seem untrustworthy. I think the other inflation system is a lot more reliable now and may choose that when I replace the Crewsavers.

 

[prv]

I am not sure how many people regularly do an inflation test and leave it inflated long enough to notice.

Obviously any leak is not ideal, but if you have to leave it a long time before it's noticeable, would it actually be a danger in practice? Or would you have died of hypothermia (or, hopefully, been rescued!) before enough gas escaped for you to sink? As long as you're conscious there's the oral top-up tube too.

In fact I am no longer sure Hammar make sense for lifejackets as they are expensive to replace and now seem untrustworthy. I think the other inflation system is a lot more reliable now and may choose that when I replace the Crewsavers.

I'm inclined to agree, although not so much because I think Hammar can't be trusted. Mostly because they're expensive, plus the potential for leakage around the big hole in the bladder. Also (with my Crewsaver-supplied ones at least) you can't weigh the cylinders because they're glued into the back half of the unit.

Pete

 

[bedouin]

Obviously any leak is not ideal, but if you have to leave it a long time before it's noticeable, would it actually be a danger in practice? Or would you have died of hypothermia (or, hopefully, been rescued!) before enough gas escaped for you to sink? As long as you're conscious there's the oral top-up tube too.



I'm inclined to agree, although not so much because I think Hammar can't be trusted. Mostly because they're expensive, plus the potential for leakage around the big hole in the bladder. Also (with my Crewsaver-supplied ones at least) you can't weigh the cylinders because they're glued into the back half of the unit.

Pete

I am not sure that my CO2 cylinders are glued in - they certainly aren't secure. I regularly have to retighten them and I seem to recall a failure to inflate reported a few years ago because the CO2 cylinder was loose.

On the leak it was really fairly obvious. I lightly inflated the LJ and left it for a couple of hours, coming back to think "surely I put more air in it than that" so retested in the bath and found the bubbles. Hard to estimate but I reckon it would have started impacting buoyancy in less than an hour - and the whole point of the automatic LJ is that you want it to look after you if you do fall in unconscious.

 

[prv]

I am not sure that my CO2 cylinders are glued in - they certainly aren't secure. I regularly have to retighten them and I seem to recall a failure to inflate reported a few years ago because the CO2 cylinder was loose.

Mm - I think the gluing was Crewsaver's response to that report. The instructions mentioned it only in a sort of addendum sheet.

They supply replacement cylinders already attached to the back part of the inflator:

Pete

 

[Ammonite]

In my experience, two examples, the leak from the pressure sensor is pretty severe. I reckon you'd have to blow down the top up tube every 20/30 secs or so to stay afloat given the additional pressure exerted when in the water. It's noticeable after a couple of minutes when testing at home. The impression I got from Crew saver is that the pill type is the way to go unless you expect to be on the foredeck of a clipper race boat

 

[Elemental]

Resurrecting this thread, as I have now had two firing units fail in precisely this way. In both cases, these are 'spare' lifejackets kept on board for guests or to avoid having to repack a lifejacket in a hurry should one be inflated during a passage - so they do spend most of their life in the wardrobe hanging up. They are out of date - four years in one case, and I'll re-arm them, at crazy expense but I'm going to contact Hammar and give them a piece of my mind.

 

[penberth3]

Resurrecting this thread, as I have now had two firing units fail in precisely this way. In both cases, these are 'spare' lifejackets kept on board for guests or to avoid having to repack a lifejacket in a hurry should one be inflated during a passage - so they do spend most of their life in the wardrobe hanging up. They are out of date - four years in one case, and I'll re-arm them, at crazy expense but I'm going to contact Hammar and give them a piece of my mind.

Four years out of date. And you're going to "give them a piece of your mind"?

Good luck!

 

[Sandy]

Resurrecting this thread, as I have now had two firing units fail in precisely this way. In both cases, these are 'spare' lifejackets kept on board for guests or to avoid having to repack a lifejacket in a hurry should one be inflated during a passage - so they do spend most of their life in the wardrobe hanging up. They are out of date - four years in one case, and I'll re-arm them, at crazy expense but I'm going to contact Hammar and give them a piece of my mind.

When did you last check the LJs?

 

[Elemental]

Four years out of date. And you're going to "give them a piece of your mind"?

Good luck!

I honestly don't consider this type of failure to be acceptable - twice. This LJ is stored on a hanger, in a wardrobe, dry and clean. By definition, the unit hasn't been used, and the LJ is inflated annually with a hand pump for pressure test. No damp air from blowing it up using my lungs. If it the air it's escaping very rapidly. Maybe they'll tell me it's acceptable - I'll let you know here.

 

[Elemental]

When did you last check the LJs?

Annually, before the start of each season. So approx. 12 months ago.