Causes of boat fires

[ArthurWood]

Some stats from Boat US, one of the biggest boat insurers in the US:
AC & DC wiring 55%
Engine/transmission overheat 24%
Fuel leak 8% (95% of these from petrol)
Misc , incl flares, fireworks, matches 7%
Unknown 5%
Stove 1%

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[duncan]

so open boat barbies are safe then.............../forums/images/icons/smile.gif

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[hlb]

So you have proved that only in 08 of the The time diesel has set fire to the boat/ But petrol has set fire to the boat 95% of the time. I rest my case.

<hr width=100% size=1> <font color=blue>No one can force me to come here.<font color=red> I'm a volunteer!!.<font color=blue>

Haydn

 

[BrendanS]

The 95% of 8% was undoubtably due to soltron soaked burgees. Solution - immediate parliamentary debate and new laws to ban selling of both burgees and Soltron!

<hr width=100% size=1>Err, let me know if Depsol enters the forum, I'll go and hide

 

[ArthurWood]

I didn't prove anything, Haydn; I was just reporting wot I red. I don't think the numbers say wot u conclude. Wot it tells me is that fuel is much much less likely to cause a fire than faulty lectrics, by a factor of about 7, but in the remote case that fuel does cause a fire it's 95% of the time due to petrol. ie 0.4% boat fires are caused by diesel and and 7.6% by petrol, but the overwhelming majority are caused by lectrics. I rest my case.

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[ArthurWood]

Yep, unless you knock 'em over in the cabin as someone apparently did with a propane cooker.

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[simongoldthorpe]

Reminds me of the innuit who, being freezing cold, lit a small fire on the deck of his kayak. Sadly the kayak caught fire and sank. Which goes to prove.....











You can't have your kayak and heat it.

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[ArthurWood]

Ha,ha. Nice one to wake up to

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[Russell]

But the septics have loads more petrol boats than us, so they will always have more petrol fires.

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[Guest]

Post deleted by danfoley

 

[ArthurWood]

That's why gas barbies have a distinct advantage!

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[duncan]

but presumable stoves 1 - barbies 0 would; statisically suggest otherwise!

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[byron]

The only fire I have ever had was caused by an electrical fault but I have seen several caused by people leaving the kettle on and forgetting about it.

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[hlb]

That makes me feel much better. I'd always refused to have a barby on the boat for that very reason. They said I was spoil sport!

<hr width=100% size=1> <font color=blue>No one can force me to come here.<font color=red> I'm a volunteer!!.<font color=blue>

Haydn

 

[rich]

I got back in the other night just in time to see a mates kids lighting a disposable barbi on his grp deck!!!!!!!!

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[ArthurWood]

Kettles not very common over here, so not a statistic to be worried about.

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[ArthurWood]

Wouldn't be w/out ours (Magma) - gas one that is. It's fitted to an angled rod which fits into a socket on the lower swim p/form and can be swung over the water but still be w/in easy reach. Never given us an anxious moment in over 10 yr. Wonderful piece of kit. When not in use it lies in the engine compartment in its lickel storage bag. (Small gas bottles stored above deck in the open). A screw-on stand is also available for use when ashore.

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[ArthurWood]

I'll have to think about that ----------thinking--------- presumably it's far less probable that a barbie wld be used indoors than wld a camping-type stove, but you never know w/some folks.

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[tcm]

Re: statistics

true. In fact although 95% of fires are couased by petrol - it may be that more than 95% of boats are petrol boats are petrol-powered - so the petrol is safer. We need more info.

Lectric wise, this again might be very misleading. Petrol would almost never "cause" a fire, it lying very quietly outside everyones house for nights. Electric sparks would initiate a fire - contunesd by the petrol, or a petrol soaked environment.

Are all cases of arson caused by arsonists? or matches?

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[ArthurWood]

Re: statistics

That's the problem, there is no more info 'cept they say fuel leaking from lines etc, but no indication of ignition source. Actually, <8% of fires were caused by petrol leaks and 55% by lectric The main reason for my posting was to show that it's not the presence of petrol which is necessarily the origin of most boat fires, at least not in the US. As you rightly indicate, most boats here, at least the <40ft ones, are petrol powered so petrol doesn't appear to deserve the reputation it has for being so dangerous in a boat.
Lectric-wise (55% of total) they break down the data as follows:

DC shorts/wiring 30%
DC eng voltage regulator 12%
AC appliance/heater 4%
Shore power 4%
AC wiring panel 2%
Dc batt chgr 2%
AC pwr surge 1%


From this I assume they separated purely lectric fires from fires caused by leaking fuel ignited by faulty lectrics. The main cause of lectrics probs was cable chafing and AC shore power probs were a major contributor (11%).


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