Flares again

awol

awol

Well-Known Member
Joined
4 Jan 2005
Messages
6,961
Location
Me - Edinburgh; Boat - in the west
Visit site
'Cos the rules say I have to have them it was time to replace the "Offshore" set that expired in December. A quick google showed Icarus yins from Ocean Safety via a chandler were the least exhorbitant @ ~£160 but as I pass them every time I go to the boat I thought I would pop into the local Ocean Safety depot and get them there and save the £16 delivery charge. Bad idea! They wanted £350! and no haggling. So I ordered on-line and 2 days later a box wrapped in Ocean Safety tape arrived containing 4 paras, 4 handhelds, and 4 smokes. The smart amongst you, like me, would be expecting 2 smokes. On querying the extra 2, the answer came that it was a mistake by Ocean Safety but the cost of recovering them from me was excessive so I could keep them.
I am tempted to demand they do recover them as it will no doubt cost me to dispose of the things in 2023.
 
awol said:
'Cos the rules say I have to have them it was time to replace the "Offshore" set that expired in December. A quick google showed Icarus yins from Ocean Safety via a chandler were the least exhorbitant @ ~£160 but as I pass them every time I go to the boat I thought I would pop into the local Ocean Safety depot and get them there and save the £16 delivery charge. Bad idea! They wanted £350! and no haggling. So I ordered on-line and 2 days later a box wrapped in Ocean Safety tape arrived containing 4 paras, 4 handhelds, and 4 smokes. The smart amongst you, like me, would be expecting 2 smokes. On querying the extra 2, the answer came that it was a mistake by Ocean Safety but the cost of recovering them from me was excessive so I could keep them.
I am tempted to demand they do recover them as it will no doubt cost me to dispose of the things in 2023.
Click to expand...
That's because accountants run the business.

You might find a friendly shop keeper who sells boaty things who will take them back. Personally, I am quite happy having pyrotechnics 5 years out of date on board. When visiting our French friends I make sure I have only ones in date on board.
 
Out of interest, which regulations? Is your boat coded by any chance?

Racing regulations seem to have relaxed in terms of flares but have increased in terms of electronics...
 
awol said:
I thought I would pop into the local Ocean Safety depot and get them there and save the £16 delivery charge. Bad idea! They wanted £350! and no haggling.
Click to expand...
The problem is that if manufacturers/distributors sold retail at a large discount, any sort of chandlery network would soon disappear. It's bad enough when the discounting to larger outfits results in them offering a retail price below the small order trade price.
 
Last edited:
Sandy said:
Gosh that is impressive!

I take it you stored the pyrotechnics in a cool dry place?
Click to expand...

They were stored in a sealed 'made for purpose' container. No cables, junction boxes, gas pipes in fact nothing except a liferaft, flares container and a few mooring ropes. the locker was used as the storage area for ease of access and never locked. the flares were only a couple of years past the expiry date.
Impressive yes, but not as half as much as the guys that put it out saving my boat and no doubt a few more in a packed marina.
LESSON:- I've bought LED ones and if any officials question it I'll produce this photo.
 
martyn78 said:
They were stored in a sealed 'made for purpose' container. No cables, junction boxes, gas pipes in fact nothing except a liferaft, flares container and a few mooring ropes. the locker was used as the storage area for ease of access and never locked. the flares were only a couple of years past the expiry date.
Impressive yes, but not as half as much as the guys that put it out saving my boat and no doubt a few more in a packed marina.
LESSON:- I've bought LED ones and if any officials question it I'll produce this photo.
Click to expand...
They did an extremely good job.

I was more concerned that the boat was in Crete and the temperature of the locker that the pyrotechnics were stored in. Being an engineer and often involved with investigations when "things go seriously wrong"; I look for root causes.

A quick Google found this, I have converted the temperatures to celsius as that is what I understand and my bold.

http://www.orionsignals.com/faqs/faqs-on-proper-emergency-flare-usage.html

Emergency Flare Safe Storage and Handling Procedures

Flares are a safe and stable item to store. The U.S. Departments of Transportation classifies flares as a flammable solid, but they are not particularly sensitive to initiation. There is no threat of mass explosion, nor is there any threat of an individual flare exploding.

Flares should be stored in sealed bag, away from flame and heat. Failure to store in sealed bag will diminish flare performance.

While flares have no expiration date when properly stored, storage above 120 degrees F (49 C) for a long period of time (more than 1 week) should be avoided. The normal recommended storage temperatures are 40 degrees (4 C) to 90 degrees F (32 C).

Do you know what the temperature was on the day?

I am convinced that the use of pyrotechnics far outweigh the risks; as long as they are used at the right time and stored to the manufacturer's instructions.

Many years ago I was a member of a Mountain Rescue Team and being able to pop up a flare when you spotted the Paraffin Budgie of 22 SQN RAF arriving in the distance saved them flying time and got our casualty to A&E faster. One exercise we had a helicopter fly over a "casualty" sat on a 2 by 3 meter orange survival tent in broad daylight! On the fifth fly pass they piped up on the radio "you are directly above us". I think the casualties we a bit worried they would not get off the hill before closing time!

We can all make our own decisions about carrying them, for me they are part of the safety kit should I ever have the miss fortune to press the wee red button and alert somebody that I am over here.

Out of interest do you know what they used to extinguish the fire? Another thread on here and some people's love of CO2.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top