Shorts
Member
Evening all just got a new boat to us. It does not have a gas or smoke detector my question is would you fit one? Is so which one?
Thanks
Thanks
Gas detectors
- Thread starter Shorts
- Start date
Simondjuk
Active member
Smoke: Domestic battery powered jobs. I favour the Kidie mini ones. Smaller than most, don't vibrate off their mounts, have an 8 minute mute function for when things get a little flamboyant in the galley, and come for about £6 for a pack of two.
LPG alarm: If you want one that will last, only the Nereus will do. Costs more than others but almost certainly cheaper in the long run.
Don't forget a carbon monoxide alarm when you're picking up some smoke alarms.
LPG alarm: If you want one that will last, only the Nereus will do. Costs more than others but almost certainly cheaper in the long run.
Don't forget a carbon monoxide alarm when you're picking up some smoke alarms.
Shorts
Member
thanks just ones form BandQ ok then?
prv
Well-known member
That's interesting. The one I inherited on Ariam is a Nereus, I think. Glad to hear is a good 'un
Pete
maby
Well-known member
In the confined space of a boat, go for an optical sensor smoke alarm - ionisation sensors produce too many false alarms - at least if you cook in there.
Talulah
Well-known member
+1 on the Nereus.That's interesting. The one I inherited on Ariam is a Nereus, I think. Glad to hear is a good 'un
Pete
The reason for the Nereus is the waterproof sensors.
Well worth the extra as it doesn't take much to destry the non-waterproof sensors that come with other makes.
Sensors are not cheap.
On the question of smoke sensors I much prefer the smaller type from B&Q but can't remember the make. It was cheaper to buy replacements instead of new batteries. Another factor on deciding which detector is ease of temporary removal in the event of burnt cooking.
Note: boats coded under the small boat safety scheme only require smoke detectors where a cabin doesn't have 2 or more exits.
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Barnacle Bill
Active member
My gas alarm (coding requirement) had a wonderful feature of going off when the battery voltage was low.
So - 4.30am, with the anchor light on - gas alarm goes off, waking everyone on board with an intolerable noise. Only way to get rid of the noise? Switch the thing off, in my case that meant switching the battery off as it was wired in.
Exactly what you should NOT do if it were a genuine alarm.
I'm very careful with gas, but I certainly won't replace this alarm when it packs up.
So - 4.30am, with the anchor light on - gas alarm goes off, waking everyone on board with an intolerable noise. Only way to get rid of the noise? Switch the thing off, in my case that meant switching the battery off as it was wired in.
Exactly what you should NOT do if it were a genuine alarm.
I'm very careful with gas, but I certainly won't replace this alarm when it packs up.
snooks
Active member
Um... Shouldn't the gas alarm be wired in before the battery switch? So when you first come on board you don't switch on the batteries and feel the boom before you hear the beep.
Hardly the fault if the gas alarm if your batteries were't charged enough to keep the anchor light going all night...that's your fault.
Talk about blaming the messenger
Hardly the fault if the gas alarm if your batteries were't charged enough to keep the anchor light going all night...that's your fault.
Talk about blaming the messenger
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blackbeard
Active member
Fire/smoke alarm - yes, of course. Generally I would be aware of anything that was on fire - assuming I was awake.
CO alarm - well, obviously top priority. I can't see or smell CO. And there is a CO generator in the boat, in the engine compartment, can I be sure that there isn't a leak in the exhaust system? and cookers can produce CO too.
Gas, well I can smell gas. And if I and other crew are asleep the gas tap is firmly turned OFF. (The occasional sniff near floor level may look undignified but might still be a good idea.)
Which is not to say that a gas alarm is useless, but it is definitely a second priority, after smoke and CO alarms.
Incidentally I have 2 occasional crew who have lost their sense of smell - not uncommon - so extra care with the gas if they are on board!
CO alarm - well, obviously top priority. I can't see or smell CO. And there is a CO generator in the boat, in the engine compartment, can I be sure that there isn't a leak in the exhaust system? and cookers can produce CO too.
Gas, well I can smell gas. And if I and other crew are asleep the gas tap is firmly turned OFF. (The occasional sniff near floor level may look undignified but might still be a good idea.)
Which is not to say that a gas alarm is useless, but it is definitely a second priority, after smoke and CO alarms.
Incidentally I have 2 occasional crew who have lost their sense of smell - not uncommon - so extra care with the gas if they are on board!
LittleSister
Well-known member
I' ve shared boats with crew for whom loss of sense of smell was the only available explanation! :distress:
prv
Well-known member
I considered this, but my battery switch is certified safe for explosive atmospheres anyway.
Plus, if the bottle had been left on while the boat was closed up, and the pipe work had leaked, I'd hope I'd notice the smell as soon as I opened the hatch.
Pete
snooks
Active member
jwilson
Well-known member
On coding my boat the surveyor suggested the gas alarm should be permanently on. I looked up the specs and it drew 120 ma on standby. That is nearly 3AH a day, which I thought was excessive for when the boat was not in use, particularly in winter. As breaker switches were sealed types agreed that it should be wired to the switch, not the battery.
Do turn off gas when leaving the boat though....
Barnacle Bill
Active member
Um... Shouldn't the gas alarm be wired in before the battery switch? So when you first come on board you don't switch on the batteries and feel the boom before you hear the beep.
Hardly the fault if the gas alarm if your batteries were't charged enough to keep the anchor light going all night...that's your fault.
Talk about blaming the messenger
I just want to shut the messenger up! At 4a.m. !
No, I don't quite accept your logic: why is it necessary to design a gas alarm that sounds on low voltage?
(True it's my 'fault' if the battery runs down, I'm not blaming the alarm for doing that, but these things happen from time to time - that's why I have a deep-cycle domestic battery and a separate battery for starting the engine...)
paul-essex
Member
the reason for the alarm on low voltage is just that it is going to be no good in a few hours a warning how about connecting the alarm to start battery or extra a battery just for alarms
Burnham Bob
Active member
my carbon monoxide alarm went off when the batteries were charging. doesn't make sense but a previous post suggested that other people had the same problem. so i tend to switch it off at night when we don't run the engine or use the cooker. And as we don't have any form of heating I don't worry.
Barnacle Bill
Active member
... which is, basically, a false positive alarm: gas alarm goes off, but there's no gas.
False positives are self defeating: how many people, on hearing a car alarm, assume that a car is being broken into? My gas alarm has never once, in many years, told me that there is a real gas leak, it has only given false positives. I could figure out a way to engineer it better, as you suggest - or I could ditch the thing.
With any alarm devices (and there are many of them - too many?) the sensible design would be to include an 'acknowledge' button so that you could silence the alarm and continue with, say, a flashing red light. This would allow you to think, to figure out what the problem is - quite important.
snooks
Active member
This I agree with, it bad enough trying to think what could have happened and the best course of action when everything is quiet, let alone when there is a ear splitting shriek in the cabin.
