How often do you change your liferaft ?

[Georgio]

One of the lessons from the Fastnet Disaster was that a big, lightly loaded liferaft flips like an untethered bouncy castle, so a crowded bunch of survivors is better than 2-3 people in a 4 let alone 6 man raft - helps with body warmth too...

Remember that most modern liferafts will have water ballast pockets (underwater pockets that fill with seawater once immersed) that help significantly with a life raft that is not loaded to it's max number of people.

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

I wonder what human flesh tastes like?

Apparently the consistency is similar to pork but it is slightly sweet...according to a friend who was once a dinner guest of 'Emperor' Bokassa of the 'Central African Empire.

 

[Koeketiene]

I wonder what human flesh tastes like?

Apparently human flesh tastes like pork

Drats: beaten to it

 

[prv]

I wonder what human flesh tastes like?

Sailing in the English Channel, with PLB, VHF, flares, mobile phones, and a signal mirror - not to mention boxes of "raft ration" and Kendal mint cake - I have no intention of finding out even if we did end up in the raft

Pete

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

Apparently human flesh tastes like pork

In fact I read somewhere that the cannibals of Papua used to refer to the Europeans as 'Long pigs'. Whether this is true or apocryphal, I don't know.

 

[nigelmercier]

I bought a new one after 14 years. If the boat had been totally mine earlier I would have done it at 10.

 

[Birdseye]

I've heard that, rightly or wrongly, the Portuguese can make an issue of it. But they're a long way from North Wales

Pete

the french do too. They are nearer

 

[prv]

the french do too. They are nearer

I don't remember hearing any first-hand accounts of that. And they're still quite a long way from North Wales.

I doubt the Irish care.

Pete

 

[GrahamM376]

I need a new one because my 6 man Lifeguard dates from 93.I'll get a 4 man now because I never carry enough people onboard to fill a 6 man raft.I just don't know which make and model to go for.It makes no sense to save on such a thing.

Have a word with Steve at Marine Safety In Gib. http://www.marinesafetygibraltar.com/ When our Plastimo was 20 years old, we discussed which make/model to buy and his advice was a SeaSave self righting, according to him better than many of the other makes he services. Delivered direct to Faro.

 

[Arcady]

I replaced our 10 year old life raft in 2010. Out of curiosity I pulled the lanyard on the old one on our lawn for a look-see. It worked perfectly and looked pristine inside. It had never been serviced.

I'm not advocating keeping a raft indefinitely, but there is something to be said for saving on (arguably unnecessary) servicing and instead buying a new raft every 6 years or so.

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

I replaced our 10 year old life raft in 2010. Out of curiosity I pulled the lanyard on the old one on our lawn for a look-see. It worked perfectly and looked pristine inside. It had never been serviced.

Also out of curiosity, what did you do with it afterwards?

I ask because one of similar age came with my present boat. Previously registered under the Italian flag, the boat had to have an 8-person raft because she sleeps six and they assume 2 more on deck. I can barely lift the thing off the floor, let alone deploy it in fifteen seconds. Even if I could, it would not be much use with just me inside it.

 

[Arcady]

It became a novelty paddling pool for the kids for the summer

It was a 6 man (or possibly even 8 man) and was also v. heavy. I replaced it with a 4 man raft and ultimately will replace that with another 4 man raft, keeping the older one to put back on the boat whenever we travelled with more than four persons on board.

 

[johnphilip]

I understood that Seago rafts were on 3 yr servicing until they were 12 yrs old, and then went to annual. On this basis ours will be going on e-bay when it is 12.

Our 1991 Plastimo is now apparently obsolete, Parts generally no longer available, however if it passes test without needing bits it can be certified for a further 3 years. Unfortunately the gas bottle is 10 years old and requires replacement, this is available at a cost of £150. Add £100 service and VAT. Is this the time to renew?
The cheaper Seago which is £600 is apparently made of Butyl rubber with a glue life of about 12 years, our service centre said you then chuck it, which is almost in line with posts above. As I am unlikely to be fit enough to drag a liferaft out of the locker by then this lifespan may not be an issue.

If like our boat the valise in a locker is a better option than a container mounted on the pushpit the weight of the raft is an issue as well. The Seago is quite a bit heavier than some more expensive options. Any recommendations?

 

[prv]

Our 1991 Plastimo is now apparently obsolete

It doesn't exactly owe you much at this point though - I work with graduate software engineers who are younger than that

Pete

 

[Tranona]

the french do too. They are nearer

No they don't - unless you have first hand evidence to the contrary.

 

[GrahamM376]

No they don't - unless you have first hand evidence to the contrary.

I hear the French have to renew their rafts at 12 years but have never heard of a visitor having problems.

 

[Tranona]

I hear the French have to renew their rafts at 12 years but have never heard of a visitor having problems.

The French (like the Portuguese and other European countries) have compulsory equipment rules related to the type of boat and area of operation. These are prescriptive and enforced - but not applicable to non French registered craft.

If I remember rightly there was a bit a of a faff a couple of years ago over in date flares when the French rules changed and local officials started checking visitors, but the RYA obtained confirmation from the French authorities that it was not official policy. Does not seem to be an issue now - although like Portugal there is nothing in theory to stop them imposing their rules if they wanted to.

 

[BaildonSports]

When we bought our Moody 34 in Greece, there was an old 4 man liferaft from 1984 (32yo) on there - We had just bought a new 6 man liferaft so we decided to see if it still worked; there's a video from inflating it here

 

[Strolls]

OP's video, to save you clicking:

 

[Arcady]

My Seago 6 man life raft is 10 yrs old and now apparently needs annual servicing. It has never been used!! It sits in a locker in its valise,and looks as good as new. However the cost of servicing is roughly half that of a new life raft so if I bought a new one (3 year service interval) it would pay for itself in 3 years. What do you do with a perfectly good raft which is past its sell by date??

Exactly because of that logic, we chose not to have ours serviced, but replaced it at ten years. By way of an experiment, we inflated the old one on the lawn. It inflated perfectly and was in pristine condition.

What did we do with it? - our neighbour's kids enjoyed a de-luxe paddling pool for the summer that was the envy of all their friends

Edit: Ahh - I see I repeat myself as this is an old thread. Another sign of aging I fear!