I opened up my liferaft today...

I used to self service a six man valise for some years. The job Included inflating the raft and testing that it stayed inflated overnight. I found that a good way to remove all air was to jimmy the manual inflation valve open temporily with a thin stiff wire and then hold an operating vacuum cleaner close to the tube or valve. This easily extracts all air and makes re packing much easier. I do the same with life jackets.
Kinsale 373
 
Heard back from the battery manufacturers today. The batteries in the raft which was sealed in May 2005 with a 3 year inspection regime, were best before july 2007.... the packaging was cut down thus concealing this fact but the embossing on the batteries themselves has been interpreted by the manufacturer...

So that is three service stations on this island that I would not touch...

Also found that the seasick pills are "Qwells" in the generic form...

So I guess I will be packing the raft myself with new supplies.

still mystified at the function or correctness of the strong string tied around the raft, attached to the handles, exactly as in the utube video of the professional service company posted above.

having watched the video it is now clear that my raft got wet through the loss of integrety in the inner bag which was not protected by foam on the underside and edges, and which ultimately allowed water into the raft itself.

I will email the service company tomorrow and see what their view on the matter is.
 
MR LIFERAFT 1 said:
pps . noted your expertise in automotive engineering and design ! ......cool vehicles
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it is nowhere near as glamorous as you might think. :rolleyes:
Back on this topic, I hear what you say, but for some of us there is a counter argument that it would be good to know what is inside for real, and how to troubleshoot the kit. I am saying all that from zero experience of a liferaft either as a user or owner so feel free to shoot me down in flames.
 
MR LIFERAFT 1 said:
why would any intelligent person attempt to servcie their own liferaft ? ...
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Well, Yes; because they have tried it and seen what is inside. Have you read the reference in post #16?
I was horrified at the very low quality of the items I found and the state of them.
Would I blindly accept that a professional had serviced the liferaft 'to the manufacturer's standard'? No. Not having seen the third rate components.
My next liferaft will be bought from a manufacturer who declares/shows, in detail, what is inside the envelope.
Just my opinion
Cheers
Bob
 
MR LIFERAFT 1 said:
why would any intelligent person attempt to servcie their own liferaft ? do you know the packing schedule ? do you know the valve seating pressures ?, do you know the valve opening pressures ? do you have the corrrect tools..... answer is almost certainly NO, would you repack your own parachute ?
The complacancy of boat owners is staggering, your liferaft will often be your only chance of survival at sea if your boat should sink or catch fire.
There is a reason the manufacturer says your raft needs servcicing and regular intervals.... Contact the manufacturer and get advice on who can ligitimatley service your raft...there are many cowboy service stations waiting to take your money, if your lucky they will just take your money and tell you its been serviced...if your really unlucky they will open it and attempt to service it with copy parts and no technical training... the later has a strong chance that it wont inflate when most needed. Buy a raft from a manufacturer that offers fixed price servcing and servcies the raft in their own servcie centre....!! search for a brand that will collect your raft from anywhere in the UK and has collection points all over the UK.... in addition they have trained and certified servcie stations across Europe...
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Oh dear me! Why would I service my own liferaft? Because from what I have read here and elsewhere about people's experiences I would rather trust my own work. If you are going to be an "instant" expert by the way then you need to check statements you post other wise you look extremely foolish. Most parachuters pack their own. Do you have a position to declare?
Stu
 
MR LIFERAFT 1 said:
why would any intelligent person attempt to servcie their own liferaft ?
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So that they know what has been done?
I got a liferaft serviced at Ocean Safety in Greenock, and they inflated it for me when I dropped it off which was cool. I got some pictures.:encouragement:
The staff member had some recommendations, which included them fitting a heaving line & quoit with which I readily agreed. When it was then delivered to Largs YachtHaven for me I noticed on the invoice that they hadn't included the cost of the line/quoit...

I enquired, including a photo of the raft and the staff member;), and it transpired they had forgotten to fit it! To be fair they took it back and corrected the mistake, but it didn't fill me with confidence.
 
solent clown said:
...it would be good to know what is inside for real, and how to troubleshoot the kit. I am saying all that from zero experience of a liferaft either as a user or owner so feel free to shoot me down in flames.
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I agree, I've owned one for a couple of years, but I don't really have much idea of what to expect if I actually had to deploy it. I can see there might be an advantage to knowing what really happens beyond just a theoretical idea.
 
JBJag27 said:
I agree, I've owned one for a couple of years, but I don't really have much idea of what to expect if I actually had to deploy it. I can see there might be an advantage to knowing what really happens beyond just a theoretical idea.
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So why not get yourself on a training course?
 
So MR LIFERAFT 1 are you telling me I can get my Plastimo life-raft serviced by an approved service center for £229 incl VAT or are you telling me I have to ditch it and buy one of yours to avail of this price?
 
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