Seastoke
Well-known member
So every body carries radio ,flares chart etc how many peeps have a life raft ,ps on the boat not in the garage
Life raft do you carry one
- Thread starter Seastoke
- Start date
Gelfie
Member
I think this is decided by, where you sail and do you carry a tender that is ready to launch.
Seastoke
Well-known member
is a tender good enough as a substitute
MapisM
Well-known member
I do.
Not that I have a choice, because for IT registered boats it's in the list of mandatory safety equipment, if you wish to cruise at more than 12Nm from the coast (above 50Nm, epirb also is).
And I actually think it's a sensible regulation, by and large. If anything, you might wonder if also the epirb shouldn't be mandatory above 12Nm....
Not that I have a choice, because for IT registered boats it's in the list of mandatory safety equipment, if you wish to cruise at more than 12Nm from the coast (above 50Nm, epirb also is).
And I actually think it's a sensible regulation, by and large. If anything, you might wonder if also the epirb shouldn't be mandatory above 12Nm....
maverickofpoole
Member
I have one on board. It's due a service this year so have to decide do I have it serviced or buy a new one?
Danfarry
Member
I've got one. When things go wrong, things go wrong quickly on a boat.
Tranona
Well-known member
No.
There is little rational evidence that supports the view that liferafts are necessary for cruising our waters - at least the most popular parts. The number of cases where a raft is deployed by leisure boats each year can be counted on one hand - and in some years there are none. The reasons for deployment fall into 3 categories. Extreme weather, structural failure (usually racing yachts) and collisions with other shipping. Most of us avoid extreme weather, have sound boats and generally with today's aids collisions can be avoided. Note also that most reported deployments involve sailing craft. There have been one or two odd freak MOBO sinkings, usually fire or in one case an autopilot assisted collision with a buoy.
BTW not everybody carries flares as they are now largely redundant and there is in fact pressure to delete them as a requirement for coded and larger boats where they are currently compulsory.
Orange
New member
A liferaft would give some protection from the elements, a tender could get cold & wet very quickly & in high seas it could flip over.
jimmy_the_builder
Well-known member
My flares are time-expired and I haven't replaced them. We do carry a liferaft, and also an epirb; if I was going to add another piece of safety equipment, it would be a satphone.
rafiki_
Well-known member
Yep, carry a life raft, but no idea if it would deploy, so will get it serviced. In the event of a serious problem, the tender is Plan A, and I inform guests accordingly.
MapisM
Well-known member
I don't have any statistics handy, but I would think that fire is a more likely occurrence than both structural failures and collisions, particularly in mobos.
And with fire, either you can effectively and immediately contain it, or you'd rather leave PDQ...
Nigelpickin
Active member
Agreed
I bought the Sat Sleeve for my iPhone and it has provided great peace of mind, works and always by the helm. Makes an eprib, (almost), redundant. It has a hot button that sends co ords and I think it's only a bit more than a beacon £. Tested once mid E Channel and once in Biscay, loud and clear.
fwiw our life raft is clunky and just about to expire, I've got a real urge to let it off now that the boat is going...
As far as the post question goes, if you boat further from shore than your ships company are able to swim and your boat can take one, then it should be a high priority.
henryf
Well-known member
We have to have 2 life rafts on board due to coding regulations and number of potential passengers / crew onboard.
It's tempting to think that in somewhere like the Solent you don't need a liferaft but a fire on board could well require the deployment of your raft.
It's tempting to think your tender would do the job but consider how may people you might have onboard. 2 or 3 people no problem. 6, 8, 10 people no chance. Who's going to be left on board the burning boat or have to take their chances in the icy water?
Knowing you have a liferaft space for everyone on board is reassuring. Then put yourself in less well populated waters and it becomes essential.
In less than ideal conditions a life raft might offer suitable means to transport people from the casualty vessel onto your own. You don't want to damage your boat or become entangled in rigging.
Henry
It's tempting to think that in somewhere like the Solent you don't need a liferaft but a fire on board could well require the deployment of your raft.
It's tempting to think your tender would do the job but consider how may people you might have onboard. 2 or 3 people no problem. 6, 8, 10 people no chance. Who's going to be left on board the burning boat or have to take their chances in the icy water?
Knowing you have a liferaft space for everyone on board is reassuring. Then put yourself in less well populated waters and it becomes essential.
In less than ideal conditions a life raft might offer suitable means to transport people from the casualty vessel onto your own. You don't want to damage your boat or become entangled in rigging.
Henry
jimmy_the_builder
Well-known member
henryf
Well-known member
I also had a look on the internet. Couldn't get a handle on cost though.
Time was priced in "units" without much explanation.
Would love a breakdown on cost of hardware / buy as you go time / how long until it expires etc.
In an emergency how great to be able to call Falmouth directly and know they got your message. For my cruising at the moment VHF does the job but go further afield and support dwindles.
Henry
Time was priced in "units" without much explanation.
Would love a breakdown on cost of hardware / buy as you go time / how long until it expires etc.
In an emergency how great to be able to call Falmouth directly and know they got your message. For my cruising at the moment VHF does the job but go further afield and support dwindles.
Henry
Bouba
Well-known member
I never heard of satsleeve bebore either. Two questions, what's the advantage of it over a separate handset?
And I'm having a lot of trouble finding the cost of connecting and using the iridium network (if that's what you use)
Any info appreciated
jimmy_the_builder
Well-known member
I also had a look on the internet. Couldn't get a handle on cost though.
Time was priced in "units" without much explanation.
Would love a breakdown on cost of hardware / buy as you go time / how long until it expires etc.
In an emergency how great to be able to call Falmouth directly and know they got your message. For my cruising at the moment VHF does the job but go further afield and support dwindles.
Henry
This looked like the best UK price I could readily find for the satsleeve plus itself ('plus' is the android version):
https://www.clove.co.uk/thuraya-satsleeve
Call costs - for a light/emergency-only user, it looks like prepay is the way to go, specifically the Thuraya Nova prepay plan:
http://www.satphone.co.uk/Network/T...ype/Prepay/custitem_iri_pre_air_type/Regional
Calls are priced in units per minute eg a call to (say) Falmouth would be 1 unit per minute; the sim card costs £32.88+vat and includes 20 units. Units are valid for 24 months and can then be extended for a further 24 months at a cost of 10 units. It looks like you have to make a call at least once every 12 months to keep the sim card alive.
I couldn't readily see how much it cost just to add units to an already-registered sim card.
Portofino
Well-known member
We have one and two ERIPB ,s -- came with the boat ,was IT reg as MapishM says .
jimmy_the_builder
Well-known member
Satsleeve uses Thuraya, not Iridium.
jimmy_the_builder
Well-known member
This looks a bit easier to read for airtime purchases:
https://www.globaltelesat.co.uk/thuraya-prepaid-satellite-airtime
