Lifebuoys - What sort do you carry and have you used an inflating one?

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Since first stepping aboard a small boat in 1971, the only time I have thrown a lifebuoy was during a MOB exercise for my Day Skipper practical.

I have picked up people from the sea on two occasions, neither incident requiring the use of the lifebuoy (they were dinghy sailers who had parted company with their dinghies).

We have a strict "lifejackets on" policy when on deck, so if I or the crew fall in, we should pop up to the surface again.

All the boats I have owned before came with a lifebuoy or two so this question wasn't one I asked myself. However, now kitting out a new small boat where I am keen to have safety kit that works well but does not take up unnecessary space, I am looking at carrying an inflatable lifebuoy that stores in a canister and inflates on hitting the water.

Has anyone tried one of these? They are more expensive than a traditional horseshoe design and do not appear to have a light but we are unlikely to be doing night work so I am not concerned about that as all our lifejackets have whistles and lights.

Would be interested in thoughts and experience.
 
I would be interested in any replies as well. In nearly 50 years of sailing I've never used a horseshoe buoy or dan buoy in anger. Last year my dan buoy needed replacing so, when looking, ended up buying a Jonbuoy combined lifebuoy and dan buoy that is inflatable and sits on the pushpit rail in a small canister. Saves a lot of clutter in the area for sure but I don't know how effective it would be in an emergency.
No upgrading to a bigger, newer, boat where just about the only thing that needs replacing is the lifebuoy. I'm inclined to go inflatable again but comments are welcome
 
When things go badly wrong, there is something to be said for things with no moving parts.
I have thrown my lifebuoy in earnest, although I was tied to a pontoon at the time.
The MOB didn't actually use it as it happened, he was able to hold on to a boat.
At least I wasn't out of pocket for a re-arming kit.


It was actually a battered old life ring I used, the shiny new ones with lights and drogues and all that were stowed away as most people's are when moored up.
 
So with a "everyone wears LJ on deck policy" you are either rescuing someone else or rescuing your own after an LJ failure, rule breach or a process that didn't make it possible to wear an LJ.

LJ Failure - it may be irrational but if one auto inflation device fails, why would you trust a second

Rule Breach - only you will know your crew and how likely it is that on a calm day someone may let down their guard etc

Process - the most common of which might be getting off the boat at a marina. (Some have LJ on pontoon rules but far far fewer than LJ on deck).

That leaves - someone else - yes you've fished a couple of dinghy sailors out. I guess they had buoyancy aids on. It may well be that your most likely scenario of use is in a marina for your own or someone elses crew who falls in by mistake. That makes a silly mistake a pricey one as lw395 says.
 
My boat came with two horseshoes and a lifesling in a bag with floaty rope. I've replaced one of the horseshoes with a self-inflating Danbuoy. It's tied to the rail and when needed you just rip the white box out of the holder and toss it in. There's a short length of line attached that will pull out and inflate it, so it's activated by that rather than water contact/pressure like a lifejacket. The CO2 cylinder is a standard 33g one and it has a little drogue and flag up top. You can also get the same one with an additional flotation ring.

Out of the kit I carry, the lifesling is probably the most useful because of the long floaty line that a MOB can grab (you're meant to circle him to bring it near). The floaty rope bit that is attached to the rail needs to be cut off occasionally, as the sunlight damages the polyprop. The rest of the length is in the bag and protected there.

There's also a floaty light to toss in, which I've put a 6V LED bulb in. With the 4x D-Cell batteries it needs for balance, it ought to stay lit for a couple weeks. I don't think they're very useful, as they float too low to be visible in any but the smallest waves.
 
Last time I mentioned this I got castigated for misusing safety equipment...

But a solid horseshoe lifebuoy makes a useful fender when there's nothing else to spare.

And I think that's the only practical use I've made of mine in the last 30 odd years.
 
Sensibly you should concentrate on "clipping on" rather than life jackets. Them concentrate on wearing life jackets before thinking about horseshoe buoys. But to my mind the inconvenience of carrying a horseshoe buoy is small when compared to the relief of being able to chuck one in the direction of someone who needs it and also the satisfaction of regularly chucking it overboard and shouting "man overboard " and seeing those aboard knowing how to spin her round and pick up the buoy (knowing they could therefore do the same to me if I was wearing my l j )
 
Self-inflating Danbuoy also. They're really very simple and you just chuck em over. I tested mine as I wanted to be confident it worked and saw the mechanism inside. Just an oddly shaped life jacket in the end but effective!
 
Our main MOB kit is a Jon Buoy -

530136.jpg


As well as originally being impressed by a training video I was shown on a ship equipped with these, quite a large part of the motivation was actually aesthetics! Our previous boat was a small and pretty gaff yawl, and a great big bundle of orange or green gear (horseshoe, drogue, pole, flag, light, ropes...) dangling around the stern would have looked ugly - and got in the way of the mizzen rigging too. A simple white box bolted to a specially-made sheerpole across the mizzen shrouds, in line with the end of the dodger, looked much more discreet.

For a drop-off-and-come-back technique, I think this unit has a lot going for it. It's fast to launch (pull one handle and a sizeable spring on the base plate throws it into the sea) and even if the casualty can't reach it and get into it, it's a very visible marker, taller than I am and bulkier than a slim pole. If it's dropped close enough that he can reach it then it's a lot of buoyancy to hang onto, and if he's able to climb in then things are even better. For an ideal world the cooperative casualty even has a throwing quoit and line provided to make final contact when you return, and there are lifting strops built in to hoist him aboard. The drogue built into the bottom has a streamlined heavy weight to pull it open instantly on hitting the water, and large one-way scoops so that it fills as it opens.

You can't really throw it, but then I suspect most people in practice can't throw their horseshoe + drogue + pole + light more than a few feet in a hurry either. There is of course some risk of it failing to inflate, but the mechanism really is very simple, just a manual lifejacket inflator with the trigger bar modified to fall out after it's pulled, and an extended ripcord whose end is tied to the boat. I wash, inspect, pressure-test, weigh the cylinder, and repack it every winter along with the lifejackets.

All that said, I do also think that the lifesling on a long line has a lot going for it, as I believe in a crash-stop and staying close if at all possible rather than the classical "drop markers, sail away, and come back" technique. Maybe that's what I'd pick if we didn't already have the Jon Buoy. We do stow some of our mooring lines hung over other gear on the stern rail (sounds odd, but it works for us) and I'm conscious that the longer ones also constitute throwing lines ready for instant use.

As a backup, second chance after dropping the Jon Buoy too far away, or simply for someone nearby in a marina etc, we also have a conventional foam horseshoe on the opposite quarter with a light and drogue but no pole. The light is a small LED one and, though I've not tried, I hope it wouldn't affect the throwing properties too badly.

Pete
 
Thanks to all for your thoughts on this.

As usual I will probably hedge my bets... get a rigid horseshoe now and then wander around at SIBS and be tempted by an inflatable danbuoy or similar.

I will try to avoid using the rigid one as a fender although my lovely crew used one a couple of years ago inadvertently to save the paintwork ("her paintwork") when entering Chatham Marina lock in a gale. It worked as a fender (temporarily) but lost any hope as a means of saving lives.
 
prv said:
.....
You can't really throw it, but then I suspect most people in practice can't throw their horseshoe + drogue + pole + light more than a few feet in a hurry either. There is of course some risk of it failing to inflate, but the mechanism really is very simple, just a manual lifejacket inflator with the trigger bar modified to fall out after it's pulled, and an extended ripcord whose end is tied to the boat. I wash, inspect, pressure-test, weigh the cylinder, and repack it every winter along with the lifejackets.

All that said, I do also think that the lifesling on a long line has a lot going for it, as I believe in a crash-stop and staying close if at all possible rather than the classical "drop markers, sail away, and come back" technique. Maybe that's what I'd pick if we didn't already have the Jon Buoy. We do stow some of our mooring lines hung over other gear on the stern rail (sounds odd, but it works for us) and I'm conscious that the longer ones also constitute throwing lines ready for instant use.

As a backup, second chance after dropping the Jon Buoy too far away, or simply for someone nearby in a marina etc, we also have a conventional foam horseshoe on the opposite quarter with a light and drogue but no pole. The light is a small LED one and, though I've not tried, I hope it wouldn't affect the throwing properties too badly.

Pete
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The liferings are not good for throwing. They are intended for dumping over the side ASAP, for the MOB to swim towards or to know where to start looking.
A proper throwing line in a bag is a good addition.

In principle I agree with you on crash stops, but they can go pear shaped. Shorthanded with the kite up was messy last time we tried it.
So my rule is get the gear over the back without even waiting to shout 'man overboard'.

There might be embarassment at wasting the cost of a CO2 bottle, but actually it would be worth it to test the gear.
Not sure that bouncy castle effort would always fit between the yachts in St Peter Port though? :-)
 
lw395 said:
So my rule is get the gear over the back without even waiting to shout 'man overboard'.
Click to expand...

Agree. I tell people that if someone falls off the foredeck, they should be aiming to pull the Jon Buoy handle quick enough that it falls on his head as he goes past the stern. Unlikely to be achievable in practice, but saying it that way emphasises the need for rapid reaction.

Pete
 
I carry a non-inflatable (i.e. permanent buoyancy) at each quarter as well as a throwing line with inflatable sling more central aft and an additional simple rescue line in a throwing bag near the helm.

Just reading the updated ISAF Offshore regulations (although not entirely relevant but interesting guidelines to follow)... it seems that I am no longer compliant.

Offshore regulations for Cat 2 e.g. Fastnet race

A recovery sling must include buoyant line of no less than the shorter of 4 time HL or 36m (120'), a buoyant section of no less than 90N buoyancy and be of a minimum strength capable to hoist a crewmember aboard.

Looking online just now, unless I am mistaken, it seems like all the recovery slings come with just 30m of line as standard...
 
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We have a Lifesling inside a fibreglass case on the pushpit. USCG rules accept that as one of the 'thowable' devices required on board but we alsohave a bunch of floating cushions in a bag that acts as a comfy helm seat. when sailing in the UK we had two horsehoe lifebuoys each with lights, mounted on the pushpit but the rope grab lines on those and or the traps for them fell apart in just a few months even in UK UV levels, despite being stored below when not sailing.

BTW has anyone tried getting into a lifering or horseshoe buoy especially with the wet gear worn? I thinkI managed one arm only but they could double as a neck support collar I suppose. I think the Lifesling is about the best option, but the PVC bag on the basic one doesn't last long in the sun and the fibreglass case one is a 2nd mortgage job, albeit cheaper in the USA, see below

http://www.westmarine.com/search?Ntt=lifesling

Excellent as the Lifesling is you still need a means to lift a MOB back on board. We have a motor crane suitable for lightweights like SWMBO <150lbs and a made up tackle to attach to the boom for me ( or use a dinghy davit arm with the dinghy dropped in the water. Thinking of it reminds me to wear my harness LJ and clip on when piddling, otherwise wave goodbye as SWMBO sails off.:ambivalence:
 
Robin said:
BTW has anyone tried getting into a lifering or horseshoe buoy especially with the wet gear worn?
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No - not much point trying!

I've seen old photos of racing yachts in the 60s and 70s where they had great big horseshoes that look like they'd go round a big guy's chest under the arms and work really well. But over the years they seem to have shrunk to the point that the horseshoe shape is just a relic, and it's basically just a marker and something to hold onto.

Pete
 
Robin said:
Mine where the web straps holding the grab rope rotted away in the sun was a Plastimo one, The chandler eventually replaced it FOC for me but didn't even get a comment from Plastimo.:disgust:
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One of the first things I did was to have some covers made for my horseshoe lifebuoys. Mine are held on with velcro so I just rip then off and throw then overboard then throw the lifebuoy overboard this creates a kind of debris trail
 
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