Lifejacket testing

[atelford]

I was at a talk last night hosted by the RNLI which was discussing and inspecting lifejackets. After only checking 3 lifejackets they found that one had no gas left in the canister. One was worn along the stitching and was leaking air, and one was so full of condensation that it did not inflate properly. This was a real eye opener to alot of the members especially when they were told that it takes a 29ft boat 4 minutes to sink if it has a hole the size of your fist. Im not being alarmist here but I have to say Im also guilty of not properly looking over the jackets I have this season. Coincidently the day before the talk the automatic gas canister fell completely out of the jacket having unscrewed itself. According to the speakers they find faults in alot of jackets (they found 9 at the previous talk out of 40 that would NOT have inflated). Just a thought, but as a skipper being legally responsible for the lives of all on board I'd say that anyone who hasnt checked their jackets this season should certainly do so. I believe the RNLI site has instructions on this or you can check the instructions on your jacket.

 

[PhilipH]

Yup - annual check: remove gas bottle and inspect to see hasn't been punctured; put insulating tape all round gas bottle to stop rust; manually inflate and leave overnight; visual inspection for chafe.
It doesn't take long and they are easy to re-pack.

Hm ... hope that doesn't sound smug.
/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[HappyHunter]

Dont forget to weigh the cylinder on kitchen scales and check against the weight stamped on the sidee - typically 140g for a 33gm cylinder

 

[PilotWolf]

If possible manually inflate with a low pressure air pump rather than by breath as this introduces moisture into the bladder.

W.