Liferaft on a small boat?

[mikemonty]

OK - I think you are suggesting that 35 cubic feet (about a cubic metre - 1 tonne) is sufficient buoyancy in cupboards and under berths that with a hole in the side the extra flotation is enough to support the boat with the decks somewhere above the water surface.
I'd suggest that the water sloshing about in there would make it very unstable and so it would be better to put your 35 cu ft of buoyancy up high enough to give you stability.
Also, if down low, thats 35 cu ft of volume that is going to make the boat fill up to the floating level faster.
If you don't have enough reserve to make it unsinkable there would be no point to the exercise.

 

[William_H]

Quite right bouyancy should not be in the middle of the boat.ie cntreline However if water is splashing around and gets into the chine area you in effect get a very narrow hull if bouyancy is in the middle. You need bouyancy in the chine area to keep it upright.
Bouyancy under the deck will not work until that area is under water.
olewill

 

[Strathglass]

[ QUOTE ]
Quite right bouyancy should not be in the middle of the boat.ie cntreline However if water is splashing around and gets into the chine area you in effect get a very narrow hull if bouyancy is in the middle. You need bouyancy in the chine area to keep it upright.
Bouyancy under the deck will not work until that area is under water.
olewill

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes. what you say is quite correct. I just put in the minimum foam to make it positively buoyant and not go under, with four of a crew on.
I ended up with foam everywhere. (blocks of closed cell foam- not expanding stuff)

I had it under bunks and everywhere else. The weight did not seem to affect the performance.

The boat was only raced and one tends to select the sails for the means of the wind rather than the peaks. I just felt a lot safer.
To do this in a cruising boat would be far too obtrusive unless it was built in from the begining.

Iain

 

[Drascomber]

I have seen a one man liferaft. IF I can get permisions from the guy who took the picture and the guy who can be seen in the liferaft I will post the picture here.

Question is :
Where can I get one?
Is there a two man version?

 

[benlui]

I think a life raft or an EPIRB are essential. Bearing in mind that on some coastal passages you could still be off shore some distance. If i had to choose, i would have the life raft. I don't believe that no boat can sink, of course they can all sink!!! There are some cheap options for EPIRBS on the market that would make great use for coastal passages. A matter of opinion really!

 

[Brock]

Even if only one mile offshore in Scottish waters, I would not like to be swimming because of loss of the parent boat and lack of a life-raft. I couldn't swim that far with a life jacket on and the cold would probably kill me long before I was rescued.
A liferaft can (possibly) be seen from a helicopter - if they are looking! A single person wearing a lifejacket is almost invisible.
My boat is only 23" and I sail a lot further from shore than one mile. I would NEVER leave my liferaft behind.

 

[Drascomber]

As I said:

Where can I get one?
Is there a two man version

 

[BrendanS]

Don't know where you'd get that specific one, though many aviation sites and stores for small aircraft have details of light weight one man liferafts such as this one

http://www.sportys.com/acb/showdetl.cfm?DID=19&Product_ID=10967