PLB or EPIRB?

westhinder

westhinder

Well-Known Member
Joined
15 Feb 2003
Messages
2,660
Location
Belgium
Visit site
I am preparing the boat for a Round Britain next summer and weighing emergency measures. I am considering buying a PLB with integral GPS. What more could an EPIRB offer over a PLB?
 
Self launching with the right kit... Longer battery life....

In reality a plb is just as good for the uk.... But only if you wear it on yourself...

If your single handing its better IMHO.
 
Depends on whether you think your boat is going to sink or you are going to fall overboard. EPIRB of limited value if you are in coastal waters and have DSC. PLB has value if you become separated from the boat.
 
To me the major differences are:

1. PLB generally has to be kept out of the water with the aerial upright, which in practice means a capable person holding it. An EPIRB will float and work unattended.

2. EPIRB can be rigged to launch and activate automatically, say in the event of knockdown and flooding, sudden collision, or trawlers getting their nets fast, turning beam-on, and being pulled over. These features have resulted in successful alerts in accidents where there was no time to do anything else.

I have a PLB, as while the above points are valuable, I couldn't justify the extra cost.

Pete
 
prv said:
To me the major differences are:

1. PLB generally has to be kept out of the water with the aerial upright, which in practice means a capable person holding it. An EPIRB will float and work unattended.

2. EPIRB can be rigged to launch and activate automatically, say in the event of knockdown and flooding, sudden collision, or trawlers getting their nets fast, turning beam-on, and being pulled over. These features have resulted in successful alerts in accidents where there was no time to do anything else.

I have a PLB, as while the above points are valuable, I couldn't justify the extra cost.


Pete
Click to expand...

We have both...:eek:

And in the past three years have barely left the marina!
 
Tranona said:
Depends on whether you think your boat is going to sink or you are going to fall overboard. EPIRB of limited value if you are in coastal waters and have DSC. PLB has value if you become separated from the boat.
Click to expand...

The odds are small, and although I take care to wear my harness and lifeline when the weather is foul, the risk of falling overboard must be significantly greater than that of the boat sinking. My reasoning is that I could use a PLB if we had to abandon ship, whereas an EPIRB strapped to the boat is of no use to me if I should fall in. Or amI missing something?
 
The bottom line is that it all comes down to what you can afford.
Loads of money - get both
Budget tight - plb with gps
Buget very tight - don't bother, as you are only coast hopping and a h/h vhf will do a job.

To widen the debate: Do you carry a Life raft (new or 2nd hand) or do you think your inflatable will be adequate?
 
westhinder said:
The odds are small, and although I take care to wear my harness and lifeline when the weather is foul, the risk of falling overboard must be significantly greater than that of the boat sinking. My reasoning is that I could use a PLB if we had to abandon ship, whereas an EPIRB strapped to the boat is of no use to me if I should fall in. Or amI missing something?
Click to expand...

No, you are not missing anything. There are very few EPIRB alerts reported in the UK (or N European) coastal waters because most sailing is within VHF range and, if activated a DSC alert is effective. An EPIRB comes into its own if you regularly sail out of VHF range. So you find most alerts are in more remote areas of the world, and surprisingly more for land and air related than sea emergencies. Think Australian bush and you will appreciate why the majority of EPIRBs are made in Australia or by Australian companies.

PLBs are different for the reasons you state although there are few reports of serious activations perhaps because there are very few cases of people going overboard - and having a PLB!

So, your reasoning is correct although the risk of going overboard is still very, very small!
 
The Fastfind PLB has a 2 pack of floating cases you can buy. I have one which I fit and put the PLB in my jacket pocket and one stitched to my lifejacket. I always have a lanyard around my neck so it can't be lost. I see the PLB as the last form of defence for both me and the boat.
Allan
 
I did solo round Britain last summer. I would definitely suggest PLB. You will be likely to visit small, quiet harbours, sometimes outside normal office hours, and often won't get any reply on the radio, or even the phone, and sometimes you won't even see any other person. I took the view that the most likely time for me to finish up in the water was mooring whilst arriving or departing from the berth. I therefore kept the PLB in my pocket whilst doing this.
 
Cheaper option is a £150 PLB with no GPS. It's been covered many times but just to recap - position fix takes 40 minutes which is about the same length of time from Falmouth getting a GPS EPIRB report to dispatch of SAR, the reason being it takes time to call the contact numbers listed on your registration form which they do in case it is an accidental activation. During the 40 minutes of a non-GPS PLB activation they are also calling those numbers - in other words having a GPS chip means at best SAR sets off ten minutes earlier. If you are in VHF range then you'd have set of a DSC alert way before and SAR would be deployed sooner since voice confirmation shows it's not a false alarm. This 30 to 40 minutes delay on EPIRB/PLB has kept false alarm SAR deployment below 10% for these devices.

It still has the 121.5MHz frequency as well as 406MHz so it's only missing the GPS. It's not quite as good but at that price you can afford three or four for the same cost as a standard EPIRB which is almost one per crew member.
 
I have personal AIS beacons and an EPIRB for the boat.

AIS beacons have the advantage that the people left on the boat know instantly when a colleague has gone overboard and a marker on the chartplotter shows exactly where he is. No need to wait for outside rescue services, you can do it yourself much quicker.

If you are singlehanded then its different, a PLB is the answer.
 
FishyInverness said:
That'll be the old version - The new one comes with a buoyancy pouch as standard now! ;)
Click to expand...
Yes I have seen them, I thought it was a special promotion. My main point is that having the PLB on you at all times is important. The lanyard is more important than the pouch. For the sake of a few quid I think the GPS version is worth the extra.
It is important to keep your details up to date and ensure the contact phone number will be answered.
Allan
 
A PLB has to be able to transmit for 24 hours and an EPIRB for 48 hours and EPIRB's are bigger and can have hydrostatic releases - effectively the EPIRB is for the boat and the PLB for the person. Given that the person ends up in the water if the boat's gone then, unless you need the 48 hour transmit or the automatic release and triggering the the PLB seems to get it every time though. The only other point of the EPIRB is that, because it floats on it's own (hopefully tethered to you) you don;t need to worry about keeping the antennae out of the water or up high. PLB's are getting absolutely minute now though - this is the latest I know of and, despite it's size, it has a strobe built in and a 7 year battery life. http://www.oceansignal.com/product.php?id=22

1342191401_winding_antenna_in.jpg
 
LadyInBed said:
The bottom line is that it all comes down to what you can afford.
Loads of money - get both
Budget tight - plb with gps
Buget very tight - don't bother, as you are only coast hopping and a h/h vhf will do a job.

To widen the debate: Do you carry a Life raft (new or 2nd hand) or do you think your inflatable will be adequate?
Click to expand...

Surely not so simple.
Offshore mid-atlantic personal AIS will help recover crew, EPIRB will help if yacht is in trouble
Several miles off the coast - PLB will get the coast guard out in reasonable time. Good if solo.
Not far off shore - PLB will not pin point you amongst the many other boats. However a AIS beacon will alert boats around you of a MOB and you may get rescued faster than SAR can find you. If not solo, AIS will faciliate your recovery by your own boat

I have a non-GPS EPIRB. Rather than upgrade, I am going to buy a couple of Safelink. Apparently made by same company as McMurdo but designed for sailors rather than divers. Can be made to go off when the lifejacket inflates

TudorSailor
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top