Where do you put your Anchor Light

[[70521]]

Have they banned fishermen where you are??

Nope, just off the Eddystone Lighthouse a few days ago one even stopped to let us pass across his bows. I was quite surprised and gave him a huge wave and was more than happy to put in a gybe and pass behind him.

I've found that the brave men and women, there are a few, who go to sea to catch fish at night tend to do it well away from shallow anchorages.

 

[GHA]

Nope, just off the Eddystone Lighthouse a few days ago one even stopped to let us pass across his bows. I was quite surprised and gave him a huge wave and was more than happy to put in a gybe and pass behind him.

I've found that the brave men and women, there are a few, who go to sea to catch fish at night tend to do it well away from shallow anchorages.

In one very small part of the world maybe , elsewhere there are a hundred and one open or bigger fishing boats zooming through the anchorages day and night not paying complete attention to what's in front, saying don't be at the helm or go to specsavers is not really living in the real world

Bright anchor light low down is what tends to work best , not mistaken for a star, not too far up to get missed or masked by the hundreds of lights up the hill side.

 

[LadyInBed]

Now we are in the days of led lighting, why not put your anchor light where you think it should go and festoon your boat with deck lights

 

[Big Andy]

Now we are in the days of led lighting, why not put your anchor light where you think it should go and festoon your boat with deck lights

This just makes so much sense in this day and age, one up top to satisfy the regs and plenty down low to keep you and others safe.

 

[[70521]]

In one very small part of the world maybe , elsewhere there are a hundred and one open or bigger fishing boats zooming through the anchorages day and night not paying complete attention to what's in front, saying don't be at the helm or go to specsavers is not really living in the real world

Bright anchor light low down is what tends to work best , not mistaken for a star, not too far up to get missed or masked by the hundreds of lights up the hill side.

I am beginning to worry if I am anchoring in too little water! I usually anchor in the shallow side of the 5 meter contour to avoid big fishing boats with tonnes of gear out the back steaming at 5 knots.

I'll report back if I ever have any problems.

 

[GHA]

I am beginning to worry if I am anchoring in too little water! I usually anchor in the shallow side of the 5 meter contour to avoid big fishing boats with tonnes of gear out the back steaming at 5 knots.

I'll report back if I ever have any problems.

They come smaller you know

And they can hit you just going to and from the fishing grounds..

It's the smaller ones you need to watch out for more full blast through the anchorage not having been to specsavers as you suggested or looking up...

 

[VicS]

This just makes so much sense in this day and age, one up top to satisfy the regs and plenty down low to keep you and others safe.

The" regs" do not require " one up top " as you put it.

See Rule 30 and also Annex I, 9.

 

[RupertW]

We have garden lights which we can see clearly half a mile away - one at the stern which lights up the cockpit and one in the spinnaker hoop which lights up the foredeck. Works well for us and we don't have to worry about switching them on or off and they always last all night.

Lots of people bleat about the 2nm visibility but I don't anchor in big ship channels and want something visible at eye level for a few hundred yards for yachts coming in late and fishermen coming in distracted at any time. My aim is safety not following regs but do have an LED masthead light which I occasionally test.

 

[Bobc]

The key reason for using an anchor light is to show other shipping that you are there. I little twinkling light at the top of a mast can easily be missed. If you have one lower down (more ay eye level) that also lights the boat up a bit, you are much less likely to be hit.

 

[noelex]

Lots of people bleat about the 2nm visibility but I don't anchor in big ship channels and want something visible at eye level for a few hundred yards for yachts coming in late and fishermen coming in distracted at any time.

Eye level is good, but in my view the 2nm visibility requirement is not primarily to ensure the light is bright enough to be seen on a clear night 2nm miles away, as is commonly assumed, but rather to ensure the light is bright enough to be seen at a reasonable, but much closer distance, in adverse conditions.

As an example, if the light is not bright enough to meet the 2nm requirement, will it be seen in pouring rain by a tired and distracted crew from perhaps a few hundred metres away?

The power consumption of modern LEDs is very low and there is no reason why you cannot have both a bright light and one that is mounted at eye level. I enter a few anchorages at night and the dull “garden” anchor lights can be a menace in some situations. I am not saying your lights match this description, but the 2nm requiment is not very bright so it would be great if everyone could ensure at least one their lights matches this minimium level of illumination.

 

[sailorman]

Eye level is good, but in my view the 2nm visibility requirement is not primarily to ensure the light is bright enough to be seen on a clear night 2nm miles away, as is commonly assumed, but rather to ensure the light is bright enough to be seen at a reasonable, but much closer distance, in adverse conditions.

As an example, if the light is not bright enough to meet the 2nm requirement, will it be seen in pouring rain by a tired and distracted crew from perhaps a few hundred metres away?

The power consumption of modern LEDs is very low and there is no reason why you cannot have both a bright light and one that is mounted at eye level. I enter a few anchorages at night and the dull “garden” anchor lights can be a menace in some situations. I am not saying your lights match this description, but the 2nm requiment is not very bright so it would be great if everyone could ensure at least one their lights matches this minimium level of illumination.

imo LEDs are far too bright, in most applications, especially anchor & car running lights

 

[thesaintlyone]

Thanks for all the replies, I can see the sense in illuminating the actual boat at night and the cost of the Nasa LED Tri-color £59 is well within my current limited budget and adding a Dusk til Dawn Anchor Light later on will work well as I probably wont be anchoring straight away anyways and when I do its easy to pick one up

Regards

 

[RupertW]

Eye level is good, but in my view the 2nm visibility requirement is not primarily to ensure the light is bright enough to be seen on a clear night 2nm miles away, as is commonly assumed, but rather to ensure the light is bright enough to be seen at a reasonable, but much closer distance, in adverse conditions.

As an example, if the light is not bright enough to meet the 2nm requirement, will it be seen in pouring rain by a tired and distracted crew from perhaps a few hundred metres away?

The power consumption of modern LEDs is very low and there is no reason why you cannot have both a bright light and one that is mounted at eye level. I enter a few anchorages at night and the dull “garden” anchor lights can be a menace in some situations. I am not saying your lights match this description, but the 2nm requiment is not very bright so it would be great if everyone could ensure at least one their lights matches this minimium level of illumination.

I do get all that and have some bright large ones - the solar panel is 5 inch square - with glass lenses - but in driving rain I don’t know how far they would be seen. But any solution for me would want to avoid trailing wires and go off and on automatically so I think I have my solution built in.

 

[robertj]

What about having a flashing light similar to or if not exactly like a navigation mark. I doubt if this would be legal but would certainly confuse all and sundry into slowing right up to identify said light?

 

[PetiteFleur]

I use an LED small lantern bought from Aldi a couple of years ago. Uses AA batteries and is adjustable in brightness. I tested it in my shed and it stayed alight on the brightest setting for over a week - I was impressed. I also have a modified 12v small lamp that I've fitted with an LED lamp and a dusk to dawn sensor, just plugs into a 12v socket near the mast and as others have said, hung in the fore triangle. I had to buy a new tricolour this year as the original had badly degraded and decided not to get the combined anchor/tricolour, just the tricolour, fitted with an LED lamp of course. In busy harbours I use the bi-colour and stern lamp all converted to LED's.

 

[KellysEye]

I tied a battery powered an anchor light up the backstay, the reasons are the boats will coming from behind and if there are lights on the shore then it difficult to see a masthead anchor light.

 

[RupertW]

Your solution is commonly used alas, along with my least favourite which is a garden light that changes colour from white to blue to green to red and back again and again.

 

[noelex]

I tied a battery powered an anchor light up the backstay, the reasons are the boats will coming from behind and if there are lights on the shore then it difficult to see a masthead anchor light.

I think this is a good position to attach the light, slightly better than the more common foretriangle location. Partially for the reason mentioned, but also because a light at the stern will affect your forward night vision less, which is a help when keeping an eye on boats ahead that may be dragging (particularly if they are using no anchor light or one of the duller garden lights).

It is also usually further from the mast, reducing the angle where the light is obscured.

Finally, on many boats it is easier to feed power leads to the stern rather than the bow. While many seem to prefer battery or battery and solar lights, it is tough (not impossible) to find battery operated models with the required (in my view) 2nm brightness.

Having a low down anchor light powered from the ship’s supply means it can be bright, reliable (no concerns about a flat battery) and importantly legal.

 

[RupertW]

I think this is a good position to attach the light, slightly better than the more common foretriangle location. Partially for the reason mentioned, but also because a light at the stern will affect your forward night vision less, which is a help when keeping an eye on boats ahead that may be dragging (particularly if they are using no anchor light or one of the duller garden lights).

It is also usually further from the mast, reducing the angle where the light is obscured.

Finally, on many boats it is easier to feed power leads to the stern rather than the bow. While many seem to prefer battery or battery and solar lights, it is tough (not impossible) to find battery operated models with the required (in my view) 2nm brightness.

Having a low down anchor light powered from the ship’s supply means it can be bright, reliable (no concerns about a flat battery) and importantly legal.

There is no reason why a battery powered light (whether solar powered or not) shouldn't be bright enough with LEDs and you find out quickly whether a fully charged battery will last all night ).

I must look up how you can tell whether a light would be visible at 2nm - it's not just lumens I guess. But the legal bit matters least to me - I would always claim I had the pointless masthead light on if hit. The important bit is being visible (for me both bow and stern) at eye level and with a chance to guage distance and the ends of the boat which two lights really helps with.

 

[noelex]

There is no reason why a battery powered light (whether solar powered or not) shouldn't be bright enough with LEDs and you find out quickly whether a fully charged battery will last all night ).

I must look up how you can tell whether a light would be visible at 2nm - it's not just lumens I guess. But the legal bit matters least to me - I would always claim I had the pointless masthead light on if hit. The important bit is being visible (for me both bow and stern) at eye level and with a chance to guage distance and the ends of the boat which two lights really helps with.

Without formal testing (which is expensive and not practical unless you are planning to sell the lights) it is difficult to be 100% sure if a light will meet the legal requirements for brightness. However, Bebi published a paper a few years ago on what type of LEDs would be required to be bright enough to pass the 2nm test. With the best 5mm Nichi LEDs that were available at the time.

The conclusion, from memory, was that a minimium of fifteen (once again from memory) of the best 5mm Nichi LEDs were the minimum required to meet the standard. These also needed be driven with the correct regulated supply at their rated voltage. For comparison, most garden lights have one or two 5mm LEDs of dubious quality (although the brightness of LEDs improves each year) driven by an unregulated power supply. There are alternatives to 5mm LEDs, typically using a single high powered LED with an optical system to distribute the light, but the paper did not look at the requirements for these options.

The other test is to look at power consumption of your light. Most commercial 2nm approved anchor lights consume about 0.2 A @ 12v. Unless you are buying, or building, a battery operated light which is much more efficient than the commercial anchor lights then to produce the same brightness the light will need to consume roughly the same amount of power.

Assuming they are fully charged, it would take about ten high quality AA batteries to store enough energy to deliver this power for one night. If solar powered it needs a solar panel large enough to fully charge this relativly large battery bank each day. So unless your battery operated light has 10 or more AA batteries (or the equivalent lithium battery) it is unlikely (but not impossible) to meet the brightness standard. This reasonably large power requirement is why battery operated anchor lights can rarely meet the standard. The light can easily have a setting that is bright enough, but on this setting the light will only last a short time. If it is bright enough and it can last all night it needs a large battery bank and few models have this.