safety equipment what to consider for stocking my 30 footer
- Thread starter woodster
- Start date
It depends on where you are sailing, how far offshore. Take a look at the ISAF category 1 requirements.
Re: safety equipment what to consider for stocking my 30 foo
http://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/West-Advisor-Articles
scroll down to Safety
www.boatsafe.com too
http://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/West-Advisor-Articles
scroll down to Safety
www.boatsafe.com too
The first piece of "safety equipment" is an inspected, well-maintained boat. Has the rig been inspected lately? What is the condition of your thru hulls and the hoses attached to them? If the boat begins to take on water do you have adequate dewatering capability (bilge pumps); is your bilge inspected regularly, etc. How long since the ground tackle was thoroughly inspected, etc?
The next most important safety item is good skippering. If you had to call for help would you know your position? Do you maintain a paper chart course? A GPS can malfunction at any time. I have three (GPS) on my boat and a paper chart. On my last trip, the GPS chartplotter failed and my GPS VHF went dead (battery). That left me one GPS unit giving position, course, and speed but with me needing my paper chart to plot it on. Hey, no problema! Can you administer first aid to your crew? Can they administer to you? Can you properly interpret a weather forecast or navigate in fog?, carrying a sounding line back-up to a failed depth transducer?; is the boat bonded against lightening strikes?--man, the list is nearly endless!!
The USCG requires a life jacket for everyone aboard and a proper fire extinguisher. That's about it. The rest is up to you. See attached for US Sailing Safety requirements for racing in different venues. Much of the stuff should be aboard any vessel going offshore.
Re: safety equipment what to consider for stocking my 30 foo
A bell.
A horn.
A VHF radio.
Navigation tools (parallel rule, dividers, compass, hand bearing compass, binoculars, charts, pencils).
Navigation training: how to dead reckon, how to determine current position, how to plot a course, estimating effects of set and drift, advancing lines of position, how to read charts and a copy of chart number 1, etc.
A bell.
A horn.
A VHF radio.
Navigation tools (parallel rule, dividers, compass, hand bearing compass, binoculars, charts, pencils).
Navigation training: how to dead reckon, how to determine current position, how to plot a course, estimating effects of set and drift, advancing lines of position, how to read charts and a copy of chart number 1, etc.
Re: safety equipment what to consider for stocking my 30 foo
There is a Youtube video from Yachting Monthly where they destroy a boat to try to simulate real life situations. In one video they break the mast and then try to rig a temporary rig, to see if they cold create a functional sail. To me what became obvious was the need to basic repair utilities. Things like wire, hose clamps of all different sizes, hooks, ratcheting tie down straps - coat hanger kinds of things.
There is a Youtube video from Yachting Monthly where they destroy a boat to try to simulate real life situations. In one video they break the mast and then try to rig a temporary rig, to see if they cold create a functional sail. To me what became obvious was the need to basic repair utilities. Things like wire, hose clamps of all different sizes, hooks, ratcheting tie down straps - coat hanger kinds of things.
Re: safety equipment what to consider for stocking my 30 foo
If you are going offshore, I'm a big fan of these ISAF regulations.
http://www.sailing.org/tools/documents/OSR2015Mo1-[18231].pdf
If you are going offshore, I'm a big fan of these ISAF regulations.
http://www.sailing.org/tools/documents/OSR2015Mo1-[18231].pdf
You don't say, but I'm assuming your cruising plans in a 30ft boat are coastal and maybe working up to a 3 day offshore passages.
I expect this will anger some, but Jibes list is absolutely right for 1985 (when I had a Sabre 30). It's not the list I'd choose for someone getting started today.
Bell (not required on less than 65ft and generally useless since you can't hear a bell from more than 100 feet over engine noise)
Horn (required and better than a bell - but still hard to hear over engine noise from any distance.)
Paper chart navigation is dangerously inaccurate and error prone compared to GPS with an up to date electronic chart. "Dead" reckoning is well named. When I started cruising in 1979 in Maine fogs, I had to do this stuff but judging leeway and current set was mostly guess. Math errors were common. If your regular chartplotter dies have a spare electronic system or two (Ipad or smartphone with waterproof cover). Put a chart program on your wife's phone too. And remember with any electronic chart, you MUST zoom in to check that your course doesn't cross some hazard that isn't displayed when zoomed out.
VHF Radio - yes but carry a couple of spare handhelds.
-------------------------------------
I prioritize safety based on my level of worry:
Man overboard - Should be everyone's biggest fear. My rules: Out of harbor, no one leaves the cockpit without a lifejacket. At night, you also must wear a safety tether if leaving the cockpit. Carry a Lifesling and both you and your wife practice in normal seas. First time guests are shown how to use the "Man overboard" button on the chartplotter.
Dead battery - the most frequent serious problem. With no battery, very little on the boat will work. Have two batteries and only set to "Both" in an emergency. I also have a spare 3rd battery under a berth with a set of car jumper cables sealed in plastic. It's a Group 27 AGM that only needs a top up charge once a year. Even if you never use this for yourself, I assure you that you will take it in the dinghy to rescue others.
Collision avoidance: A collision with a commercial ship is the next biggest worry. Install an AIS transponder. The smaller you are (e.g. 30ft) the harder it is for a large ship to see you on radar or by eye and your slower speed makes it harder for you to get out of the way. Carry a really big flashlight that will scare a bored bridge watch. I like this one: http://store.marinebeam.com/marinebeam-ultra-long-range-cree-rlt-illuminator/
Fire: Fire extinguishers, stove fireblanket, propane solonoid. Correct fuse/breaker and wire size for every circuit including engine start. Tighten every connection holding a battery cable big enough to make a fire starting spark (that's most connections).
Sinking: Emergency big bilge pump (2000 GPH but 3800GPH is better) with 1 1/8" or larger hose. Mount higher than normal bilge pump so it stays dry most of the time. Clean bilge to avoid clogged strainer. Leak control plug ("Stay Afloat" is my favorite). ABYC approved seacocks and double hose clamps. Below waterline hose replaced every 10 years.
Distress signalling: VHF radio, cell phone. If going more than 5 miles offshore an EPIRB or PLB or Delorme Inreach (if you can only have one, I'd get the Inreach but you have to keep it charged)
Engine Failure: Set of tools. Six spare fuel filters. Keep fuel tank clean (add microbicide at every fuel fill up). Have spare raw water impeller and gasket. Know how to install it. Wide silicone tape for hose repair.
Steering failure: Emergency steering plan (not feasible on some boats)
Anchor drag: 2nd anchor and rode that can be deployed in 5 minutes. Extra rode: Oversize (5/8" or 3/4" for 30ft) long (300ft) piece of extra line that can also be used as tow rope or extra rode.
Rig: Nipper pliers to cut cotter pins plus punch and hand sledge to drive out turnbuckle pins if dismasted, hacksaw with many spare blades. Sharp knives some serrated (and always carry a knife when on a boat). Spare shackles, spare low stretch rope as long as halyard (can be used as halyard, genoa sheet, or stay), stainless wire, 1/8" amsteel rope or similiar, sail repair tape, needles, waxed whipping twine and sail thread.
Dingy: Unless you are in mid ocean, help will respond to your distress call within a few hours. You don't need to survive in a liferaft for a month. A standard inflatable dinghy will keep you afloat. (help reached the Titanic just a few hours after sinking).
Of course this list is very personal. Part of the fun of outfitting a boat is learning what people choose and then deciding if you agree.
Fair winds
Carl
I expect this will anger some, but Jibes list is absolutely right for 1985 (when I had a Sabre 30). It's not the list I'd choose for someone getting started today.
Bell (not required on less than 65ft and generally useless since you can't hear a bell from more than 100 feet over engine noise)
Horn (required and better than a bell - but still hard to hear over engine noise from any distance.)
Paper chart navigation is dangerously inaccurate and error prone compared to GPS with an up to date electronic chart. "Dead" reckoning is well named. When I started cruising in 1979 in Maine fogs, I had to do this stuff but judging leeway and current set was mostly guess. Math errors were common. If your regular chartplotter dies have a spare electronic system or two (Ipad or smartphone with waterproof cover). Put a chart program on your wife's phone too. And remember with any electronic chart, you MUST zoom in to check that your course doesn't cross some hazard that isn't displayed when zoomed out.
VHF Radio - yes but carry a couple of spare handhelds.
-------------------------------------
I prioritize safety based on my level of worry:
Man overboard - Should be everyone's biggest fear. My rules: Out of harbor, no one leaves the cockpit without a lifejacket. At night, you also must wear a safety tether if leaving the cockpit. Carry a Lifesling and both you and your wife practice in normal seas. First time guests are shown how to use the "Man overboard" button on the chartplotter.
Dead battery - the most frequent serious problem. With no battery, very little on the boat will work. Have two batteries and only set to "Both" in an emergency. I also have a spare 3rd battery under a berth with a set of car jumper cables sealed in plastic. It's a Group 27 AGM that only needs a top up charge once a year. Even if you never use this for yourself, I assure you that you will take it in the dinghy to rescue others.
Collision avoidance: A collision with a commercial ship is the next biggest worry. Install an AIS transponder. The smaller you are (e.g. 30ft) the harder it is for a large ship to see you on radar or by eye and your slower speed makes it harder for you to get out of the way. Carry a really big flashlight that will scare a bored bridge watch. I like this one: http://store.marinebeam.com/marinebeam-ultra-long-range-cree-rlt-illuminator/
Fire: Fire extinguishers, stove fireblanket, propane solonoid. Correct fuse/breaker and wire size for every circuit including engine start. Tighten every connection holding a battery cable big enough to make a fire starting spark (that's most connections).
Sinking: Emergency big bilge pump (2000 GPH but 3800GPH is better) with 1 1/8" or larger hose. Mount higher than normal bilge pump so it stays dry most of the time. Clean bilge to avoid clogged strainer. Leak control plug ("Stay Afloat" is my favorite). ABYC approved seacocks and double hose clamps. Below waterline hose replaced every 10 years.
Distress signalling: VHF radio, cell phone. If going more than 5 miles offshore an EPIRB or PLB or Delorme Inreach (if you can only have one, I'd get the Inreach but you have to keep it charged)
Engine Failure: Set of tools. Six spare fuel filters. Keep fuel tank clean (add microbicide at every fuel fill up). Have spare raw water impeller and gasket. Know how to install it. Wide silicone tape for hose repair.
Steering failure: Emergency steering plan (not feasible on some boats)
Anchor drag: 2nd anchor and rode that can be deployed in 5 minutes. Extra rode: Oversize (5/8" or 3/4" for 30ft) long (300ft) piece of extra line that can also be used as tow rope or extra rode.
Rig: Nipper pliers to cut cotter pins plus punch and hand sledge to drive out turnbuckle pins if dismasted, hacksaw with many spare blades. Sharp knives some serrated (and always carry a knife when on a boat). Spare shackles, spare low stretch rope as long as halyard (can be used as halyard, genoa sheet, or stay), stainless wire, 1/8" amsteel rope or similiar, sail repair tape, needles, waxed whipping twine and sail thread.
Dingy: Unless you are in mid ocean, help will respond to your distress call within a few hours. You don't need to survive in a liferaft for a month. A standard inflatable dinghy will keep you afloat. (help reached the Titanic just a few hours after sinking).
Of course this list is very personal. Part of the fun of outfitting a boat is learning what people choose and then deciding if you agree.
Fair winds
Carl
Re: safety equipment what to consider for stocking my 30 foo
Very good material, Carl.
Only question: you wrote: "Have two batteries and only set to "Both" in an emergency."
What's an emergency?
If one battery is bad, the LAST thing you want to do is combine them, which is why many of us are not proponents of the Blue Sea Dual Circuit Plus Switch (which is fine for small motorboats).
My recommendation is to go with the biggest house bank you can, learn to service and check it regularly, get a battery monitor or some sort beyond just voltage and have a reserve battery available, built-in.
Another way of saying this, to mimic your writing style:
Learn your electrical system, build a solid dependable one, and keep it healthy. Your life may depend on it.
Thanks, nice post.
Very good material, Carl.
Only question: you wrote: "Have two batteries and only set to "Both" in an emergency."
What's an emergency?
If one battery is bad, the LAST thing you want to do is combine them, which is why many of us are not proponents of the Blue Sea Dual Circuit Plus Switch (which is fine for small motorboats).
My recommendation is to go with the biggest house bank you can, learn to service and check it regularly, get a battery monitor or some sort beyond just voltage and have a reserve battery available, built-in.
Another way of saying this, to mimic your writing style:
Learn your electrical system, build a solid dependable one, and keep it healthy. Your life may depend on it.
Thanks, nice post.
Stu,
You are, of course, right. I was guessing that the OP's 30 foot boat is of the era of 1-2-Both switches. There are much better systems but walking through an upgrade seemed beyond the scope of his question.
The great thing about the "spare battery under the bunk", is that it works on any boat - even someone else's . The Optima yellow top AGM battery (many other good brand choices) can be had at Costco for $100 and $20 for the jumper. No cost for a electrician to do a safe installation. Just tie it down and leave the plastic caps on the terminals. I charge it with a good $25 car charger once a year and buy a new one every 7 years.
So far, I've used my spare battery twice to "jump" other peoples boats at anchor to get an engine started. I left the dead battery in the circuit (as with a car jump) to not risk blowing the alternator diodes when I unhooked the jumpers. In both those cases, an internally shorted battery was unlikely since the boats had simply run down their battery overnight. But you're right that a better approach would have been to separate the questionable battery from the bus and then connect it after the engine started but before undoing the jumpers.
Carl
You are, of course, right. I was guessing that the OP's 30 foot boat is of the era of 1-2-Both switches. There are much better systems but walking through an upgrade seemed beyond the scope of his question.
The great thing about the "spare battery under the bunk", is that it works on any boat - even someone else's . The Optima yellow top AGM battery (many other good brand choices) can be had at Costco for $100 and $20 for the jumper. No cost for a electrician to do a safe installation. Just tie it down and leave the plastic caps on the terminals. I charge it with a good $25 car charger once a year and buy a new one every 7 years.
So far, I've used my spare battery twice to "jump" other peoples boats at anchor to get an engine started. I left the dead battery in the circuit (as with a car jump) to not risk blowing the alternator diodes when I unhooked the jumpers. In both those cases, an internally shorted battery was unlikely since the boats had simply run down their battery overnight. But you're right that a better approach would have been to separate the questionable battery from the bus and then connect it after the engine started but before undoing the jumpers.
Carl
I look at it more in terms of likelihood. But my two basic rules are: don't fall overboard and don't hit anything.
I rarely ask crew to wear life jackets as a matter of routine. If anyone does leave the cockpit it's usually me, and I usually do have a life vest on, and sometimes a tether as well. However, all of the sheets and halyards are led aft to the cockpit. So, about the only reason for ever leaving the cockpit is to unfoul something up forward [like the furling gear!]. In any event, backing up to prevention rather than remedy, crew are not likely to fall overboard if holding on to the boat at all times when moving about and are so instructed. The most likely way to end up in the water is to trip over a deck fitting, or otherwise loose one's balance. Thus, crew also have to wear proper shoes when on deck; carry a personal flashlight at night, and a personal serrated-blade knife. If someone does hit the water, then of course, a practiced recovery routine with the proper equipment at hand is paramount!
However, I actually think it is more likely a crew or guest will hit the water trying to board, or debark, a boat at anchor from, or to, a dinghy, than to fall off the boat while underway [at some point they have to let go the boat]. Whereas the difficulty of a recovery may be less than in the former, it could still be every bit the same life-threatening situation. As follows-- regrettably, most people DO NOT wear life vests in the dinghy where they should; dinghies are often overloaded on capcity, many transfers occur at night and most life vests are not equipped with strobes; transfer frequently occurs following a social activity where there has been drinking and "lighthearted" socializing [thus, diminishing the feeling of a need for altertness], outboards are unreliable, & rowing is not something many people can do well. I cringe every time I see guests debarking my boat after dark to a dink w/o life jackets donned [if they even have them along]. ESPECIALLY-when we're out in the boondoggles, it's cold water [California], moonless, and in windy conditions where the anchorage is a lumpy place!
As far as hitting something, I think it's more likely that I will hit something rather than something hitting me. If I can see a Big Bruiser coming it's not going to hit me; and you cannot miss 'em if someone is on watch. I know its course, its approximate speed [from radar], and whether it will pass ahead or behind me; plus I can hail its bridge watch if necessary. I sail in the Los Angeles/Long Beach area where the most shipping tonnage in the country arrives--so lots of practice. IMHO--you're on the whole better off with radar than an AIS unit if you have to watch expenditures.
Finally, from my point of view, if you're within hailing range of ships or towers, even if more than 5 miles out, a [floating] DSC/GPS capable hand-held VHF is preferable to an EPIRB or PLB for quick rescue. Should have one attached to the belt.
Re: safety equipment what to consider for stocking my 30 foo
In a MOB situation hypothermia is probably the biggest threat. Early in the season (like now) up north you will become incapable of doing much once in the water within minutes. Even more reason to make sure you stay with the boat and don't go in the water unless it sinks. So jack lines with tethers might be in order to stay on the boat, and a wet suit or survival suit is a critical item if you know you are going in the water in a sinking situation. I've scuba dived in 37 degree water with a 7mm wetsuit for over a half hour. Without the wetsuit I doubt I'd last 5 minutes fully submerged. But in a sinking situation I'd still want a life raft or an inflatable dinghy to stay out of the water. A radar reflector is a low cost item with a lot of value as well. A personal strobe light and a whistle attached to each lifejacket is another important consideration.
In a MOB situation hypothermia is probably the biggest threat. Early in the season (like now) up north you will become incapable of doing much once in the water within minutes. Even more reason to make sure you stay with the boat and don't go in the water unless it sinks. So jack lines with tethers might be in order to stay on the boat, and a wet suit or survival suit is a critical item if you know you are going in the water in a sinking situation. I've scuba dived in 37 degree water with a 7mm wetsuit for over a half hour. Without the wetsuit I doubt I'd last 5 minutes fully submerged. But in a sinking situation I'd still want a life raft or an inflatable dinghy to stay out of the water. A radar reflector is a low cost item with a lot of value as well. A personal strobe light and a whistle attached to each lifejacket is another important consideration.