"Portable" Anchor Light?

[thinwater]

Davis Instruments Mega-Light LED Utility Light - Exterior - 3300

The Davis Instruments Mega-Light™ LED Utility Light is an energy efficient light that turns on at dusk and off at dawn. Features: Includes 15 ft. heavy-duty cord with standard lighter plug Dual-function Fresnel lens: Fr

defender.com

Not USCG legal. Does not meet the brightness requirements.

They have to be tested for compliance. And yes, that means if you use a different bulb it is automatically non-compliment, since the approval is only valid with the bulb used in the test. (correction--it seems that Dr. LED has done this for certain common lamps.) In actual reality, many lights no longer meet USCG requirements (not just certification) with a different bulb because the beam is focused in the wrong plane (I have done some of this testing--if the filament is in a slightly different position in the bulb it screws up the focus).

If you change bulbs, whatever the source, observe your light from at least 1/2-mile and compare it to other bulbs. I've tested lights where the beam was either too close to the ground (looked good from the dock near the boat, but faded from 1/4-mile and further) or too high (the light goes up) because the filament was the wrong place. You have to be at least 1000 feet from the boat to get a true reading. Do the trig on a 50-foot mast and just a few degrees of beam deviation.

The Navisafe light is USCG listed. But it is not designed to be hung in the rigging (requires a mounting). There were a few legal hanging lights in the past, but to my knowledge, they have all been discontinued, probably due to no demand.

I agree, this is a poor state of affairs.

 

[jviss]

Not USCG legal. Does not meet the brightness requirements.

They have to be tested for compliance. And yes, that means if you use a different bulb it is automatically non-compliment, since aproval is only valid with the bulb used. In actual reality, many lights no longer meet USCG requirements with a different bulb because the beam is focused in the wrong plane (I have done some of this testing--if the filiment is in a slightly different possition in the bulb it screws up the focus).

The Navisafe light is USCG listed. But it is not designed to be hung in the rigging (requires a mounting). There were a few legal hanging lights in the past, but to my knowledge, they have all been discontinued, probably due to no demand.

I agree, this is a poor state of affairs.

That's interesting. It's my understanding that when Dr. LED produces bulbs for particular fixtures, like their Polar Star 40 for Aqua Signal Series 40 fixtures, they have them USCG certified. Is that not so, to your knowledge?

 

[thinwater]

That's interesting. It's my understanding that when Dr. LED produces bulbs for particular fixtures, like their Polar Star 40 for Aqua Signal Series 40 fixtures, they have them USCG certified. Is that not so, to your knowledge?

Yes, that does appear to be the case. I also suspect they are the only ones. Small market for aftermarket bulbs.

 

[jviss]

Yes, that does appear to be the case. I also suspect they are the only ones. Small market for aftermarket bulbs.

Cool. So the exorbitant price was worth it.

I paid like $45 for the "White Polar Star 40 Navigation LED Replacement Bulb." Just for shits I bought an imported LED 15d bulb on Amazon for $11. I think the cheap one is brighter!

 

[Alan Gomes]

Cool. So the exorbitant price was worth it.

I paid like $45 for the "White Polar Star 40 Navigation LED Replacement Bulb." Just for shits I bought an imported LED 15d bulb on Amazon for $11. I think the cheap one is brighter!

And it's most likely that the cheap Amazon one produces RFI from Hades.

 

[rgranger]

Thanks. I was thinking (over-thinking) that it would be cool to fabricate a bracket for the end of the boom that's out of the way of all sailing activity, mount an anchor light it it, and wire it through the boom, mast, and to the panel.

You must be an engineer...

Here is my bracket....

 

[jviss]

You must be an engineer

I am.

 

[Richard19068]

Not sure what nuance you are going for here. The fixture should state it, I guess, as well as the bulb. That's why I over-paid for Dr. LED bulbs!

It is nuanced. And I do have a tendency to overthink things.

Just curious that if what you had on your boat met the visibility requirements, but the fixture/bulb/packaging didn't specifically say that it did, would that be "legal". For example, if you had a setup that met the specifications but didn't have the lingo on the bulb/fixture/packaging, could a boat that hit you at anchor prevail in court based on the argument that your fixture/bulb/packaging did not state that it met the requirements, even if it did. Of course you might have to prove that your "custom" setup did fit the visibility requirements but that is another question. I imagine in the real world there would be some sort of shared liability judgement if it got that far.

Can the Coast Guard cite you on a technicality if you couldn't show that your bulb/fixture/packaging stated that they met the requirements even if in actuality they did?

Just musing....

 

[Richard19068]

Thanks. I was thinking (over-thinking) that it would be cool to fabricate a bracket for the end of the boom that's out of the way of all sailing activity, mount an anchor light it it, and wire it through the boom, mast, and to the panel.

Okay, here is over thinking for you!
"...
(b) A vessel of less than 50 meters in length may exhibit an all-round white light where it can best be seen instead of the lights prescribed in paragraph (a) of this Rule."

If the light was on the end of the boom it might be obscured from the bow by the boom and/or the mast. Would that satisfy "where it can best be seen" (as compared to the top of the mast)?

I think that could be arguable from both standpoints.

Obviously, I have too much time on my hands today!

I wonder if there's a mast head anchor light with a dusk/dawn switch?

Yes, Marinebeem has one.

 

[Richard19068]

And, for the record, I have often hung a Mega-Light from my boom as an anchor light since the all around white light at the top of my mast doesn't work due to wiring problems.

 

[jaysweet]

Thanks. I was thinking (over-thinking) that it would be cool to fabricate a bracket for the end of the boom that's out of the way of all sailing activity, mount an anchor light it it, and wire it through the boom, mast, and to the panel.

I wonder if there's a mast head anchor light with a dusk/dawn switch?

The Davis Mega light that Dave posted above turns on and off automatically! Or so it says.

 

[jviss]

It is nuanced. And I do have a tendency to overthink things.

Just curious that if what you had on your boat met the visibility requirements, but the fixture/bulb/packaging didn't specifically say that it did, would that be "legal". For example, if you had a setup that met the specifications but didn't have the lingo on the bulb/fixture/packaging, could a boat that hit you at anchor prevail in court based on the argument that your fixture/bulb/packaging did not state that it met the requirements, even if it did. Of course you might have to prove that your "custom" setup did fit the visibility requirements but that is another question. I imagine in the real world there would be some sort of shared liability judgement if it got that far.

Can the Coast Guard cite you on a technicality if you couldn't show that your bulb/fixture/packaging didn't state that they met the requirements even if in actuality they did?

Just musing....

I enjoy this kind of discussion. I honestly don't think it would go that deep in a court of law if there was some kind of liability action. That said, I think in the case of Dr. LED you'd be O.K.

I also think you have a misplaced negative in your last sentence. Take a look.

 

[Richard19068]

I also think you have a misplaced negative in your last sentence. Take a look.

Oh that's bad! I hate it when I do that.

Fixed it.

Thanks.

 

[thinwater]

Okay, here is over thinking for you!
"...
(b) A vessel of less than 50 meters in length may exhibit an all-round white light where it can best be seen instead of the lights prescribed in paragraph (a) of this Rule."

If the light was on the end of the boom it might be obscured from the bow by the boom and/or the mast. Would that satisfy "where it can best be seen" (as compared to the top of the mast)? ...

The answer to your question is spelled out in the annex to COLREGS. A certain number of degrees of blockage are permitted. A certain minimum height. Certain angles of light projection above and below the horizon. All spelled out. No, it does not need to be at the top of the mast (and remember when reading COLREGS that the masthead is not the top of the mast).

Happy reading.

 

[Richard19068]

The answer to your question is spelled out in the annex to COLREGS. A certain number of degrees of blockage are permitted. A certain minimum height. Certain angles of light projection above and below the horizon. All spelled out. No, it does not need to be at the top of the mast (and remember when reading COLREGS that the masthead is not the top of the mast).

Happy reading.

Understood that masthead is a power vessel definition and not a "top of mast" thing.

I didn't know there were "degrees of blockage" allowances. Good to know.

Thank you.

 

[Rick486]

@Rick486 and @dlochner how and where do you mount these?

The light is very small in weight (didn't want to say "...the light is light..." and it comes with a fastening device that allowed me to hang it from the forestay by wrapping the wire around the jib and spinnaker halyard. Then I had a 12 V outlet in the anchor locker. Mine had a sensor for darkness so it turned on and off automatically.

 

[thinwater]

Understood that masthead is a power vessel definition and not a "top of mast" thing.

I didn't know there were "degrees of blockage" allowances. Good to know.

Thank you.

The masthead nomenclature comes from when mast sections overlapped, and is the location where the steaming light is now placed. Weird nomenclature in this day and age. I'm sure it was way more practical to refill kerosene lamps at the mast head than the top of the mast.

6 degrees blockage is allowed, which means it needs to be >5-8 feet from the mast unless it is at the top.

 

[jviss]

The masthead nomenclature comes from when mast sections overlapped, and is the location where the steaming light is now placed. Weird nomenclature in this day and age. I'm sure it was way more practical to refill kerosene lamps at the mast head than the top of the mast.

6 degrees blockage is allowed, which means it needs to be >5-8 feet from the mast unless it is at the top.
View attachment 218035

Hmmm, now you have me thinking. Maybe I could get that Davis light, install a cigarette lighter outlet in the anchor locker (I have a few of the good Marineco ones), and then rig a bracket on my cowl guards to support a telescoping boat hook, and make a bracket for the light for the top of the hook.

Another option is to mount an anchor light on top of my radome, which is on a post on at the transom, port side. There's a deck light up there that I never use, on it's own circuit and breaker, that I could take over. It's quite far from the mast so should be fine regarding blockage.

 

[thinwater]

Bottom line: It needs to be obvious enough that you don't get hit. You could do worse than use two.

 

[jviss]

Bottom line: It needs to be obvious enough that you don't get hit. You could do worse than use two.

What if some drunk in a powerboat sees two anchor lights and decides to go between them?