Renting an EPIRB

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rgranger

rgranger

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Jan 19, 2010
12,950
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
Hey All

I ran across this website that rents SAT phones & EPIRBs.

http://www.satellitephonestore.com/

I was really intrigued by the idea. I only do one or two cruises/year (usually only one) that takes me out of the sight of land so the cost of an EPIRB is high relative to how often I feel I should have one on board...

But if I can rent one for only $20/week... then it would cost me about $20/year for this peace of mind.

For the cost of a new one, I can rent one for 12 years before I break even.

Anyone see a down side to something like this?

Seems like a no-brainer but thought if there is something I'm overlooking, y'all would be the ones to tell me.

r
 
gpd955

gpd955

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Feb 22, 2006
1,164
Catalina 310 Cape May, NJ
BoatUS also rents them, albeit for more than $20/wk, but it's an option.
 
Phil Herring

Phil Herring

Alien
Mar 25, 1997
4,924
- - Bainbridge Island
Hey, if anyone's interested, we've been discussing a Guest Expert Forum with an outfit that rents and sells sat phones.

Is that something you'd like to see?
 
Tim R.

Tim R.

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May 27, 2004
3,626
Caliber 40 Long Range Cruiser Portland, Maine
We currently own one but before we did, we rented them from Boatus for all of the overnight races we did off-shore.
 
Joe

Joe

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Jun 1, 2004
8,323
Catalina 27 Mission Bay, San Diego
There is no downside..... especially if it gives you peace of mind.

This is not a new idea..... epirbs have been available for rent for quite some time. $20/week is a no-brainer.

The satphone rental is interesting too.... calling plans can be pricey
 
Don S/V ILLusion

Don S/V ILLusion

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Sep 25, 2008
7,696
Alden 50 Sarasota, Florida
Phil Herring said:
Hey, if anyone's interested, we've been discussing a Guest Expert Forum with an outfit that rents and sells sat phones.

Is that something you'd like to see?
Click to expand

Some thoughts you probably already considered:
1. there are already a number of distinct forums; adding more sometimes adds to the confusion, redundancy and complexity of trying to read all discussions.

2. creating the appearance of endorsing and/or morphing into a commercial forum.

3. entities which rent/sell sat phones are easily found in a search.

4. what expertise to they bring not otherwise readily available?

5. feel free to ignore the first 4
 
gpd955

gpd955

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Feb 22, 2006
1,164
Catalina 310 Cape May, NJ
Phil Herring said:
Hey, if anyone's interested, we've been discussing a Guest Expert Forum with an outfit that rents and sells sat phones.

Is that something you'd like to see?
Click to expand
Absolutely. When I was replying earlier I was thinking that it would be something good for the chandlery to do here.
 
RECESS

RECESS

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Dec 20, 2003
1,509
Catalina 27 . St. Mary's Georgia
Phil Herring said:
Hey, if anyone's interested, we've been discussing a Guest Expert Forum with an outfit that rents and sells sat phones.

Is that something you'd like to see?
Click to expand
I think a direct forum with an outfitter like this would be good. With the amount of this type of safety equipment they handle I bet they would be a good resource for owners of this equipment along with renters.


To the OP, I think there is only upside to what you are talking about.
 
sailaway78

sailaway78

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May 11, 2005
3,431
Seidelman S37 Slidell, La.
Has anyone seen

Has anyone seen the new thingy's Bass Pro Shops has. Saw them in their new catalogue a few days ago. While they do not call them an EPIRB, they advertise that they broadcast on both 121.5 and 406 Mhtz. Looks to me like some kind of mini EPIRB, but cost is only a couple hundred bucks. Right now I just use a SPOT, and feel pretty comfortable with it.
 
woodster

woodster

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Sep 15, 2009
6,244
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
correct me if i have misunderstood....i was looking at the new VHF radios a while back and it seems they have a button on them that you can push and does the same thing as the EPIRB.......

regards

woody
 
ggrizzard

ggrizzard

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May 27, 2004
2,059
Hunter 30_74-83 Ponce Inlet FL
Woodster, I researched the idea myself last year and found the following:
The automatic DSC button on newer VHF's will send your Lat-Lon position to the coast guard when you all them on Ch 16 and are requesting help IF the VHF is connected to a GPS that is turned on and communicating with the VHF using a NMEA connection.

Since my set up using a older Icom and a Garmin 76 was erratic in its operation, I asked if there was a new, fixed mount VHF with built in GPS and was told NO. There may be a hand held VHF with GPS, but I never learned if it had the DSC function built in.

If anyone out there knows of a newer VHF that has it combined, I'd love to hear about it. Seems to me a no brainer, since all these smart phones apparently have a built-in GPS receiver.
 
Tim R.

Tim R.

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May 27, 2004
3,626
Caliber 40 Long Range Cruiser Portland, Maine
woodster said:
correct me if i have misunderstood....i was looking at the new VHF radios a while back and it seems they have a button on them that you can push and does the same thing as the EPIRB.......

regards

woody
Click to expand
Are you saying these new VHFs have satellite communications capability? I think you may be referencing DSC which will put out a distress call to USCG with your position and other boat data. This is limited to line of sight and must be activated manually. Most are also dependent on a separate GPS which introduces a second point of failure.

Even if they did incorporate a epirb into a VHF, what if the boat sinks and takes the VHF with it? What if your 12v system is damaged?


I would still want a self contained unit that can deploy easily and/or automatically.
 
woodster

woodster

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Sep 15, 2009
6,244
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
Tim R. said:
Are you saying these new VHFs have satellite communications capability? I think you may be referencing DSC which will put out a distress call to USCG with your position and other boat data. This is limited to line of sight and must be activated manually. Most are also dependent on a separate GPS which introduces a second point of failure.

Even if they did incorporate a epirb into a VHF, what if the boat sinks and takes the VHF with it? What if your 12v system is damaged?


I would still want a self contained unit that can deploy easily and/or automatically.
Click to expand
all good points Tim....but if you have 6 people on board that would mean you need 6 EPIRB's ....even though the plan is to not separate from each other......would it not

regards

woody
 
Tim R.

Tim R.

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May 27, 2004
3,626
Caliber 40 Long Range Cruiser Portland, Maine
woodster said:
all good points Tim....but if you have 6 people on board that would mean you need 6 EPIRB's ....even though the plan is to not separate from each other......would it not

regards

woody
Click to expand
Woody, if the boat goes down with an epirb/VHF then it is useless.

If that same boat goes down and the 6 people and the epirb go in the water, they will all(people and epirb) drift fairly consistently and it will get the CG pretty close.

BTW, If you are in a situation where an epirb would be needed, you better have a life raft that can accommodate 6 people.
 
rgranger

rgranger

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Jan 19, 2010
12,950
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
Thanks All

Although renting an EPIRB is not a new idea, it was new to me... I was shopping around trying to find a decent price on a well reviewed unit when I came across this website.

So... this seems the way to go for the amount of deep water sailing I do... Most of my sailing is in a reservoir and for the one or two times a season I trailer to the coast, renting makes the most sense.

Thanks for your input.

r
 
woodster

woodster

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Sep 15, 2009
6,244
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
Tim R. said:
Woody, if the boat goes down with an epirb/VHF then it is useless.

If that same boat goes down and the 6 people and the epirb go in the water, they will all(people and epirb) drift fairly consistently and it will get the CG pretty close.

BTW, If you are in a situation where an epirb would be needed, you better have a life raft that can accommodate 6 people.
Click to expand
thanks for the insite Tim.....i just love this site as it is a good place to learn the does and donts of equiptment and the courtsey and saftey of the sea....

regards

woody
 
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