Inflatable Preservers

[Donald Tyson]

Is anyone using the auto inflatable Life preservers from West Marine of any similar store? Id like to wear a Life Preserver all the time but frankly its too hot. The inflatable pfd's look lass intense.

[thataway]

I would say that the majority of recreational boaters and many professionals use the inflatable life vests. In our dinghy we use the waist band/fanny pack type. For the larger boats, we choose a high quality inflatable vest--Put extra retroflective tape on the vest. Also a hand held VHF, whistle and strobe Plus PLB when offshore.

Many of the locks require persons on the deck to have life jackets on. Also in open boats less than 26' the engine cut off switch has to be attached to the operator. The C Dory pilot house boats are exempt from this cutout switch rule.

[Robert H. Wilkinson]

Be aware of restrictions re. inflatables -

Not for under 16 year old
Not for under 80pds.
Not for white water rafting
Not for high impact sports - tubing/skiing
Not for PWC
Also they are only considered legal when being worn - do not count during a CG inspection if in storage.

Check laws in your area.

Rob

[Tom Hruby]

Yes the inflatable PFD's (personal floatation device) are more comfortable and most people use them (I do). However there is one aspect of their use that is different from the foam PFD's, and often forgotten. The "activation bobbin" has to be replaced every three years, or the PFD does not meet Coast Guard specs. The little yellow bobbins have a manufacturing date on them you need to check. Many of the less expensive bobbins available on places like Amazon are already 1-2 years from the time of manufacture, if not already past their use date.

[Flashyfish]

I have been wearing the inflatable vest for over 10 years. Best thing ever as long as they are maintained. The Mustang brand provide good quality and it is easy to find rearming kits.
Spend the extra money and buy the type that auto inflate. Comfortable, cool and you tend to forget it is even on.
I added a miniature "Rescue me Beacon" to mine as I sometimes fish alone in the ocean.

[thataway]

[DaveInRI]

Pros/cons to each style, whether inflatable or foam. My father prefers the Fanny pack style, which has a manual ripcord and an auto inflate feature that uses a paper wick, so after a minute or something like that it soaks through and blows itself up. Either way you now have an inflatable horseshoe shape to pull up and over your head. I never liked that idea, because it felt like only partially wearing one. I want something that is already in the right position if I go overboard, especially if the water is cold or I might be hurt (eg, slip off the deck or dock and whack my head on the way down). Waiting 30-60 seconds for a thing to auto inflate would seem like an eternity if not too long, safety wise. Granted, even a regular foam pfd isn’t rated to turn your face over or give lots of flotation for waves like the offshore orange ones, but to your own point— the best pfd is the one you’ll wear. Sorta like how phone cameras replaced real cameras for most people despite clearly not being the best cameras (the best camera is the one you’ve got in your pocket). I used his Fanny pack pfd for a trip with my 4 year old son and it made me nervous that if anything happened I might not be protected enough to protect him, and put on a regular Stearns foam one with clips (I forget the type, is it type 3? 2? The common universal ones). Irrational as it may be, I felt safer personally and more responsible for him. BUT… if boating with other adults, with quick chance of rescue (I’m not worried about smashing into a jetty or other boat), I’d wear the auto inflate over the shoulders already kind. Just know “the best part is no part” , so having a mechanized device with no inherent buoyancy is a risk. If I were kayaking or canoeing, I’d probably stick with a foam one lest I overturn into a rock and bonk my head.

[Donald Tyson]

Wow. Allot to process. Well the same argument for the arms we bear and what caliber is best...for life preservers it will always be the one you didn't leave at home.

But seriously, I feel I'll use an inflatable everyday if it was not so intrusive. I will not mind putting on an off shore jobber if going through an inlet of if a storm traps us out on the water somewhere. But I could never wear the big ole offshore model daily, all day, in warm weather.

I had never considered how one might accessorize a PDF for greater success of rescue once overboard. By adding reflective tape, radio and strobe.
I won't yet have a waterproof radio but the rest is easy and relatively inexpensive.

Keep Going, I'm learning.

Now how about the subject of ignition kill switches. What will stop your boat once you go into the water. I've actually had nightmares about that.

[thataway]

The lanyard type of kill switch is not the best for the C Dory--there is another one which does not use the lanyard:
Fell Marine, and I believe that Blue Seas has one also. Do the google search. These use a water activated radio signal to stop the motor. I have fallen in the water three times where I needed help (Some of the other times had to do with small racing sailboats, or some antics.). Once when I as about 10 years old, and I was jumping from my dad's boat to the dinghy to go ashore (after WWII there were no slips available in San Pedro, so we tied off to pilings. Somewhere in this time, I fell off my dad's sailboat at sea. The boat had no lifelines, toe rails were about 1 1/2" inch high and I had gone forward to sweat up the manilla halyards on a wet and slippery deck. Fortunately he was strong, and grabbed me as he sailed past, and let the sheets fly. The boat had 3' freeboard, so this was no easy fete. The last time was about 5 years ago--when I fell between the dock and boat on the Tennessee River. I could not get out on the dock, into the dinghy, but finely Marie pulled the inflatable with me hanging on, to the Swim ladder on the back of the C Dory25 and I was able to pull myself aboard, despite an injured leg. That was part of our decision to give up the C Dory.

[Donald Tyson]

You said you gave up the C-Dory? What do you have now?

[Flashyfish]

I use the rescueME PLB1 that notify rescue services when activated. Small enough to fit in the zipper pouch on the Mustang life vest. 7 year battery life before replacement.

[Donald Tyson]

Wow, Seven Yrs! Sounds safe...

[thataway]

Donald: PLB stands for Personal Locator beacon. That is part of the Sat Sars program world wide. The personal locator beacon is registered to a person, not a boat, as an EPIRB is. However the process is the same, signal strength the same. PLB battery has to be good for 24hours. EPIRB needs to be good for 48 hours.

When the beacon is activated the signal of distress, and the Lat Long of the device is transmitted to world wide Sat Sar headquarters. The device is registered in a country and has a unique identifer. The Sat Sar center in the country of registry calls numbers on file, to determine if this is a true emergency or if it is a hoax or accidentally turned on. (Most signals are the latter, unfortunately. If it is validated (and a float plan should have been given to whom ever has the contact phone number, then an asset is deployed--ofter a airplane or helicopter. If within range of the coast guard, then they proceed toward the area of the triggered. If a skier or hiker, then the forrest service, and or sheriff's rescue team etc is deplayed--the PLB is not just for boats--anywhere we go into remote areas we each have our own PLB.

I no longer own a C Dory for the first time in over 20 years. I am 88 years old with multiple physical problems. I still have an 18 foot catamaran for local use near my waterfront home.

[Donald Tyson]

Boat or no boat I'm thankful you've hung around to inspire and share useful information with those of us just starting our journey. I've certainly been around boats all my adult life but never took them seriously as I only used them for short periods of time locally. I've learned more in the last year than the previous 40 yrs. I'm learning what I needed to learn all along...
Thanks for your portion of the curriculum.
I never knew PLB's were available. Now I do.

[gulfcoast john]

Some of my (our) thoughts and considerations regarding PFD’s and C-Dorys.

For higher risk cruising, such as across the Gulf, exposed outside off the Everglades, the Great Lakes and the larger sounds, it makes a lot of sense to carry Type I Offshore PFD’s. SOLAS (Saftey of Life At Sea) is an international accrediting agency that promulgates stricter standards than the USCG does. So when we replace an Offshore Type I, it’s SOLAS approved. Additional features not found on other Type I include a ‘Buddy Line’ (so we’ll be found together, hopefully), better reflectives, loops for a Storm Whistle and a strobe light etc. Note our strobe lights are also SOLAS approved. SOLAS strobe lights show up very well for airbourne searches with night vision goggles.



The extra cost is minimal. However, they all take up a lot of room on a C-Dory, and we elect not to take them on a low-risk, protected waters voyage like our just completed Tenn-Tom adventure; we had ONLY two auto inflate PFD’s which ARE USCG Type II that do NOT have to be worn to satisfy the carriage requirements. West Marine Offshore Model 2042A. Always look for 35# buoyancy, some are as low as 22# and may not turn an unconscious person's head up and back to allow breathing.

We want an auto inflate feature in case we fall in unconscious.
The downside is that rain or even fog or mist can dissolve the aspirin-like ‘bobbin’ which is keeping the spring-loaded trigger from puncturing the CO2 canister and inflating the flotation jacket. Both bobbins and CO2 should be replaced at 3 years from mfg date, not your purchase date. The good news is that if the bobbin material falls apart, your PFD will pop open. Assuming the CO2 hasn’t leaked out.

A green stripe or window etc shows that the trigger portion is properly attached to the CO2 canister. It does NOT show whether the canister has any pressure. And you can always manually inflate it with a one-way tube by mouth. Re-arm kits run $30-40.

Pros can’t have their PFD’s popping off every time they work in the rain. The alternative trigger mechanism is a hydrostatic trigger that will only activate if submerged in four inches of water. And yes, they are more expensive. These are good for 5 years and re-arm kits run $75.

Federal law requires your PFD label to show the Type approval and whether the approval requires it to be worn. Here is a manual-only vest we use only for locking in the rain. USCG inspectors like it if the PFD is pre-fit for a crewmember and which one, which makes sense in an emergency.



Per the required label, Type V Approved Only When Worn.



This is the West Marine Offshore model we chose, because it was on a buy one get one 50% off and we like the return policy. I think Mustang is the premier brand for comfort, quality and not abandoning re-arm kits quickly. New models include a clear plastic window so inspectors can see whether or not the green Indicator is showing proper assembly. They are shipped WITHOUT the CO2 canister screwed in; don’t let the boarding party see that on your inflatable.



Per the required label, ‘For Recreational Boats: This is a Type II PFD’.

If it were Approved as a Type II PFD Only When Worn then this label would specify that.



If you Google ‘Are all inflatable PFD’S required to be worn to count?’ You’ll get the AI result, ‘ Yes, they are all Type V and must be worn to count’. So much for AI.

The online stores will not show you this, so before you buy, go in person to a West Marine and look carefully at the required label for the Type rating and whether required to be worn. Don’t ask the employees, they won’t have a clue.

I think Gold Loopers Tom and Joyce are correct that the USACE PFD locking requirements vary by district. The Tenn-Tom locks all required ‘The line handlers’ to wear one. Eileen handled her single line without ever leaving the safety of the cockpit. I also wore mine at the helm, though not required.

Hope something here is helpful as you and your crew decide on your own preferences and choices.

John