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inflatable lifejackets - what's what?


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We have coded our jackets with different coloured cordage. Each crew member is shown how to fit and use the jacket, I check fitting, and each crew remembers their colour. It’s theirs for the trip. Hydrostatic triggers. double crotch straps. 
 

plastimo. 150N. Comfortable. No idea what they’re like inflated. The water here is bloody cold at the best of times so I’m not rushing to get in and test - I should change that, though. 

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13 hours ago, DrWatson said:

water here is bloody cold

Do calisthenics on deck and run on the spot for 10-15 minutes while telling funny stories then jump overboard. The first time I did this on the Spirit of NZ I wasn't looking forward to it. But it's surprising how enjoyable it is even in very cold water. We jump in and swim to the landing nets pronto - the more hardy swim a lap around the boat. On warm mornings it's hard to get the kids out of the water.

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On 9/04/2022 at 2:06 PM, Island Time said:

I suggest anyone who has an inflatable jacket manually blows it up and jump in with it on. Try it. Make certain it works for you. Then try again with foul weather gear on, and whatever you normally carry. This will give you confidence if it works fine, and let you know if you need to upgrade.

My offshore jacket has crotch strap, hood, knife, plb, and a small but decent led torch attached. It is deliberately a manual unit, as I have had to use it several times as a harness, getting overboard to cut crap off the prop etc. seems that’s always the middle of the night….

Thankyou so very much for your suggestion, I recently bought inflatable jacket.  1 tip for beginners:

Remember to install the compressed air canister that comes with it before you wear it.
 
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Late update.  We had a bunch of flybuys points expiring this month, so they got traded in on two hutchwilco 170nm inflatables.  I'll get crotch straps and marker lights for them and we are good to go!

Thanks for all the advice everyone.  I think we ended up at the right price/performance point.

16570606615793132735982154980121.jpg

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16 minutes ago, Island Time said:

Those look like they have no tether points?

Tether add ons to meet the regs go around the back strap and onto the front strap.  They don't need or require specific tether points.   They just need to be secured, which is done with cow hitches. 

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thought this was interesting from YNZ - something to consider (I hadn't) if needing a CAT 3 inspection - getting lifejackets serviced by an agent and needing the service certificate adds cost and complication (no argument from me that you need to be sure its going to work...) but a little more challenging for us in the regions

 

The servicing of inflatable lifejackets can create some confusion, particularly when a yacht inspector asks for the current service certificate.

The Safety Regulations of Sailing specify that all equipment must be serviced in accordance with the manufacturer's requirements.

Below is a summary of the requirements of the most common lifejackets as at June 2021:

Brand Distributor Service Interval Service Centre name Location
Baltic Kiwi Yachting 12 months Safety at Sea Auckland
Secumar Kiwi Yachting 24 months Safety at Sea Auckland
Spinlock Lusty & Blundell 12 months Lusty & Blundell Auckland
Crewsaver Survitec 12 months RFD National
Burnsco Burnsco 12 months Self Service or Transport & Marine Tauranga
Edge Burnsco 12 months Self Service or Transport & Marine Tauranga
Kru Hutchwilco 24 months Wilco Auckland
Hutchwilco Hutchwilco 12 months Self service or Wilco Auckland

  

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Lot to be said for Hutchwilco or Burnsco, I had a Hutchwilco that had been sitting forgotten in a locker for over 10 years without service. This was when the subject came up in a SSANZ discussion a few years ago, threw it in marina and it inflated immediately. I think that the bladders and mechanisms come from only a few suppliers, I really cant see the need for a manufacturers service as they are so simple, its basically blow them up and see if they hold air and weigh the cylinders. A visual once over and youre good to go.

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40 minutes ago, Psyche said:

Lot to be said for Hutchwilco or Burnsco, I had a Hutchwilco that had been sitting forgotten in a locker for over 10 years without service. This was when the subject came up in a SSANZ discussion a few years ago, threw it in marina and it inflated immediately. I think that the bladders and mechanisms come from only a few suppliers, I really cant see the need for a manufacturers service as they are so simple, its basically blow them up and see if they hold air and weigh the cylinders. A visual once over and youre good to go.

I just wrote the servicing procedure into SO's operation manual.  Concur.  Very basic process.

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2 hours ago, Psyche said:

Lot to be said for Hutchwilco or Burnsco, I had a Hutchwilco that had been sitting forgotten in a locker for over 10 years without service. This was when the subject came up in a SSANZ discussion a few years ago, threw it in marina and it inflated immediately. I think that the bladders and mechanisms come from only a few suppliers, I really cant see the need for a manufacturers service as they are so simple, its basically blow them up and see if they hold air and weigh the cylinders. A visual once over and youre good to go.

I serviced two last year and was horrified to find the cylinders had completely unscrewed themselves in both PFDs after 3 years  . Regular checks are now on the cards 

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If you want to buy a Baltic lifejacket, you are currently out of luck.  Burnsco has no stock.

Not sure if this is temporary due to supply issues, or if they have pulled out of the market?

 

 

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20 hours ago, ex Elly said:

If you want to buy a Baltic lifejacket, you are currently out of luck.  Burnsco has no stock.

Not sure if this is temporary due to supply issues, or if they have pulled out of the market?

 

 

Burnsco don't stock Baltic at all stores only some.

Safety at Sea has stock as do other retailers around the country.

There is new models arriving shortly before summer so keep an eye out for those.

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On 8/07/2022 at 12:49 PM, mischief said:

thought this was interesting from YNZ - something to consider (I hadn't) if needing a CAT 3 inspection - getting lifejackets serviced by an agent and needing the service certificate adds cost and complication (no argument from me that you need to be sure its going to work...) but a little more challenging for us in the regions

 

The servicing of inflatable lifejackets can create some confusion, particularly when a yacht inspector asks for the current service certificate.

The Safety Regulations of Sailing specify that all equipment must be serviced in accordance with the manufacturer's requirements.

Below is a summary of the requirements of the most common lifejackets as at June 2021:

Brand Distributor Service Interval Service Centre name Location
Baltic Kiwi Yachting 12 months Safety at Sea Auckland
Secumar Kiwi Yachting 24 months Safety at Sea Auckland
Spinlock Lusty & Blundell 12 months Lusty & Blundell Auckland
Crewsaver Survitec 12 months RFD National
Burnsco Burnsco 12 months Self Service or Transport & Marine Tauranga
Edge Burnsco 12 months Self Service or Transport & Marine Tauranga
Kru Hutchwilco 24 months Wilco Auckland
Hutchwilco Hutchwilco 12 months Self service or Wilco Auckland

  

Interested in where this info comes from? Particularly re Baltic, which I have, as the information on the Baltic website says that you should have it serviced each year by an authorized agent OR you can do it yourself.

Is the above from ynz? Or just something collated from what you could find?

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1 hour ago, raz88 said:

Interested in where this info comes from? Particularly re Baltic, which I have, as the information on the Baltic website says that you should have it serviced each year by an authorized agent OR you can do it yourself.

Is the above from ynz? Or just something collated from what you could find?

Call me cynical but this is just an angle for people who dont mind paying. They are so basic, check your straps and buckles for wear, blow up the bladder and let it sit overnight, Ive never had an issue on any jacket once I was told they had to be serviced  regularly. The co2 mechanism can only be visually inspected and the cartridge weighed, I havent heard of gas loss but maybe it happens- thats it! Not rocket science and IMHO yachties need to be more self reliant, not less. Sure if its a complex device, then you will need professional servicing but not a LJ!  The best thing about this servicing discussion it that there is an awareness that servicing is a thing. When I first got inflatables, it definitely wasn't. 

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