Emergency nav lights?

[tominny]

Does anyone know of red/green/white nav lights for a 34' sailboat with auxiliary in case the onboard electronics crap out?
Batter-operated with a 24h battery- life would be acceptable. What about oil lamps? Any specific recommendations?


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[vfsurgpa]

Check Defender. They have LED nav lights that are portable, use 3 triple A batteries and are very bright. Attachment system is separate, I have a 3 way for the bow and a 360 white for the stern. I might have two white lights, so I am good for powering. Each has a switching system that divides the lights so you can select. Eg: port 112 only, or stern light only instead of 360. Pretty nifty. I can get the brand and post later.


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[MBWhite]

I've never used them but I bought an emergency kit with 3 light sticks in it. I think I got it from West Marine.



I suspect nowadays you can get waterproof led lanterns in all 3 colors and that might be better in some respects, but for something you plan on not using but with an unlimited shelf life the light sticks are a good choice IMHO.

[vfsurgpa]

Navi safe 360 degree led lights, about $ 75 each. Look in portable nav lights in the Defender marine catalog.


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[noelex 77]

A common solution is to install a tricolour. This is of course also useful generally, but can also function if the bow navigations lights fail. While not legal motoring it is probably safer than battery operated lights that may not meet the required visibility standards and are difficult to fix in a spot with the correct angular cut outs.

With a separate house and start battery you have a reasonable backup for the electricity supply, but an emergency battery, mounted high above the waterline, is worth considering. It can also supply the VHF and maybe GPS.

A good selection of torches/flashlights is the final line of defence. Some models have diffusers that will transform them into an all round white light.

In the "good old days" many boats traveled offshore with no lights or a single white light. With the low power consumption of LEDs there is no excuse for this, but there are more important backups that I would prioritise first.

All of this does not help if you have to legally carry a totally independent alternative, but if your choice is not hampered by having to comply with regulations I think a tricolour is a better option.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by tominny

Does anyone know of red/green/white nav lights for a 34' sailboat with auxiliary in case the onboard electronics crap out?
Batter-operated with a 24h battery- life would be acceptable. What about oil lamps? Any specific recommendations?


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You have electronic navigation lights?

Your navigation lights should be (and probably are) independent of any electronics on the boat. There's a wire from the battery positive terminal to a fuse or circuit breaker, to a switch, to the light, and back to the battery negative terminal. There's not much to fail if your wiring is in good condition. Carry spare fuses and bulbs. That's all you need.

[estarzinger]

Nav lights, particularily bow light, fail at an unfortunately high frequency. And it's not just bulbs and fuses. With Aqua signals, just for instance, the whole fixtures can/does fill up with water, which corrodes everything. I have also had two led bow lights fail, due to either corrosion or heat (not sure), but not "fixable".

The ISAF recognized this failure rate when they wrote the following rule into the offshore safety regulations:

3.27.4 Reserve navigation lights shall be carried having the same minimum specifications as the navigation lights above, with a separable power source, and wiring or supply system essentially separate from that used for the normal navigation lights

[Ryan H]

Attawood clamp on navigation lights. One stern white light and one red/green bow light. Sells at walmart for about 30$. Just be sure you've got a few extra AAA on you.

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