List of Safety Requirements - US sailing vessel

[MarcLeQuebecois]

Good day all,
I really struggle to find a list of the safety requirements for a US registered sailing vessel...
It is for a pleasure craft of 24 meters or so. I assure you... not mine
I can't find it anywhere, only for smaller crafts on some US Coast Guard website, and they did not have an answer for me...

Who manages that ?
There must be a list of requirements to fill before you can register the boat, right ?
Like how many fire extinguishers, how long the rescue line, documents to have on board, etc, etc..
Who is managing that ? ....

Many thx for your help !
Marc

[UNCIVILIZED]

Are you speaking of a privately owned vessel, not at all used commercially?

[MarcLeQuebecois]

Hello,
Yes, that would be a privately owned vessel . It is actually not owne by a private person, but rather by an environmental organization. But what is clear anyway is the fact that yes it is registered as a private vessel, no commercial activity of any kind.
best regards,
Marc

[crabcake]

Originally Posted by MarcLeQuebecois

Good day all,
I really struggle to find a list of the safety requirements for a US registered sailing vessel...
It is for a pleasure craft of 24 meters or so. I assure you... not mine
I can't find it anywhere, only for smaller crafts on some US Coast Guard website, and they did not have an answer for me...

Who manages that ?
There must be a list of requirements to fill before you can register the boat, right ?
Like how many fire extinguishers, how long the rescue line, documents to have on board, etc, etc..
Who is managing that ? ....

Many thx for your help !
Marc

Google Search provided this

[MarcLeQuebecois]

Great, thx for this.. it is a little bit more recent, more detailed.. but as what I found previously... it is for boats up to 65 feet !
I need something for 81 feet....
cheers
MArc

[Teknishn]

If the boat is in the US, my suggestion would be to request a USCG courtesy inspection where the Coast Guard will come onboard and go through the boat and tell you where to improve on safety. At the same time, ask them for a list of safety requirements, or where to find them.

If the boat is not located in US waters, I would suggest contacting the USCG directly and request a reference document to be sent via e-mail.

The linked posted by Crabcake is a good place to start, as well as the ABYC safety lists (both limited to 65 feet however). I would also recommend looking at SOLAS requirements as well in order to familiarize yourself with those safety recommendations.

Basic safety requirements on pleasure boats larger than 65 feet won't change much except number of fire extinguishers, life jackets, fire and smoke detectors, etc. A more determining factor over 65 feet will be emergency exits, dewatering capabilities, fuel systems, anchoring and mooring tackle, and ventilation systems...just to name a few items.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by MarcLeQuebecois

Great, thx for this.. it is a little bit more recent, more detailed.. but as what I found previously... it is for boats up to 65 feet !
I need something for 81 feet....
cheers
MArc

Marc
You need to be quite utterly precise about your boat length.
I notice a certain vagueness in your first post and now we find out you have added a few extra feet outta thin air.

Nor have you been forthcoming as to any international sailing you intend to do.

I think perhaps you do have a bit of knowledge that even for private boats there's length restrictions once you are over seas.
In some countries private boats need a pilot to enter an leave port. Some its 40 meters but some its much smaller, I think about 80 feet. I know 76 is fine but 86 is not but I don't know exactly. (Cos my boat ain't big enough!)

Also the safety, etc, equipment will be different for your boat from Post 1 to your last post.

As there's very few on this forum with 80 foot boats I would take the advice given here as particularly suspect.

Coast Guards around the world roll their eyes at silly things sailors do in a 30 or 40 foot boat... but they expect a great deal more from the skipper and/or owner of one over 20 meters


Mark

[01kiwijohn]

Try this summary. It's pretty easy to understand. If you want to get really into it then consult the relevant CFR's, any USCG licenced skipper can point you in the right direction.
http://www.southernyachtclub.org/files/USCGMinReq.pdf

[01kiwijohn]

unfortunately, this is only good for boats UP TO 65 feet.

[rodgoult]

One place to start is the USCG website, where links can be found for the Federal Regulations (CFR) - Federal Regulations

[MarcLeQuebecois]

Originally Posted by Teknishn

If the boat is in the US, my suggestion would be to request a USCG courtesy inspection where the Coast Guard will come onboard and go through the boat and tell you where to improve on safety. At the same time, ask them for a list of safety requirements, or where to find them.

If the boat is not located in US waters, I would suggest contacting the USCG directly and request a reference document to be sent via e-mail.

The linked posted by Crabcake is a good place to start, as well as the ABYC safety lists (both limited to 65 feet however). I would also recommend looking at SOLAS requirements as well in order to familiarize yourself with those safety recommendations.

Basic safety requirements on pleasure boats larger than 65 feet won't change much except number of fire extinguishers, life jackets, fire and smoke detectors, etc. A more determining factor over 65 feet will be emergency exits, dewatering capabilities, fuel systems, anchoring and mooring tackle, and ventilation systems...just to name a few items.

Thx very much for the feedback, that helps ! I called USCG San Diego and on the phone they had no clue where to find it... they said they would call back... still waiting... and I did request a ship visit by e mail... still waiting to hear back on that one cheers

[MarcLeQuebecois]

Thank you all for the feedback,
happy sailing,
Marc

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by MarcLeQuebecois

Hello,
Yes, that would be a privately owned vessel . It is actually not owne by a private person, but rather by an environmental organization. But what is clear anyway is the fact that yes it is registered as a private vessel, no commercial activity of any kind.
best regards,
Marc

My guess would be the requirements would be the same as a commercial vessel.

[CarstenWL]

... could be the same as a commercially used sailing vessel but than there must be a 'US law to make this happen' ....

A commercially used sailing vessel over 24m and <3000GT (GRT) would need to comply to the corresponding SOLAS regulations (The US are a member of the IMO - International Maritime Organization).

Starting point than would be http://www.rif.mer.developpement-dur..._cle14defd.pdf with a link given to Section 242 ...

Regards,

Carsten

[Chuck Hawley]

When I wrote for West Marine, I found the same issue for privately-owned vessels over 20m. There were some requirements that were clearly spelled out like Navigation Lights, but other items were very hard to determine.

First, realize that on a vessel under 20m, you only need about 10 items according to the Coast Guard, and several of these are plaques. The include navigation lights, sound making devices, visual distress signals, fire extinguishers, life jackets, a marine sanitation device, backfire prevention, ventilation on gas inboards, the Rule of the Road and three plaques.

Classification societies "take over" at 24m, and frequently their requirements are in conflict with the Coast Guard recreational boat requirements. I think there are something like seven classification societies worldwide, but that might be dated information.

I think you've identified a sort of black hole between recreational boats and commercial vessels. You may find that a yacht insurance company would have a good read on this, especially in this odd area between 20m and 24m.

Chuck