Choosing a life raft.

[caldawson]

Hey guys, very new to sailing and we are wondering what life raft is going to be best for us. We plan on cruising around Australia to start off with but then moving longer voyages. There are two of us on a 45ft yacht.
Any input would be amazing.

Thanks.

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by caldawson

Hey guys, very new to sailing and we are wondering what life raft is going to be best for us. We plan on cruising around Australia to start off with but then moving longer voyages. There are two of us on a 45ft yacht.
Any input would be amazing.

Thanks.

Given there's only the two of you, although you might later include a crew or two on passages, a four man raft is likely adequate. Whatever you buy, ensure that it's light enough that the smaller of you is able to manage extracting it from storage and deploying it in case the larger of you is disabled. In our case (42' yacht, older crew of two including a 5', 105#, lady) we elected a fairly light weight Revere Coastal Elite in a valise pack considering that our voyaging never takes us much further than 75 miles off-shore between ports and that, with multiple EPIRB's we should able to get SAR assistance in reasonably short order if needed. It is sufficient to hold us for a day or two, if necessary, with additional supplies carried in a companion abandon ship bag stored with the raft that is attached with a tether and goes over the side with the raft. Think water, medical supplies, communications gear, signaling gear, et al. Insure that everyone knows the drill regarding extracting and deploying the raft before its needed.

FWIW...

[caldawson]

Originally Posted by svHyLyte

Given there's only the two of you, although you might later include a crew or two on passages, a four man raft is likely adequate. Whatever you buy, ensure that it's light enough that the smaller of you is able to manage extracting it from storage and deploying it in case the larger of you is disabled. In our case (42' yacht, older crew of two including a 5', 105#, lady) we elected a fairly light weight Revere Coastal Elite in a valise pack considering that our voyaging never takes us much further than 75 miles off-shore between ports and that, with multiple EPIRB's we should able to get SAR assistance in reasonably short order if needed. It is sufficient to hold us for a day or two, if necessary, with additional supplies carried in a companion abandon ship bag stored with the raft that is attached with a tether and goes over the side with the raft. Think water, medical supplies, communications gear, signaling gear, et al. Insure that everyone knows the drill regarding extracting and deploying the raft before its needed.

FWIW...

Considering we have little to no experience.
What you have told me is worth a lot. So thank you in advance. I never thought about a tether line with additional supplies I have just been looking at what I can get and what it has and wondered if I could ever fit more into the raft bag.
We are both very small people. Both of us under 5.5, and weak like kittens. Haha. But again thank you and will take it all on board.

Teehee love the sailing puns.

[barnakiel]

A four person raft, offshore pack.

Offshore pack because you never know how much time you are going to live in it.

An epirb and a dsc vhf handheld and an ais mob in the grab bag. You want to be found, above anything else. A combo dsc/ais mob is great if your handheld radio has no dsc.

Cheers,
b.

[Bill O]

Do you intend to do any organized rallies like the World ARC, etc.?

For these you will need an "upgraded" raft that is compliant for a minimum of a SOLAS A pack (or SOLAS LSA) or an "ISO Standard 9650” Type 1 Group A with service Pack 1 (>24 hours), or equivalent made up of service Pack 2 (<24 hours) and a grab bag. For each of these rallies check the specific safety requirements as they may vary.


These rafts will cost much more than a standard offshore raft, but something to consider when purchasing your raft. There are other safety gear that will be needed for these rallies as well.


Cheers,
Bill O.

[NevisDog]

The difference in weight between a coastal and an offshore raft is scary - 4-man offshore around 50kg (including stored water bottles, dried food, etc) and around half that for the same coastal raft without the extra stores. If there are no 'rules' to comply with (such as Bill O points out) then the coastal raft with a separate 'ditch bag' (carrying extra stores, flares, vhf, epirb, etc) seems so much easier for a small crew to handle. Can't think why it's not allowed for race entries or cruising rallies but no doubt someone will tell me.

[laika]

Consider also the re-pack regime/cost and the availability of service centers to perform the task near you, or with a solid global network if you are venturing afar.

The winslow 4man SLOP was the best weight to offshore-capable ratio I found when looking several years back. Around 50lbs. They also offered custom valise packing dimensions which was particularly good for us.

[tomrealest]

What is your life worth?

I studied life rafts and their contents for a couple of years. I decided that even with a higher price Winslow offered the best chance of survival. I want to survive! I believe in having the raft well supplied and I have a ditch bag loaded when I leave port. I have been very fortunate to have actually had the opportunity to deploy a raft in a demonstration by a manufacture. Since I am over 6' tall and on the heavy side, I had Winslow add another step to make it easier to get in from the water.

I would careful consideration to this topic and do some reading where ever you can find information. You don't plan to use a life raft so the circumstances might be tough.

[Pete7]

This will be worth a read

Six ISO 9650 liferafts tested

In the UK The RYA run one day sea survival courses which includes time in a swimming pool practising getting in a raft, in the dark, with the hoses on. An interesting experience in clothing and an inflated lifejacket. Is there anything similar in Australia which you could attend?

The one thing I would look for is a double floor for insulation, this should eb standard with ISO rafts.

Pete

[alansmith]

CalDawson, as Laika alluded to....the cost of maintaining a survival raft is no joke. There was a recent thread addressing the prohibitive costs of recertifying your raft. I don't have any answers for you about which way to go. But, according to the thread, the costs are almost 70-80% of the recert and repacking. Some choose to ignore the repacks and some are required by agencies for races or rallies or insurance?

But think it through and consider that aspect of choosing a survival module. The other thing...even in warm waters...it doesn't take long to go hypothermic. It is deadly thing. Also throw in injury, shock, and fear....Even coastal sailors and fisherman die every year within site of land when the shizzle goes down.

[Fore and Aft]

Peter from Marine Safe in Brisbane should be able to help you out. He has been servicing and selling life rafts for over 30 years and is an encyclopaedia on them.
Not to mention he is a bloody nice guy and his liferaft presentations are always very interesting.
Cheers

[Emouchet]

I will follow this thread,as I am in the process of also selecting a life raft.
Right now I am considerring Plastimo, Zodiac or Viking, a 4 person offshore type.
That ISO9650-1 seems like a gimick...

[Siberian Sea]

I just bought a new Elliot 4 person life raft, low profile, USCG/SOLAS approved with solas A pack, complete with cradle, strap and hydrostatic release for 2500.00 US dollars from Van Brothers Marine Safety in Portsmouth Virginia. It’s a full offshore raft
When you choose your raft your not just making the choice for you but for everyone else on board. Choose wise because when things go bad it’s better to have more boat and less money in the bank.

[KD8NPB]

Originally Posted by Emouchet

I will follow this thread,as I am in the process of also selecting a life raft.
Right now I am considerring Plastimo, Zodiac or Viking, a 4 person offshore type.
That ISO9650-1 seems like a gimick...

Why do you feel ISO standards are a gimmick?

[Emouchet]

Originally Posted by KD8NPB

Why do you feel ISO standards are a gimmick?

Because there is no enforcement by a 3rd party verification organization.


"ISO 9650 is self-regulating: legally, no one has to test whether a liferaft meets the standard. As a consumer, you are simply expected to take the manufacturer’s word that it does."