emergency inflatable

[Harry Black]

I have an Alberg 30. Looking for a small 1-2 person inflatable in case I have to abandon ship. Something I could inflate by blowing or hand pump or battery pump. Something that is compact when not inflated. Have in mind something I could use to keep myself out of the water until rescue. Any suggestions?

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by Harry Black

I have an Alberg 30. Looking for a small 1-2 person inflatable in case I have to abandon ship. Something I could inflate by blowing or hand pump or battery pump. Something that is compact when not inflated. Have in mind something I could use to keep myself out of the water until rescue. Any suggestions?

Hmmm... any budget constraints? So is it right to assume you don't want a liferaft, but a something that could also be a small dinghy too?

When I want to have my 14ft inflatable kayak available in case of urgent need I deflate it halfway and fold it and strap it on the foredeck, but even that is still pretty bulky. It is certainly easy to release in case of emergency. You could go with a shorter one and I bet it would fit well up on the foredeck, but it does rest over the hatch. I like the kayak option because is easier to stow on deck and once in the water you can actually go somewhere if you want to! I am thinking of getting a small bottle (SCUBA tank), aka pony bottle, with hose and adapter to stow in it to finish off the inflation once in the water. It's pretty hard to use a pump once in the water, and blowing it up by mouth is not going to work, and an electric pump in an emergency? Nah. I like that my kayak is built pretty strong too, that should be a priority. Mine folds up completely into a fairly small size considering its length and sometimes I let it rest in the cockpit when I am going from one anchorage to another. Here's mine:
https://www.seaeagle.com/ExplorerKayaks/420X
But in your case I am sure you'd probably want to go smaller.
So here's a shot of an Alberg 30 from Bluewaterboats.org that shows a hard dinghy on the foredeck, but in my case the folded kayak fits pretty much the same with the flat end against the mast and a ditch bag lashed inside.
Just one possibility.