# Testing an out of date life raft



## MSViking (Oct 11, 2007)

We keep two life rafts on Jacquelyn. At the present they are both Revere Offshore Elite's, one is a 4 man and the other a 6 man as well as a well stocked ditch bag (ERPIRB, waterproof VHF, lots flares, dye packs, MREs etc..)

The raft in the video is a 6 man Eurovinyl Brand raft that was on the boat when we bought her. It had and expiration date of 2006 and I knew it could not be recertified so I chose to "pop" it out.

It opened easily as expected. The raft seemed well built but heavy, probably around 90lbs which is significantly more than my current Revere rafts. I had both my daughters try to walk with it and they were not able to.

The raft included a survival kit that contained; an air pump, patch kit, drinking water pouches (20), manual, both hand held and aerial flares, signal mirror and flashlight.

The flashlight's batteries had corroded rendering it useless. 3 of the 6 flares failed to ignite. Also the top "tube" had a small leak from the start, noticeably deflating it's tube after 30-45 min. The included handheld pump easily kept up with the leak but it was a pain. Could not locate the leak to test out the repair kit, I am assuming the leak was along a seam?

This experience reenforced the need to have my rafts inspected and repacked every three years as suggested. Before summer I am going to buy a new Winslow 8 man raft that only weighs 38 lbs, as well as being significantly smaller in package size. This will allow me to keep it closer to the cockpit and more accessible by less strong people.

I take safety very serious on our boat as we do a lot of night running. I intend to show this video to all in my crew as a learning tool.

http://youtu.be/6NEfNBeJte4


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## panhandleslim (Jan 11, 2013)

I agree with everything you say above. A raft can't be used, if it can't be lifted or activated in a place that it can be boarded. 

My opinion is that the heavy one would probably be more durable but with new materials and Kevlar, that may not be the case. I would worry about the ease of puncture in the lighter models but if there is an engineering reason that they are better, then go for it. If I had a choice, I think I would go for one that is light and another that is super durable. Just make sure that everybody knows not to let them drift away before they can be boarded. 

If you want to read something good about rafts and then think is is something the crew could gain insight from, let them read Chapters 12 thru 18 in the book 'Unbroken'. For that matter, read the whole thing. Has to be one of the best books I've ever read and the six chapters on the use of the raft and 47 days on board are incredible. The challenges of keeping the thing afloat and the mental toughness required to last that long with nothing. Takes a special type of human.


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## off route II (Sep 28, 2007)

I just had all my emergency gear inspected and recertified or replaced whichever was necessary, life raft and epirb recertified, all new flares new ditch bag with all things necessary. all fire extinguishers up dated. my life raft is mounted on the bow, I don't like the way it looks but it seems to be the best place.

I hope I never have to use any of it.


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## Contender (Apr 4, 2012)

I had a chance a little while back to observe some off-shore oil workers in Norway going through safety training. The had to jump in the water from a dock, swim (50-75') to a life raft and climb in. They were wearing mustang suits, AND it wore them out. Most of use never or rarely practice with our safety gear, I know I don't. Though I know using the first time when things are going bad is not a good plan. 

Since you have a spare and a pool, playing with some might be a good investment.


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## purple haze (Sep 2, 2013)

Before you discard your expired life rafts check to see if any safety recalls were issued before the expiration date. You can get it inspected on the recall for a small fee the recall will be free. One of our DSB's had a safety recall the date was with in the next due inspection. I just had them also do an inspection the same time they did the recall and was only charged a small fee.


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## panhandleslim (Jan 11, 2013)

It has been reported, during this ongoing Italian ferry disaster, that lots of their lifeboats were deployed and just drifted away before any passengers could enter. 

Rescue air and water borne crews plus local maritime assets did a great job and rescued over 400 people but there were, at least, 8 lives lost and some of those might have been due to lack of access to life rafts due to them floating away.


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## Ruuruu (Jan 3, 2015)

First rule attach the sea painter to the boat!!!!!!


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