Spring commissioning, safety check time!

[Megabyte]

Each year about this time, I try to post some spring commissioning and safety related items.
This is my submission for this year. Members... please feel free to chime in with your ideas and solutions!

This might not work as intended since I am adding attachments.
Therefore, the text will not follow along with the images.

I will go on record as recommending all owners get a USCG Vessel Safety Check every year.
http://www.safetyseal.net/

Having said that, here are a couple of things that I do that have helped me through the inspection each year.

Did you know that you are allowed to carry "expired" pyrotechnics, so long as they are not co-mingled with the current pyrotechnics?
This is how I carry mine. The pyrotechnics are carried in zip-lock bags labeled 'current' and 'expired'. (duh!)

The 'expired' stuff is still good, and could get you out of a jam someday.
For the last 7 years, my CG inspector has been fine with this method.

Here is some of the stuff that I carry in my emergency bag.
First aid kit, pyrotechnics, signal mirror, dye packet, personal epirb, chemical light sticks, rechargeable hand torch, extra batteries, signal flag, air horn, and some other stuff I'm probably forgetting.

Don't forget to carry extra clothing.
I carry an extra rain suit, sweat shirts, gloves, hats, and multiple pairs of sunglasses.

I also carry a pre-rigged tow hawser, just-in-case.

Items in the v-berth are in canvas bags, or plactic tubs.

An emergency air horn resides in a koozie near the helm.

 

[Megabyte]

On both of my fire extinguishers in the pilothouse, I have little items that might be needed in a pinch.
On one side, I have a Gerber tool and a FireFly strobe.
On the other side, a small Mag light.

In the cockpit, I have very sharp knives affixed to the hull with velcro.

Hope some of these ideas help other members!

 

[HM5]

Megabyte's Parker is sure a thing of beauty. If I may, here is something to add to maintenance...

If the fire extinguisher(s) is/are mounted or winter stored vertically, you should turn it upside down in one hand and hit the bottom sharply with the other to break the powder loose from the bottom. It will settle during running and if the fire extinguisher is needed the only thing that will come out is the propellent.

 

[Megabyte]

If the fire extinguisher(s) is/are mounted or winter stored vertically, you should turn it upside down in one hand and hit the bottom sharply with the other to break the powder loose from the bottom. It will settle during running and if the fire extinguisher is needed the only thing that will come out is the propellent.

Very true... and a good preventive maintenance item. :wink:

 

[Megabyte]

My last post didn't work out as planned, so hopefully these items will continue the story...

Today was opening Rockfish day on the Chesapeake, but even though it was sunny, Mother Nature was blowing a gale!

Just as well as it gave me the opportunity to work on a few boat items, and then allowed me to go home and concentrate on getting my baits in order.
Next weekend is my annual community Rockfish tourney, so I need to be ready. :wink:

First item on my agenda was replacing the bow and spring lines. A simple task normally, but try to do this in a gale! :shock:
Replace the original 1/2" 3-strand twist lines that were now 8 years old with a set of premium 3/8" braid docklines.

The 1/2" lines were overkill in this slip. Even today, the way the wind was blowing, I don't get a lot of movement in the slip.
3/8" line are easier to handle, and are well within the range needed for a 7-line dockage.

Before, and after.

 

[Megabyte]

Next, I wanted to replace my old 1/2" 3-strand anchor rode.
This is why...

 

[Megabyte]

The old line was brought out, and at the 150' mark the line was clean and had never seen dirty water.
The Chesapeake has areas that are over 100' deep, but nobody anchors there. Most of our anchoring is is 35' of less.

So... The clean-and-green rode in the anchor locker was left - sort of like the backing on your fishing reels.
150' of 1/2" nylon 3-strand, and 200' of 1/2" 8-plait nylon.

I don't ever expect to see the 'backing', but it is good to know it is there in case of emergency.
FWIW - My chain locker is now full.

Here is the old, and the new.

 

[Megabyte]

I have my rode marked so I know how much I have out.

Before dropping the hook (no windlass... all manual effort), I check my sounder and determine what my scope will be.
30' of water, light winds, normal current... 3:1 scope and 90 feet.
Easy to do when the rode is marked.

 

[Megabyte]

Before finishing up, there were a couple of details to attend to.
The new anchor swivel needed a little blue loctite on the screw threads.

After that, the clevis needed to be safety wired.
A little stainless wire, and a little pinning in place, and we are safe from loosing our ground tackle. :wink:

 

[Megabyte]

Last item for the day...

Last season I had some trouble deploying the baits on my outriggers.
The 200# mono did not like to make that 180 degree turn around the upper eye bolts.

After consulting with my friend who fishes these things offshore, we decided to add a set of single shiv blocks to the eye bolts and make everything run a little smoother.

 

[Megabyte]

That is it for today. I have a few more items that I need to address, and when I do, I'll post the results here.

 

[pelagic2530]

megabyte- nice job on the projects and the pics. how did you attach the 8-plait to the threestrand?

 

[Megabyte]

how did you attach the 8-plait to the threestrand?

Unfortunately, that was one item I didn't photograph.

I secured the cut ends of each rope with shrink tubing, then put a figure-eight knot in the 3-strand... then did a figure-eight follow-thru with the 8-plait.
The tails were then secured with nylon zip ties.

I don't ever expect to see that connection as the old rode was never out 150' and I have 200' of 8-plait with 25' of chain to work with.
But... in an emergency it is good to know I have an additional 150' of 3-strand 'backing' for a total of 350' of line in the locker.

 

[mildew2]

There's no room left in the birth for fishing gear...and you carry enough
"Pyrotechnics" for a lenghy Fourth of July display..LOL

Just kidding...You can never be too safe,and prepared you are. Impressive Kevin.

 

[pelagic2530]

There's no room left in the birth for fishing gear...and you carry enough
"Pyrotechnics" for a lenghy Fourth of July display..LOL

Just kidding...You can never be too safe,and prepared you are. Impressive Kevin.

not to hijack the thread, but seeing as it is about spring safety i figured i would throw in this little tidbit. first of all, i would recommend anyone that's revamping or outfitting a vessel with pyrotechnics to buy primarily the SOLAS rated parachute, hand and smoke flares, with the minimum amount of the cheap Orion stick flares for legal purposes. reason is this: the SOLAS rated flares will remain good for YEARS after their expiration dates. the only reason flares have expiration dates, in fact, is that the manufacturers are required by the govt. to limit the stated life of their devices. in reality, a 10 year old SOLAS flare is most likely as good as the day it came out of the package. however, by having a kit full of good flares and 4 cheap stick flares elsewhere, because as Kevin said they have to be separate, you can keep yourself legal AND safe.

secondly, a note of warning for anyone that has to use one of those cheap sticks. BE VERY CAREFUL OF WHERE YOU HOLD THE END OF IT. they give off INSANE amounts of very hot slag. it WILL burn right through your skin, and it WILL destroy a life raft. make sure the end of that thing is out over the water and not near you, anyone else, the boat, or anything flammable. in fact, i would not use them at all before ive run out of my other, good flares.

third, some advice on flare useage. depending on what kind of vessel or aircraft you sight, they may or may not be looking for you. obviously, a CG helo or boat is going to have its eyes peeled, but a civilian chopper or a commercial vessel is going to be alot less vigilant about watching for your flare, especially if they dont know youre there. remember, the watch on the bridge of that ship is most likely alone except for the helmsman (who isnt watching anything other than his indicators), he may have been on watch for the past 4 hours, its nighttime, and he's probably tired. he cant look in all directions at once, so the chances of him facing your direction are about 1 in 3. even if he sees your first arial, he most likely gets just a glimpse of it by the time his eyes register what he saw. now, anyone who has spent significant amounts of time in the open ocean can testify that the sea can mess with you, and a watch officer that maybe isnt quite sure about what he saw may be unlikely to report a flare sighting and even less likely to rouse the ship and divert the course of a $100 million dollar ship carrying $900 million in cargo that needs to be in Portugal ASAP, especially if its a new, junior officer, which are the guys that usually get the 2000-2400 and 0000-0400 watches (which suck). what im getting at here, in this obnoxiously long rant, is that it is VITAL to follow up your first flare with a SECOND and probably even a THIRD flare. if the bridge watch glimpses a first flare and then clearly sees a second, he's gonna do something. ideally, if you have the flares, keep shooting them until the ship moves out of view. we've all heard the stories about survivors who saw ships, shot a flare, and never got noticed. if they'd have shot 3, 4, 5 flares, the stories might be different. so (very) long story short, you can never have enough flares, especially arials. if price is an issue, get one of the cheap 12 gauge guns and buy a bunch of the 4-pack flares for $25 a pop (cheap relative to the other boating stuff we all buy) and you'll be good to go. just dont forget the 4 required stick flares, you can probably use them to, i dont know, hold a chart down or something :wink:

so, megabyte, i apologize for the hack, if the powers that be decide that this is better as a new thread feel free to make it so. just figured, you know, in the spirit of spring safety. be safe out there, folks!

 

[Megabyte]

Not a hijack at all!
That is what this thread was supposed to be about. Preparing our boats (and us) for the new season.

Your point about SOLAS pyrotechnics is spot on. 8)

If you operate offshore, SOLAS gear is definitely what you need. If you operate near shore or inshore, SOLAS is not required, but is way better than the basic Orion pyros, though much more expensive.
I carry both on my boat, and if I needed to really get someone's attention, the SOLAS parachutes or the 25mm shells are coming out first.

Also a good point about the night watch officer.

If I wanted to make sure that the watch saw me, I'd be throwing flares right across his bow if I could... and I'd keep it up until he acknowledged me by whistle or by radio. That is one reason why I carry so much pyro.

I didn't post the photo, but I have an equal amount of 'current' and 'expired' pyro in my stash that I carry in another identical ACR RapidDitch bag.
Reason being that I sometimes move boats for other folks, and you would be amazed at the (lack of) safety equipment some owners carry on their million dollar plus boats. It got to be so scary that I carry my own safety gear when I do one of those jobs.

Great discussion!
Lets keep it going! 8)

 

[Brent]

I try to tell someone that we are leaving and est return time and contact them when we return

 

[evetsmd]

Great post Megabyte!!!!

The tow hawser you've prepared......do you have a description of how you put it together or did you buy a pre made item......

Didn't think of it before but as you've said better prepared than waiting until it's needed.

Thanks

Steve

 

[Megabyte]

The tow hawser you've prepared......do you have a description of how you put it together or did you buy a pre made item......

Didn't think of it before but as you've said better prepared than waiting until it's needed.

Sorry Steve, but somehow I missed your question.
The tow hawser was fabricated from 5/8" docklines and a crab float.
A better description (with photos) can be found here:

http://www.classicparker.com/phpBB2/vie ... php?t=8849