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Required Boat Accessories to Keep You Shipshape and Safe.

By Miguel Martin

While a man might be a perfect slob on land, you can be sure his boat has all the accessories necessary to keep him shipshape.  Not only will an organized boat be more comfortable, but also it's a necessity for a safe voyage.  There is any number of boat accessories available to keep your vessel free from chaotic clutter.  

Regardless of boat size, there are some boat accessories that simply make common sense for the safety of you and your passengers.  While it's wonderful to have every accessory available, there are some items that are required and others that can be obtained at a slower pace. 

Personal Flotation Devices are boat accessories that must be USCG approved, readily accessible, wearable by the intended user, and you must have one Type I, II, III or V, per person. The Type V must be worn to meet carriage requirements. The Type IV throwable device must be readily accessible.  Any child under 12 years of age on vessels under 19 feet in length must wear the Personal Flotation Device at any time the boat is not at anchor, made fast to the shore/dock, or aground, unless they are below deck or in the cabin of a boat with an enclosed cabin. 

Fire extinguishers, No Fixed System One B-I of any type, are required on any boats with enclosed fuel or engine spaces, enclosed living spaces, or permanent (not movable by one person) fuel tanks.  This  accessory must be USCG approved and readily accessible. It is important to understand the correlation between size and number of fire extinguishers to your boat size.  One 8mm is sufficient for vessels under 26 feet in length.  It would be prudent to add an additional fire extinguisher for each additional 15 feet of length. 

Another of the boat accessories that is required by the USCG is the VDS, or Visual Distress Signals.  On coastal waters, between sunset and sunrise, night signals are required with your choice of carrying a minimum of three day use and three night use or three day/night combination pyrotechnic devices.  They must be in good serviceable condition and within the expiration limits for the pyrotechnic devices.  As an alternative, the boat owner can have one orange distress flag for day use and one electric SOS signal light for night use. 

Sound producing devices are also recommended as a required  accessory to signal intentions or position, preferably a whistle or horn.  Under Rule 33 of the Navigation rules, boats less than 40 feet MUST have aboard a means of making an efficient sound signal. 

Navigation lights are also one of the required boat accessories and boats 16 feet or longer must also have a 360° all-around white anchor light capable of being lit independently from the red/green/white running lights.  Sailboats under power are considered powerboats and must follow "under power" means, which means sidelights, stern light, and masthead light.  Sailboats under 65 feet can substitute a tri-color light for separate sidelights and stern light.  Rolling sailboats and powerboats under 26 feet traveling under 7 knots can substitute a white lantern in place of the required lights. Unless moored in a chart-designated anchorage, all vessels at anchor are required to have an all-around white light visible for two (2) nautical miles. 

Additional boat accessories include notice of pollution regulations and navigation rules readily accessible.  Marine Sanitation Devices Vessels with installed head facilities must have an operable Coast Guard-certified Type I, II, or III Marine Sanitation Devices (MSD). Any "Y" valve used to discharge waste must be located to prevent accidental discharging of waste material into water.  Mufflers must be effective, in good working order, and in constant use..

Whether a new boat owner or an old-timer, it's not a bad idea to get a PDF copy of the Coast Guard Vessel Safety Check (VSC) for boat safety so that you always are aware of what boat accessories are required from the responsible boat owner.  Copy and paste the following link to get your copy: http://justice101us.com/cgaux/forms/a7012.pdf

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Boat Building Requires Forethought.

By  Miguel Martin

You’ve seen them a hundred times -- partially finished hulls resting on supports in the back yard of an ambitious sailor building his own boat.  Sometimes, it takes years and you wonder if they ever actually do any work on the vessel.  The answer is yes and no. Boat building requires a lot of preplanning before actually beginning this task.  Those yards that seem to have an unfinished craft up on stilts for years generally have an owner who either didn’t really know what type of sailing he planned on doing or he was very short on money and could only get involved in boat building as funds became available.  Questions you should ask before you begin would be what type of sailing do you want to do?  Day sailing? Overnight cruising? How many of you will be using the boat at the same time?  What can you afford? 

Day sailing requires mostly getting the idea to build a boat, and then finding the right plans.  You don’t have to worry about long hours at the helm, or inclement weather.  You can pick and choose when to be on the water and when to follow the ducks, and get out of the water. Any form of long-term cruising, however, means buckling down to the specifics and trying to think of every possible need before you get the plans to boat building.  Overnight cruising for more than a few days with 2, 3, and 4 people on board would need a boat of at least 30 feet in length for comfort and safety.   

Your next, very important, consideration is just how much money you have to spend on boat building.  Staying between 30 and 40 feet keeps you roughly in the same ball park as far as buying supplies and outfitting your choice. If your eyes are bigger than your pocketbook and you decide you want something above 40 feet, this could easily turn into a twenty-year project, unless you are heir to a windfall.    

Once you’ve determined the size of the boat you wish to build, think of the use. If you want speed, you’ll want a long and skinny hull design. Taking the family for long cruises, you’ll want comfort, stability, and maneuverability, which means a shorter, fatter, slower hull design. Both boat building designs should move through the water with the least resistance and best stability at all points of sail. After that decision, you can focus on the choices of keel, rigging and interior floor plan. You can play with the interior throughout the building process but not with the keel. 

A full-length keel will give you the best ride in a 30’ to 40’ ocean-going vessel. For those boats 40 feet and above, try a modified keel for a little more boat speed without much loss in stability.  In boat building, accept that most all other types of keels have a place on day sailors or racing hulls with a few exceptions. While not yet as popular in the United States, a double keel bottom is very stable and with the shorter draft, you can visit more interesting nooks and crannies within around your anchorage.  

Rigging is a matter of choice and you can find out what you like best by renting any number of sailboats throughout your boat building period.  If you are still unsure, visit your local boating supply store and locate some designers who will be more than happy to help you.  Knowing what you want to do, where you want to sail, and how much just another foot or two can cost you when you are building your boat, will be a clue to how long your own boat’s berthing process will take. 

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