On-board equipment kit

On-board equipment Boats | Hinelson Marine Safety Devices
When traveling by car, you should never forget about seat belts. When riding a motorcycle, a helmet is indispensable. However, when you are at sea, the safety equipment required by law is absolutely essential. As you know, this equipment varies according to the distance from the shore: there are safety equipment within 3 miles, safety equipment within 6 miles and safety equipment within 12 miles, with different contents and, of course, different prices. Do you want to make sure that you choose the perfect safety equipment bag for your ship and therefore for your needs?...

When traveling by car, you should never forget about seat belts. When riding a motorcycle, a helmet is indispensable. However, when you are at sea, the safety equipment required by law is absolutely essential. As you know, this equipment varies according to the distance from the shore: there are safety equipment within 3 miles, safety equipment within 6 miles and safety equipment within 12 miles, with different contents and, of course, different prices. Do you want to make sure that you choose the perfect safety equipment bag for your ship and therefore for your needs? Well: in this page you will find all the regulations in force and the characteristics of the first aid bags.

There is one basic rule that governs all the characteristics relating to equipment on board, and it is quite simple to understand: the greater the distance from the coast, the greater the precautions that must be taken on board. Some equipment, then, varies according to the number of passengers on board, such as life rafts and life belts.

Are you ready to go over the regulations regarding equipment on board? All you have to do is identify the corresponding navigation area, study the obligations imposed by the law and, every time your boat leaves the dock, make a nice checklist. In this way you will avoid sanctions from the competent authorities but, above all, you will be ready to face any eventuality and to guarantee your safety and that of all those who will be on board with you.

And remember: what is established by law corresponds to the classic 'minimum union': it is always better, for prudence, to have something extra on board to deal with any eventuality.

Equipment on board for navigating on waterways, rivers and streams

To navigate safely and in compliance with the rules along waterways, it is sufficient to equip your boat with

  • 1 lifebuoy with rope
  • As many regulation life jackets as there are people on board

Equipment on board within 300 meters from the coast

To navigate within the first 300 meters from the coast, the law does not prescribe any compulsory emergency equipment. However, there is no need to further emphasize that having on board at least what is prescribed for navigation in waterways is a very wise choice.

Equipment on board within 1 mile

Assuming that 1 nautical mile corresponds to 1.852 kilometres, the following equipment is required in this navigation zone:

  • 1 regulation life jacket for each person on board
  • 2 lifebuoys with rope
  • In the case of units without CE markings, the addition of additional safety equipment is necessary
  • 1 pump or equivalent exhausting equipment
  • In the case of vessels: 1 fire extinguisher
  • In the case of boats: the number and extinguishing capacity of the extinguishers are specified in the relevant Annex V of the Regulations of the nautical code.

Equipment on board within three miles from the coast

In this range the important equipment begins: the safety equipment bag, in short, becomes richer.

  • Also in this case, each person on board must have a life belt
  • 1 lifebuoy equipped with a rope
  • 1 kit of rescue signals, containing a smoke bottle and 2 red light hand flares
  • In the case of night navigation, regulation lights.
  • In the case of daytime navigation only, within 12 miles from the coast, a white light torch is sufficient; in the case of motor boats equal to or less than 7 meters and with a speed equal to or less than 7 knots, a white light that is visible for the whole horizon is necessary, as well as, where possible, the use of side lights; for sailing boats with a length of less than 30 meters, it is possible to combine the regulation lights with a single light to be installed at the masthead
  • 1 Whistle
  • In the case of boats longer than 12 metres, the whistle is not the only obligatory sound signalling device. In these cases, in fact, the rules provide for the presence of whistle and bell, which may in case be replaced by a portable sound device, such as the trumpet.
  • Also in this case, for units not marked CE, further equipment is foreseen, such as:
  • 1 pump
  • In the case of boats, 1 extinguisher is sufficient
  • In the case of boats, how many fire extinguishers are indicated by the nautical code.

Equipment on board within 6 miles from the coast

As the coast is getting further and further away, the number of equipment needed on board obviously increases slightly:

  • Each person on board must have one life belt per head.
  • 1 lifebuoy with a regulation rope
  • 1 kit of rescue signals, containing in this case not one but two smoke buoys, two red light hand flares and two parachute flares (which, like the buoys, have a maximum life span of 4 years from the date of manufacture).
  • In the case of night navigation, as above, the regulation lights.
  • In the case of navigation during the day and within 12 miles from the coast, the rule provides for the presence of a single white light torch; in the case of motor boats with a length of less than 7 meters and a speed up to 7 knots, it is necessary a white light that is visible for the entire horizon, and, if possible, the use of side lights; for sailing boats with a length of less than 30 meters, finally, it is possible to combine the lights regulations with a single light to be installed at the masthead
  • In the case of boats with a length of less than 12 metres, a whistle
  • In the case of boats longer than 12 meters, the rules provide for the presence of whistle and bell, (replaceable with a portable sound device).
  • As far as non-EC marked units are concerned, further equipment is foreseen, such as:
  • 1 pump or other depletion tool.
  • In the case of simple boats, 1 extinguisher
  • In the case of boats, as many fire extinguishers as indicated in the relevant annex to the nautical code.

Equipment on board within 12 miles from the coast

In this case the matter becomes more complex, because for navigation beyond 6 miles of coastline also comes into play the life raft, as well as other fundamental equipment for navigation.

  • 1 personalised life belt
  • 1 lifebuoy with rope
  • 1 coastal-type life raft, large enough to accommodate all the people on board (as established by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, which decreed the non-compliance of the old atolls)
  • 1 light buoy
  • 2 smoke buoys, 2 red light hand flares and two parachute flares
  • Regulatory lights for night navigation
  • As far as only daytime navigation is concerned, check what has been said about the equipment on board for navigation within 6 miles from the coast
  • Whistle for sound signalling
  • For boats over 12 meters, whistle and bell (replaceable with another portable sound device)
  • Beyond six miles from the coast, among the compulsory equipment on board there is also a magnetic nautical compass with relative deviation tables (the latter, it must be said, are compulsory only for boats, while boats are exempt from their equipment)
  • A VHF apparatus, accompanied by an RTF certificate, which is acquired through a special examination.
  • Also in this case, as seen above, the units without CE marking must eventually be equipped with:
  • 1 pump
  • In the case of simple boats, 1 fire extinguisher
  • In the case of boats, as many fire extinguishers as indicated in the relevant appendix to the nautical code.

Equipment on board within 50 miles from the coast

  • A standard life raft - not an atoll - large enough to accommodate all the people on the boat

  • as many lifejackets as there are people on board the boat

  • As in all other cases, a lifebuoy equipped with a line
  • 1 light buoy
  • 2 smoke buoys, 3 red light hand flares and 3 red light parachute flares
  • 1 compass with its deviation tables
  • 1 pair of binoculars
  • 1 barometer
  • 1 watch
  • Nautical charts related to the navigation area, which can be replaced by electronic charts (even if it must be said that, as established by the Ministerial Decree 10.7.2000, an auxiliary system must always be present on board, in case of damage).
  • First aid kit
  • Radar reflector
  • Regulatory lights
  • Whistle and, for boats over 12 meters, whistle and bell
  • A radio-positioning instrument
  • A VHF device with relative RTF certificate
  • For sailboats, a conical signal, which must be displayed during simultaneous navigation under engine.
  • As seen above, units without CE marking may be lacking - and therefore must be equipped with:
  • 1 pump
  • How many fire extinguishers are reported in Annex V of the Nautical Code

Equipment on board without any limit

In this case all the on-board equipment seen for navigation within 50 miles is valid, with these differences:

  • 3 smoke bombs are required
  • 4 red light parachute flares are required
  • 4 red light hand flares are required
  • it is necessary to have an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon, class A or class B.

On-board equipment: prices

Many people wonder what the prices are for equipment on board within 6 miles and what the prices are for equipment on board within 12 miles. In reality, there are no definite answers, since there are so many different components to take into consideration: as far as equipment on board within 12 miles is concerned, there is also the variable of the life raft, whose price varies according to the number of people it has to contain. Then there are the prices of first aid kits, fire extinguishers, hand fires and so on. In most cases, therefore, to the cost of the only safety equipment must be added other expenses from time to time different.

First aid bag table A and first aid bag table B

In this same category you can also find the first aid bags. Specifically, we have prepared for you both types of kits, both those referred to the table D that referred to the table A. In the first case we talk about a first aid bag dedicated to recreational or professional fishing boats, in line with what has been established by the legislation for the equipment on board in 2016 (the bag is therefore in accordance with local coastal fishing boats within 12 miles from the coast and close coastal fishing boats within 20 miles, as well as recreational boats not included in table A). The bags related to table A, on the other hand, are designed for pleasure boats without coastal limits, with seafaring personnel on board, as well as for boats engaged in close coastal fishing within 40 miles from the coast. In any case, we are talking about cases containing everything necessary for first aid, i.e. sterile gloves, gauze, plasters, bandages, tourniquets, instant ice, hydrogen peroxide, scissors, and a first aid manual.

So there you have it: based on what you've learned in this post, you can make an informed - and error-free - choice about which safety equipment bag you can buy for your boat. Of course, you have to think about how many people you will be accommodating on your boat, so you can choose the right model for every eventuality. Will your boat go more than 3 miles from the coast? Or will you go further, even beyond 6 miles? In any case, we of HiNelson e-commerce have what you need!

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