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Life jackets

Life jackets, an essential piece of safety equipment

The life jacket is an essential piece of equipment for your safety. Remember to wear it systematically when you are on board your boat! There are different families of buoyancy vests. Below 100 newtons, the vests are not called lifejackets, but buoyancy aid vests. In fact, they do not allow turning over in the water. This is the case of 50 Newton vests which are suitable for activities such as canoeing, kayaking, water skiing, windsurfing or dinghy sailing. Life jackets with a buoyancy equal to or greater than 100 Newtons are called life jackets. There are lifejackets of 100, 150 or 275 newtons. The vest is always worn over clothing. Choose a vest adapted to the morphology of each user. The CE standard indicates buoyancy in Newtons (N) for a person weighing 70 kg. Depending on your weight, adapt the buoyancy of your vest. On board you will complete your safety equipment with a boat alarm bag, navigation lights, something to dry the boat, etc.

Lifejacket re-arming kits

A re-arming kit is required for inflatable lifejackets. This is because once the gas cartridge is used, it needs to be replaced. You will then need a re-arm kit depending on the type of inflatable vest. Visually, a gas cartridge that has already been used is pierced on the top. Choose your replacement CO2 gas cartridge according to the buoyancy of your vest. A 24 gram cartridge is needed for a vest with a buoyancy of 100 N, 33 grams for 150 N and 60 grams for 275 N. For the rearm kit of your automatic inflatable vest, make sure to choose a kit with the same release system of your vest: UML with cellulose capsule or Hammar system. Note that there are two versions of the Hammar trigger: the MA1 version and the A1 version. Be sure to check which version you need. Having a spare kit on your boat allows you to reset your vest even in the open sea if it has been triggered during your outing.

Maintaining a lifejacket

After each sea outing, remember to use a damp sponge (with fresh water) to remove salt from your lifejacket. Be careful not to trigger the inflation of the vest. Then let it air dry before storing it. To store it, prefer a dry place to avoid that moisture dissolves the cellulose capsule. It is important to check your lifejacket regularly to make sure it is in good working order. Check the replacement dates of the re-arming kits and the tightness of the gas cartridge. Color-coded triggers (green or red) indicate whether the system is in good condition or needs to be replaced. Follow the manufacturer's instructions to make the change if necessary. After resetting your lifejacket, inflate the lifejacket using the specific nozzle. If possible, use an inflator rather than your mouth to avoid moisture. This way you can check the chamber for leaks. If it doesn't leak, you can deflate it and fold it up, it's ready to use!