4 ms·

I did approximately no research on them when I was buying a life jacket recently. My thinking is that you're probably only going to need it to work once and at

I did approximately no research on them when I was buying a life jacket recently. My thinking is that you're probably only going to need it to work once and at that point, you really, REALLY, need it to work. If they deploy with no issues 999 times out of a thousand, I don't want to play the odds of the one time being the aforementioned 1 time out of a thousand it doesn't deploy. On the other hand, a conventional life jacket floats on a count of the way it floats. There's plenty of comfortable conventional life jackets out there and they're much cheaper than the less-bulky ones that deploy in the water.

wlll 4y ago
What you're likely talking about I (and everyone I know in the sailing community) would call a buoyancy aid not a life jacket. They'll help you stay afloat but you'll have to put effort in. Not something you can do for hours, or if you're unconscious or in cold water shock. In the sailing community a life jacket would tend to be either a much bulkier statically buoyant thing (picture the large orange things kids wear on sailing holidays or boat rides) or more commonly an inflating one. Of that last category auto-inflating is more popular. Remember, auto-inflating life jackets also have a pull cord that you can use if the auto inflation mechanism doesn't trigger. If you were sailing on my boat there is no way you'd get away with wearing a buoyancy aid. I don't know what the failure rate of auto (or manual) inflating life jackets is (I bet it's less than 1 in 1000), but a buoyancy aid will not provide enough buoyancy 100% of the time in the sea. Don't get me wrong, I will wear a buoyancy aid, but I wouldn't class it as a life jacket, and it would be in certain situations like kayaking or paddle boarding perhaps.
- msrenee 4y ago
  I can't remember what class the one I've got is. PFD is the term. It's been a while since I've spent any kind of time on the water. It is intended to roll you onto your back and for situations where you're not going to be far from rescue. It's is definitely not intended for the ocean though. Wouldn't do the great lakes in it unless I was staying close to shore. Or any of the big ones up north honestly. The context here was kayaking. In that very unlikely scenario that your auto-inflating life jacket doesn't deploy, there is a very likely scenario that you're disoriented or unconscious. That's a big risk in any scenario where you need a PFD and the reason I'd rather go with an always-deployed one appropriate for conditions than hope I have my head on straight if I get dumped overboard and things get worse from there.

wlll 4y ago

What you're likely talking about I (and everyone I know in the sailing community) would call a buoyancy aid not a life jacket. They'll help you stay afloat but you'll have to put effort in. Not something you can do for hours, or if you're unconscious or in cold water shock. In the sailing community a life jacket would tend to be either a much bulkier statically buoyant thing (picture the large orange things kids wear on sailing holidays or boat rides) or more commonly an inflating one. Of that last category auto-inflating is more popular. Remember, auto-inflating life jackets also have a pull cord that you can use if the auto inflation mechanism doesn't trigger. If you were sailing on my boat there is no way you'd get away with wearing a buoyancy aid. I don't know what the failure rate of auto (or manual) inflating life jackets is (I bet it's less than 1 in 1000), but a buoyancy aid will not provide enough buoyancy 100% of the time in the sea. Don't get me wrong, I will wear a buoyancy aid, but I wouldn't class it as a life jacket, and it would be in certain situations like kayaking or paddle boarding perhaps.

msrenee 4y ago
I can't remember what class the one I've got is. PFD is the term. It's been a while since I've spent any kind of time on the water. It is intended to roll you onto your back and for situations where you're not going to be far from rescue. It's is definitely not intended for the ocean though. Wouldn't do the great lakes in it unless I was staying close to shore. Or any of the big ones up north honestly. The context here was kayaking. In that very unlikely scenario that your auto-inflating life jacket doesn't deploy, there is a very likely scenario that you're disoriented or unconscious. That's a big risk in any scenario where you need a PFD and the reason I'd rather go with an always-deployed one appropriate for conditions than hope I have my head on straight if I get dumped overboard and things get worse from there.