navigation lights

**andyhunt** · 16-02-2006, 01:37

hi guys
gonna put my first boat in the water this spring and wondered if you think nav lights and horn should be fitted to my boat even though i will only daytime fish and do not plan to venture far from shore, i tend to err on the side of safety and think i will fit them.... as in, need all the help you can get if something goes wrong.
what do you think?
she's a strikey 16+

**ChrisP** · 16-02-2006, 02:42

If you read the colregs you will fing that even a rowing boat has to have a light and a sound signal. On yours you could get away with a torch and whistle and comply with the regs but just in case you are caught out in the dark or fog I would recomend fitting an all round white light and having a horn, there are some which you blow, cheap and very reliable.

**Salar** · 16-02-2006, 21:35

As Chris says you only need a whit all-round for a boat under 7M and less than 7 knots speed (I think). You can buy an emergency nav light set from the better yacht chandlers that run off torch batteries and clips on to the cuddy when you need it. That way you don't need to worry about wiring, switches, fuses, supply from the main battery, etc etc. http://www.marine-super-store.com/po...ory=34&group=3 Part no 06714 £14.99

**wavelength** · 16-02-2006, 23:14

the only thing you need to worry about then is where did I put them all that time ago and what state are the batteries in

If you fit fixed light inc red and green remember you are supposed to have at least 1 metre vertical seperation between the colours and the all round white, which aint always easy.

**Salar** · 17-02-2006, 12:46

Originally Posted by wavelength

the only thing you need to worry about then is where did I put them all that time ago and what state are the batteries in

If you fit fixed light inc red and green remember you are supposed to have at least 1 metre vertical seperation between the colours and the all round white, which aint always easy.

If that is the case, why do they sell red white green combo units?

**chazz** · 17-02-2006, 15:23

thay are used as masthead lights on sailing boats under 20 meters.
one reson these are used is that the jib (forsail) on a boat healed over can block out the view of the light that is fixed to the cabbin.

this is a good site to look at to lean and test your self . this is not a replacement for doing a power boat corse but it would be good to run along side

life boat online

also try book
practical course notes rya

how to pass your icc rya

day skipper motor cruising d brehaut + p hay

yachtmaster rya

rule of the road ?

also you could test yore self at

wavelengthtraining.co.uk Test Yourself

powerboat-training quiz

**Salar** · 17-02-2006, 17:41

Originally Posted by Salar

If that is the case, why do they sell red white green combo units?

Sorry, just being unecesarily sarcastic! Combo units are not for small power boats. Although the emergency set has three units, you would be better off taking the baffle off the white one and just using that on top of the cuddy, preferably clipped to a short pole. Or, do the job properly and fit a speedboat mast/light combo which always seem to be in the chandlers sale/odds bin for a few quid. Few are sold in chandlers because they are not suitable for yachts, and most speedboat owners don't go in them to buy more bits. So they go dusty until they are marked down, which is good news for us!

**wavelength** · 17-02-2006, 18:14

just being unecesarily sarcastic

seems about right

A sailing boat doesnt need to have a forward facing white cos that is a "steaming light", indicating that the boat is under power. But he can have as an alternative the red/green plus a white stern light as a tri colour combination at the masthead. Another additional alternative for certain sailing boats is a red over green at the mast top instead of a powerboats steaming light in order to be seen better. Remembered by "red over green-sailing machine"
Now for really complicated we could do towing lights ..............................
the reason for my one metre comment is that quite a few commercial boat builders (inc the one who built ours) put the lights at the wrong position and it gives all sorts of probs if your boat is inspected as ours are by the RYA or if you try to code it commercially and have it inspected for the MCA.
Dave (sensitive new man -but immune to sarcasm!) M