So how do you do yours ? Do you actually have it serviced , or is it forgotten and expected to perform ?

The servicing of Lifejackets is so easy that anyone can do it .... what do you need ?

First you need a clean area, free of grit and general debris. Second a reasonable kitchen scales that weigh in grams. Third replacement spare gas bottle and other associated items. Fourth a fine nib marker pen.

So wipe all down with damp clean cloth before opening the jacket up top expose the bottle etc. Check that bottle firing mechanism is intact and then unscrew bottle. Weigh new bottle and note gram weight. Now weigh old bottle and compare. They should be within each other by 1 gram ~ Check seal in neck of bottle .... If worried then you change bottles - mark old one so no confusion.

Then carefully check all seams and stitching for wear and broken threads. Check reflective patches, lift webbing, whistle etc. are still well attached.

Now blow up jacket via the air tubes till all expanded to reasonable pressure. Some will advise that you should not do this by mouth due to moisture - personally I do mine this way and have never had a problem. You thedn leave the jacket inflated in a safe place for 24 hrs. During this period check for it deflating. If it will not stay up for the 24hrs to similar pressure - it is failed and needs replacement.

So your jacket has stayed up ... the bottle is screwed back on taking care firing mechanism is fully intact etc. Seams and stitching / items all good and no repairs needed. Now take the pen and date / sign the service label you find inside the cover. You do not need a "Licenced" service agent to do this - anyone can and as you have verified jacket is OK - so why not record it ?

Close up jacket making sure all is clean and ready to use.

Now that wasn't hard was it ..... Of course you can always drop it of at Service Centre if you want to spend money !

Whilst I agree that its a great idea to service you own lifejacket I would add a few cautions:

1. Also check YOUR jacket before each use or every week if used regularly or if is been stored - the gas bottles do work loose.

2. Check any expiry date on light batteries if fitted.

3. Make sure it is repacked carefully - don 't fold or tuck parts of the jacket under each other in anyway that might restrict its inflation.

4. Replace the bottle if it looks damaged or corroded despite the weight being correct.

5. If in any doubt or you re not confident in the servicing then PLEASE take it to an agent to  service it - no amount of £££ saved will compensate for the loss of a life....

6. If its your own jacket - use the marker to put your name/initals on it. Adjust it to fit you. And wear your jacket not some one elses.

I have 3 gas jackets that came with my RIB, I ve serviced them pretty much as above but on one of the services the gas bottles were starting to show some surface rust so intended to replace them. I thought this would be a good chance to show Mrs. W. how the jackets worked in anger... I pulled the toggle on mine and it worked fine.... she did the same and the result was a bit of a shock! The 'manifold' blew itself apart with the jacket partially inflated. Result - a jacket that would have needed topping up manually and a very shocked Mrs W. who had been sprayed with CO2 gas and bits of plastic.

Also make sure you know where the various parts of the jacket are by feel  (inflation toggle, light, manual top up) - it maybe pitch black when you need to use it.

Finally - WEAR IT! Even the best serviced jacket is no use if you don't have it on when you end up in the water!

W.

Gald another hads added to my post with the bits I forgot and also nice to see that others know about doing it.

I like doing this with various items as then you get to understand the item better. The only item I would not service is a life-raft.

I am happy doing Fire Extinguishers as I had to do it for years on ships ! Just not so easy to get the components needed.

In fact there is no requirement for life-jackets to be serviced as with Life-rafts. It is purely an owners decision. It is surprising how many go for years not thinking about it, just expecting it to inflate when needed. I only started doing my own - because I had to service Safety Gear on ships and built up a personal desire to do it.

It is also not the first forum I have posted about it ..

What was interesting was that the manufacturer of mine on its info printed on inside of jacket clearly reccomended a two year inspection interval-(not necessarily total service)but failed to point this out on instructions provided with jacket.

Phil

Bit of vicious circle here...

If you had inspected the jacket monthly or before use you'd have seen the label!

But... if you didn't know that you needed to inspect it (from reading the instructions) you wouldn't see the label!

The power of shared experience...

W.

In the company where I was the safety officer their SOP was for a monthly check on lifejackets, however they were used far more and in harsher conditions than most leisure jackets would ever see in a lifetime.

The RNLI have ours exchanged yearly but the onus is for us (as full time crew) to keep our kit servicable at all times. We repack and/or service ours on station but it is done under the supervision of a person certified competent.

Yes it says 'recommended' but I am still amazed at the complacency there is regarding safety equipment in the leisure side of boating. 'We' buy it, maybe read the instructions, chuck it in a locker and then when the proverbial hits the fan we expect it to work flawlessly despite the fact we probably don't really know how to use it...

W.

PS. Any views or opinions are my personal ones NOT those of the RNLI unless stated!

Ok - as RNLI - I have great respect for ...

As you admit though- Leisure boaters are not the same. I know how to service safety gear - we had no service agents / dealers in mid ocean - but admit that I am lazy about it as well now on my "leisure boat".

BUT I am confident enough about my gear that it will work. I check it regularly

...and previously I was on local goverment agency's coded boat - hence the strict SOP for safety equipment

W.

Done that but on some of mine the zinc coating has already started to oxidise, i cleaned off most of it off, but this left the blacken metal exposed. I have smeared with silicone grease, but the am not sure if I should replace them. They were all new 3-4 years ago.

Ian

For the sake of £6 - 8 each is it really worth the risk of saving them?

If you must save them then clean the rust away and make sure there is not obvious pitting or damage to the cylinder.  However if the bottles are that old have the jackets been serviced at all during that period? If not I d be more concerned about doing that first...

W.

Why not take the opportunity to actually inflate the jacket as a demo to your family / crew ? In that actually wear it properly, pull the cord etc. - show what a WHOOSH and what really happens.

Then deflate - dump bottle and service with new bottle.

Nigel Luther wrote (see)

Why not take the opportunity to actually inflate the jacket as a demo to your family / crew ? In that actually wear it properly, pull the cord etc. - show what a WHOOSH and what really happens.

Then deflate - dump bottle and service with new bottle.

This is exactly how I have always done mine, which is a manual Crewfit, and now about 15 years old.  Apart from fading on the outside, the bladder looks new, it gives an opportunity to really inspect it, clean it etc, ensures the air used to inflate is dry (see the comment above about damp breath), and it means you are used to wearing it and inflating it...how many people know what it sounds like and what it feels like to inflate their jacket...I always wear mine when I pull the toggle.  In the aviation industry, there is evidence to suggest people revert to memory in accidents (ie trying to undo their aircraft seatbelt as they would their car, and becoming stuck) - I am hoping by inflating my jacket whilst wearing it means I can remember how to do it in a cold sea, should I need to!

We are also trying to arrange for the children to jump in to the local pool wearing theirs before the season starts for the same reasons - theirs are Crewfit autos, so they will experience an inflation in controlled conditions, know what they are like in the water, and then I can clean, inspect, dry, rearm and pack them ready for the season.

Finally, this also solves the issue of disposing of charged gas cylinders!

My lifejackets are self-testing!

Last season we developed a leak through a fitting immediately above the wet locker where the lifejackets are stored. After a hard, wild beat with seawater sluicing down the decks, they both inflated themselves inside the locker.