Step 1: Safety equipment for your boat

1. Personal Flotation devices, or more commonly called life jackets, are the most important piece of equipment on board any vessel. To dissect the name; Personal means it is for you and must properly fit you, Flotation means that is must be capable of floating you the intended wearer, and Device as it is an item used for the purpose described.
 

• Every PFD must be Coast Guard Certified and must have a label inside stating this. It must be in good condition and not showing any signs of rot or missing straps. All too often people get their PFDs wet and stow them away in a compartment, only to find out that they have succumbed to mildew and rot rendering them not safe for use.
  
• PFD’s must be readily accessible. Do not store your PFD’s in a bag or a compartment that you can not get to, such as in a cuddy cabin. If you can not get your PFD when you need it, it is too late. Non use of PFD is found in over 80% of all drownings, and use of a PFD will drastically increase your chances of survival in a boating accident.
  
• On a row boat, canoe, sail boat and power boat there must be one PFD readily accessible and in good condition for every person on board the vessel.
  
• Any child under the age of 12 must be wearing a PFD at all times they are on board a vessel that is under way. Under way is described as a vessel that is not at anchor or docked. The exception to this rule is if the child is inside an enclosed cabin or the vessel is longer than 65 feet in length.
  
• Every vessel 16 feet or longer must also carry one type 4 throwable device with line attached. These devices look like a life ring, however a coast guard approved seat cushions with line attached is sufficient.
  
• Operators and passengers on PWC must be wearing a PFD at all times.
  
• Persons engaged in water Skiing must be wearing a PFD at all times.
  
• Types of PFDs are as follows; Type one is typically found on commercial vessels, they are big and bulky and provide a great amount of flotation. Type two is the most common type and they look like a collar around your neck. Type two PFDs will roll an unconscious wearer face up in the water. They are the least expensive and the most uncomfortable to wear, and possibly the safest with the face up concept. Type three is a vest type PFD they are comfortable to wear and very expensive. They will not roll an unconscious wearer face up but they do provide warmth to the wearer. Type five is a hybrid PFD and they come in many forms, from jackets with PFDs built in to vests that auto inflate when they are submerged in water. Many type five PFDs are not Coast Guard certified and would not be counted as allowable if you were stopped and checked for equipment.

2. Fire extinguisher; every vessel with an enclosed motor or fuel tank must carry one hand held fire extinguisher that is Coast Guard approved. The minimum type must be capable of combating type A, B and C fires. Personal water craft are also required to carry an extinguisher. Larger vessels have more strict requirements such as on board fire suppression systems and these requirements can be seen in section 40 of the Navigation Laws.

3. Lights; every vessel that is mechanically propelled must have one white light astern visible for 360 degrees and a green and red light on the bow or forward portion. The bow lights must be placed on the vessel in such a way so that an approaching vessel will see your red on the right as you head towards each other. Often times when a boater replaces the bulb in the bow light they get the colors reversed. Lights must be displayed from sunset to sunrise, sunset is not when it gets dark it is when the sun officially sets and there is usually another half hour of sunlight after sunset. They must also be displayed during operation in bad weather conditions. Lights are not used on Personal Water Crafts as they can not be operated after sunset. There are kits available to put lights on these vessels and they can so be used, however they are only for bad weather conditions and not night operation.

There are many other light combinations for larger vessels and to describe them would be of no use since they are not typically going to be seen on our small lakes, Lake Erie will typically display these lights on freighters and large vessels.

Row boats and canoes or any non mechanically propelled vessel used after dark may do so without the need for bow lights. In these instances they must have readily available a lantern or white light to be displayed when another vessel approaches. Typically a lantern is used by night fishermen. They can be very difficult to see and are usually in close to shore, but don’t ever let that give you a false sense of confidence that there isn’t a boat out there directly in your path. When operating at night slow down and be ever on guard for the unknown.

4. Sound Producing devices; Every mechanically propelled vessel must have a sound producing device or whistle capable of producing a two second blast that can be heard for a distance of 1/2 mile under calm conditions. Every PWC must also carry a whistle and the whistle must be affixed to the operator in such a way that if the operator and craft become separated he will still have the ability to attract attention to himself in an emergency. PWC operators must also have the dead man lanyard attached to their person so the motor will stop if they fall off the craft.

5. Anchor; every vessel that is mechanically propelled must carry an anchor capable of holding the vessel in position and said anchor shall have sufficient line attached. The length of the line is recommended to be 5 to 7 times the depth of the water. The reason for this is so the anchor will bite into the bottom and hold the vessel in position. A short anchor line will allow the anchor to bounce off the bottom and will not hold fast the vessel. PWC’s are not required to carry an anchor.

6. Distress Flag and flare kit; every vessel 16 feet or longer must carry a distress kit with three hand held flares for night distress and one 2 foot by 2 foot orange flag for daytime distress. The flares have expiration dates on the side label and they must not be out of date. Personal water
craft must carry a flag but not the flares.

Step 2: Ages of Operation / Safety Course

• Row boats, paddleboats, sail boats, and canoes -with no motor have no age requirements, but do require life jackets for everyone on board. .
• Power Boats -the operator must be at least 10 years of age and have completed a boater safety course. Certificate holders MUST carry their cards with them while operating a vessel. Anyone over 18 years of age can operate a power boat with no formal boating education, however we strongly recommend taking a boater safety course.
• Personal Water Craft, Jet Skis, -require ALL operators to have taken and successfully completed a formal boater safety course before they operate a PWC. All operators MUST carry their cards with them while operating a jet ski..
• Minimum Age for operation Effective 2009 boating season the minimum age of operation for a jet ski is 14 yrs old and you MUST be in possession of a valid boater safety certificate. All operators of a jet ski MUST have completed and carry their safety certificate with them.
  We want you to have fun! Avoid unnecessary delays and / or fines by having your certificates, identification and registration with you on your jet ski! It will save us all time and hassle if you comply with these rules. We recommend you keep your paperwork and wallet etc in a water tight container to keep it dry.
  There are no longer any provisions for operation under the age of 14, but we still recommend parents accompany their children on jet skis but it is not mandatory.
• Boater Safety Courses are offered by many local police departments and Sheriff’s Offices and by the United States Coast Guard and the US Power Boat Squadron, as well as many marinas. On line courses from Boat US or any other non state or federal agency are not accepted. We will honor any other states boater safety course provided the operator carries proof that they have taken such course. Pennsylvania is the only state known that has a complete on-line boater safety course; however you must be a resident of the state of Pennsylvania to take the course.

Every mechanically propelled vessel must be registered in their home state or in the State of New York if they are used more that 90 days consecutive on waterways in this state.

Registrations are good for three years and the fees are based on the size of the vessel. Registration numbers must be three inch block letters of a contrasting color to the hull. They must be permanently affixed to the hull on the forward portion of the vessel and the validation sticker bust be placed directly aft the numbers. A typical registration will appear with two letters designating the state of registration followed by four numbers and then two more letters. You are required to carry your registration, and have your numbers and validation sticker displayed at all times.

Step 4: Operating your vessel safely;

Rules of the Road