Article by Capt. Steve Katz
EPIRB's
An Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon, or EPIRB, is a critical piece of safety equipment for most coastal boaters. For those who read last week’s column, the boaters activated their EPIRB to be sure rescue authorities knew who they were and where to find them.
An EPIRB is an electronic transmitter used to alert search and rescue services in the event of an emergency. It does this by transmitting a message signal on the 406 MHz distress frequency to orbiting satellite(s) which communicate back down to earth stations.
Modern EPIRB’s are required to meet international standards and can be used around the world with global coverage. There is no cost to register your EPIRB and there is no “subscription” cost to ensure that your EPIRB transmission will be acted upon. The only costs involved are the purchase and maintenance of your EPIRB.
When activated, an EPIRB transmits a signal that is received by satellites then transmitted back to earth and sent to both the country where the EPIRB is registered and to the country responsible for the search and rescue in that area. For most of our readers that is here in the USA. For those who travel in their boats to the Caribbean or Central America, the rescue may be under the authority of another country.
Every EPIRB must be registered in the corresponding country of registry of the boat to which it is fitted. This does not affect how or where the EPIRB operates, just who (what country) maintains the data for that EPIRB. If you purchase an EPIRB in the USA, it already has the USA country code pre-programmed and no further programming is necessary. If you need to register a USA EPIRB in another country, you will need to get it re-programmed. Many countries beside the USA, require that the EPIRB is programmed with the vessels MMSI number.
In the USA, every new or used EPIRB is federally required to be registered with NOAA (National Oceanographic Atmospheric Administration). If you change any information on your registration, such as phone number, address, bought a new boat, etc., you must update the registration with NOAA. Also, if you sell your EPIRB please notify NOAA that you have done so and inform the buyer that they must register the beacon for themselves. Otherwise, you may be contacted by rescue authorities if it is activated. Registration with NOAA is easy, using either the internet or mailing a registration form.
Just today, a customer asked me “What kind of EPIRB should I get”? What they meant wasn’t the brand, color or size, but the deployment style. There are two critical aspects of using an EPIRB, deployment and activation. Deployment is how are you going to get the EPIRB? Activation is how are you going to turn it on?
Deployment can be automatic, such as a Category I EPIRB, which is stored inside a plastic case with a hydrostatic release. This is designed to be mounted on the exterior of a vessel in an unobstructed area that will allow the EPIRB to float free after it is submerged 10-15 feet underwater. Once the case‘s hydrostatic release opens the housing, the EPIRB will float to the surface of the water and begin transmitting automatically.
A Category II EPIRB is deployed manually. This type of EPIRB is usually mounted in a convenient location near the helm or some other easily accessible area where it can be located in an emergency. Some boaters store their EPIRB in a “ditch bag”, but any location is good as long as you can quickly get to it in the event of an emergency.
All EPIRB’s are required to activate automatically when they are wet, (floating in the water). An EPIRB in its case or bracket will not automatically activate. All EPIRB’s also have an “on” switch, allowing you to manually activate the EPIRB.
The EPIRB antenna system is designed to use the water as part of its ground plane (antenna system) and works best when floating upright in the water. If needed due to sea conditions, the EPIRB can be brought aboard and held or secured upright, though you should keep your hands and body away from the antenna and do not let any objects touch the antenna in order to maximize the transmission signal. Once activated, do not turn it off (to save batteries etc) until the rescue authorities have arrived on scene. The signal from the EPIRB is used by satellites and local rescue assets, such as airplanes, helicopters and boats.
Now that we have covered a little about EPIRB’s, we can review the PLB or Personal Locator Beacon. This device is similar to an EPIRB since they access the same rescue network, but have a few different physical properties. They are designed for a minimum of 24 hours of transmission time compared to the minimum of 48 hours transmission time of an EPIRB.
A PLB is registered to a person, not a vessel, making it easy to take with you on different boats or adventures. A PLB is not required to float upright or even float at all! A PLB is not required to activate when wet. The PLB is designed to be carried by a person since they lack the robust construction and permanent-mounting capability of a full-sized EPIRB.
Either EPIRB or PLB, both are an important safety device for all boaters. Street prices begin at $260 for a floating PLB and $450 for an EPIRB with GPS. A worthwhile investment that you hope you never need.
Captain Steve Katz is the owner of Steve’s Marine Service and holds NMEA, AMEI and NMEA2000 certificates along with ABYC Master Technician certification and factory training from many manufacturers.
