Viking Life Rafts
Viking Life Rafts
Founded in Esjberg, a small coastal Danish town, over the past 60 years Viking has grown to become one of the largest and most recognisable safety brands in the world.
Viking Life Rafts are tested in the harshest marine environments to ensure that they are to the highest possible standard, which is why they've saved over 4,000 lives and are used on the world's largest cruise ships.
Viking Life Rafts for Sale
Viking's RescYou and RescYou Pro Life Rafts are focused on making you more visible, making boarding and evacuation easier, as well as reducing any possible discomforts when on board. Viking use the same high grade materials on their RescYou range as they do on their life rafts for Passenger and Cargo Vessels, ensuring a sturdy, reliable end product.
How many types of life rafts are there?
There are two main types of life rafts – inshore and offshore. This will depend on where you are sailing. ISO 9650-1 life rafts are for offshore and transocean use, while ISO 9650-2 life rafts are suitable for coastal areas.
Once you’ve found the right life raft, you will be presented with two options – valise or container. Valise life rafts can be stored in a bag and tucked away in an easily accessible place like a locker, whilst container life rafts need to be stored on a life raft cradle.
It’s imperative to purchase the right size life raft as each size contains different amounts of equipment that will increase your chances of survival. For example, a Viking 6 person life raft will only contain enough sea sickness bags for 6 people, where-as a Viking 8 person life raft will, as you can guess, have enough for 8 people.
If, for example there are often four of you using the boat, but occasionally you venture out with a friend - go for a six person life raft (so the size above). Anyone that’s experienced a life raft will tell you that they’re not the most spacious of places, so the last thing you will want to be is even shorter of space, and have less rations to hand.
What is in a life raft?
All life rafts come with safety packs that contain all the basic essentials to help keep you alive and alert potential rescuers to your location - this includes rations, distress flares, oars and sea sickness tablets. This does slightly vary from life raft to life raft, depending on what brand and model you go for.
How do I manually run a life raft?
Launching a life raft is easy and inflates in seconds, if you follow the correct steps. Here are some instructions, courtesy of Viking.
- Fasten the painter line (red line coming out of the life raft that is around 10 metres long) to a strong point on the boat, ideally a cleat
- To make the throwing of the life raft easier, pull out around 10ft/3 metres of painter line. There is no need to open valise or plastic strapping on container prior to deployment.
- Do NOT deploy the life raft on the deck. Deploy the raft to leeward, using the vessel to protect the life raft from wind and waves. If the vessel is on fire, deploy the life raft windward.
- Pull the life raft towards the vessel using the painter line.
- If possible, jump directly from the vessel into the life raft to stay warm, this will help you maintain as much body temperature as possible.
- Pull out the painter line and stay attached to the vessel unless it’s sinking or on fire. If you need to cut the painter line, you will find a knife attached to the upper buoyancy tube on the right hand side of the canopy entrance.
- Use the signal flares provided, but ONLY when help is in sight.
The manual included with the life raft contains detailed step-by-step emergency instructions. Ensure these are read prior to departure.
Why choose Pirates Cave chandlery?
We’re one of the largest bricks and mortar chandleries in the UK, with over 10,000 products in stock at our Rochester store, plus many more at our additional Gillingham Marina outlet – why not come and visit us? We pride ourselves on our customer service, which is why we’re rated 4.8/5 on reviews.io.
Whether you’re looking for a Viking 6 man life raft, Viking 8 man life raft or a smaller 4 man life raft, it’s vital that your next life raft is the right one - so if you have any questions, our highly experienced team are here to help. You can contact us by calling 01634 295 233, sending an email to customerservices@piratescave.co.uk or visiting us in-store.
Not sure Viking Life Rafts are most suitable for your requirements? We also stock life rafts from other leading brands including Crewsaver Life Rafts, Ocean Safety Life Rafts and Seago Life Rafts.
All online orders are shipped via our quick and secure, fully-tracked courier service, ensuring that your order is shipped promptly and with the high standards that we strive for from point of purchase all the way through to delivery at your door.
Whilst you’re here, why not check out our leading range of life jackets, including adult life jackets, kids life jackets and even dog life jackets! Should you fall into the water, the life jacket will prevent you from drowning. Some advanced life jackets also include spray hoods, which prevent secondary drowning by protecting your airways from water intoxication.
