Marine Accessories

Now that summer is here and we are spending a lot of time on the water we want to make sure we have good life jackets that fit properly and are in good condition.  Life jackets will last a long time if taken care of such as do not store them wet and keep them clean.  You can purchase life jackets at any marine store or sporting goods store but the largest selection will be found on the internet from several manufactures.  Life jackets come in several styles and colors and should be an important item on your marine accessories list.

Use dog life jackets on you dogs when out boating to keep Fido safe from drowning in case you are out on a lake and your dog ends up in the water and freaks out and drowns.  Even though dogs can swim they can panic if they do not see land close to them.  Dog life jackets come in several sizes and colors for you to choose from and one thing to look for is a handle on top of the dog life jacket which makes it easy to lift Fido out of the water.

Keep your kids safe buy using children’s life jackets whenever you are on are around water or on the water.  If childrens life jackets fit properly children do not mind wearing them and it will become a habit of putting on their life jacket whenever they are on or neat the water and if they are not a good swimmer it is a good idea to use a life vest when around a swimming pool.  Children life jackets come in different styles and colors which make you child like it even better and should be an item on your marine accessories list.

Emily asked, “Why do life jackets float? They are so small compared to my size and they don’t weigh much.”

As you recall from reading how boats float a body displaces water, which pushes back and creates buoyancy.  The more water you displace, the greater the force pushing back.

Think about this: A cubic foot of water weighs about 62 lbs. A solid cubic foot of wood weighs about 50 pounds. The solid block of wood will float because it can displace enough water to equal its weight. Now try the same thing with a box made of wood that is hollow inside. Let’s say it weighs about ten pounds. It will float much higher because it only has to displace 10 pounds of water to float.

When you are in the water, you feel much lighter. That’s because your body has displaced water that is pushing back a

nd creating buoyancy. A life jacket is filled with a very light material, usually foam, that can displace alot of water compared to its weight. A cubic foot of foam weighs about one pound. It will float on top of the water because it only has to displace one pound of water.

Because your body already has some buoyancy, a life jacket doesn’t need to support all of your weight. It just needs to displace enough to keep your head above the water.

It is important to get a life jacket that fits you properly. It won’t be much use if it’s too big and you slip out of it. Also, choose a life jacket that’s designed for the activity you are doing. Off-shore life jackets are designed to keep you floating with your head above the water even in rough sea conditions, while life jackets designed for water skiers help you float in calm water and can also protect you from impact injuries.

One good reason for dog life jackets is that a dog can get very tiered if in the water for an extended period of time and this could leave to a very unhappy ending.   Dog life jackets come in a large range of sizes and styles so you need to make sure you get the one that is best fit for your dog.  One thing you want to make sure your dog life vest has a handle on the top of it so that if it does fall off the boat it will be very easy to pull the dog out of the dog.

Children’s life jackets are the most important item on your marine accessories list.  Children under twelve are to wear a life jacket in a boat but we should probably think about having them wear a life jacket till they are a little older.  Children’s life jackets come in several sizes and  and colors even with designs on them that will help the children wear them.  You hear about children drowning in swimming pools and it makes you wonder if they should not wear a live vest around the pool.

If you take your dog out boating make sure you put a dog life vest on the pet or they may not make the trip back with your.  Even though dogs should be able to swim they can still drown because they will panic if the get thrown in the water when they are not expecting it.  Their are different size dog life vest so you can find a size that will fit your dog and also make sure it has a handle on top as this will make it much easier to get your dog out of the water.

Maybe the most important item on your marine accessories list is life jackets because they can save lives for humans as well as dogs.  A big decision we make on the use of life jackets is when we have a child that becomes over the age of twelve and does not want to use a life jacket any longer, just because they can swim does not mean that they will not panic in the water if something happens and they end up in the water.  I think their are time when everyone on the boat should wear a life jacket for their safety.

We should always practice boating safety and make sure everyone on our boat has a life jacket including our dog.  Dog life jackets come in different sizes so that you can get one that will fit your dog.  Dog life jackets should be on your marine accessories list just as life jackets for every one on your boat.  We all think we can swim in any condition but when something out of the normal happens we can panic and not so good things could happen.

If you take your dog boating make sure they have a dog life vest on just like everyone else on the boat should have a life vest on.  Even though most dogs can swim they can panic if the end up in the water when they are not expecting and that could leave to a tragic end.  You need to check your marine accessories list to make sure you have a dog life vest on it.