BCSPS Required Fire Equipment

130-126th Avenue at Lagoon Lane
Treasure Island, FL 33706

"Must Have" Safety Equipment

The government has established a body of rules for boat owners setting forth equipment and safety standards. It is important you have the required equipment on board your boat and know how to use it. This equipment is not sufficient to ensure your safety, and we recommend you augment this the following equipment with that listed in our "should have" and "nice to have" listings.

Fire Extinguishers and Safety Devices

Fire Extinguishers

The following recreational boats are required to carry fire extinguishers:

1.	Those with inboard engines.
2.	Outboard boats that have closed compartments that store permanent or portable fuel tanks.
3.	Those with permanently installed fuel tanks. If a "portable" tank is so heavy that persons on board cannot move it, the Coast Guard considers it permanently installed.
4.	Those with closed compartments or living spaces.

NOTE: The fire extinguisher does NOT count towards meeting the requirement unless it is permanently mounted in an approved bracket.

Length of Boat	Type and Size	Number of Extinguishers
Less than 26 feet	B-1	1
26ft. to less than 40 ft.	B-1	2
40ft. to 65ft.	B-1	3

A flammable liquid fire is the most serious type of fire on a boat. For that reason, extinguishers on recreational boats must be rated in the B class.

Fire Classification Markings on Fire Extinguishers

Two common types of fire extinguishers are used on boats: ABC and BC.

Class A	Class A fires are in ordinary combustible materials such as wood, paper, rubber, plastic, textiles that burn easily and can be put out with water.
Class B	Class B fires are in flammable liquids, such as gasoline, oils, and grease.
Class C	Class C fires are in electrical equipment such as wiring, fuse boxes, circuit breakers, machinery, and appliances

Fire Extinguisher Maintenance

Check the gauges on your extinguishers monthly to make sure they show a full charge. While the Coast Guard has no requirement for annual inspection, if your dry chemical extinguishers are of the rechargeable type it's a good idea to take them to a qualified fire extinguisher service for an annual inspection to ensure they are fully charged.

Flame Arrestors

A Flame Arrestor is the metal screen-like part that covers the carburetor's air intake. The Flame Arrestor keeps flames from flashing out dangerously into the engine compartment where they could ignite gasoline fumes. Flame Arrestors must comply with certain Underwriters' Laboratories or SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) standards.

All gasoline engines (except outboard motors) must be equipped with an acceptable flame arrestor.