116: IS a LIFE RAFT FUNCTIONAL AFTER the EXPIRY DATE? 3, 5, & 15 YEAR expired rafts TESTED

Do you ever wonder happens to a life raft that expires? Does it still deploy? Watch this video for the answer! We joined Island Water World of SXM for a Saturday demonstration & beer party. They released three old rafts into the lagoon in the back of their shop and showed us what a 15 year, 5 year and 3 year expired raft does or does not do. It was fascinating! First of all, we had never seen a life raft deployed so that was, in and of itself, gold. And, we learned alot like: 1. Our life raft is too big. We have a 12 man as this was a charter boat, but should probably only have an 8 man. We will buy a new one when we make an ocean passage. 2. It's REALLY hard to get into a liferaft even in a flat, no seas lagoon. 3. Knowing what is in your life raft and where it is located, is essential to your survival. 4. Ensuring your raft is re-certified every three years is essential. While you never plan to and also hope to never use your raft, the reality is that you might have to. Things happen in this big ocean that are beyond our control and having a life raft that is functional and provisioned is essential. We hope you find this video as interesting as we found the demonstration. We loved it! Many thanks to IWW for hosting this event and for all the information provided throughout the demonstration. Interestingly enough, two days later I saw Rene, the shop owner, and he showed me the rafts - they were all in a state of deflation! This is why a hand pump is essential in a raft! #sailing #sailboat #sailingprojects #liferaft #sintmaarten #stmaarten NEW TO OUR CHANNEL? We are Eileen and Brown Councill. Welcome to our channel and a glimpse into our life adventure! 2020 was a year of uncertainty and change (for all of us, right?), but we overcame the challenges and decided it was time to chase our dream, to sail around the world! Did I mention that we had very NO sailing experience? Before leaving Qingdao, China, our home of 4 years, we sold almost all of our earthly possessions and started our international search to find the right sailboat that we would call "home." After 5 months of unanticipated twists and turns, we found what we were looking for, a used Leopard 44' Catamaran located in St. Lucia. So, here begins our journey, filled with unmatched excitement and honestly, a bit of trepidation as well. We have much to learn as we travel the world on our floating home and we intend to document that journey and share it with you. We are so glad you have decided to join us, and we hope that you will find our story so compelling that it will inspire you to chase your dreams too! As a viewer, we consider you to be part of our family and look forward to getting to know you. Don't hesitate to comment on our videos and ask questions. We will do our best to answer every correspondence! All we ask is that you have patience with us as we work really hard to improve our camera/video techniques and ability to tell a story. Hopefully, you will be as BLOWN AWAY from watching, as we are in experiencing and producing our adventures! HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT US? If you wish to support our video efforts, all we ask is that you SUBSCRIBE, give a THUMBS UP, SHARE our videos with your friends, AND COMMENT! WOULD YOU LIKE TO GET TO KNOW US MORE DEEPLY? It would be an honor and pleasure to deepen our relationship with you as a Patron. Please click on the following link to see how: https://www.patreon.com/sailingblownaway WOULD YOU LIKE TO FOLLOW OUR JOURNEY? https://www.noforeignland.com/boat/6040796987916288 WHERE CAN YOU FIND US ON SOCIAL MEDIA? Instagram - @sailingblownaway Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SailingBlownAway Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/eileen.dietrich/ YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/sailingblownaway