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Side lights on the mast and COLREGs

4K views 17 replies 11 participants last post by  aloof 
#1 ·
Hello,

I have been reading a few posts about masthead lights and tricolor masthead lights and reviewing the COLREGs but I have been unable to get a clear answer to a question.

Is it acceptable for my boat to have a stern light on the stern and side lights on the side of the mast high enough that the jib will not block the view, while sailling?

My concern is any height requirements. That is -- does the stern light need to be within a certain vertical distance away from the side lights?

Thanks in advance for any helpful information.

Scott.
 
#3 ·
Thanks for the quick response, jackdale!

Right or wrong I just don't like the idea of having my only nav lights that high up off the deck. It seems like someone could very easily fail to look up and never see me if they are close to my boat.

But I DO like the idea of having some lights up off the water a little higher than my approximately 3 foot of freeboard. I guess I will stick to mounting on the bow pulpit if that is the only way to do it.

Scott.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Right or wrong I just don't like the idea of having my only nav lights that high up off the deck. It seems like someone could very easily fail to look up and never see me if they are close to my boat.

But I DO like the idea of having some lights up off the water a little higher than my approximately 3 foot of freeboard. I guess I will stick to mounting on the bow pulpit if that is the only way to do it.
You could supplement your current side and stern lights with red and green all-round lights near the mast-head (red over green - see colregs rule 25c). That would address your (sensible) concern of lights low to the water not being visible in some circumstances.
http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/pdf/navrules/navrules.pdf said:
RULE 25-CONTINUED
(c) A sailing vessel underway may, in addition to the lights prescribed in
paragraph (a) of this Rule, exhibit at or near the top of the mast, where they
can best be seen, two all-round lights in a vertical line, the upper being red
and the lower green, but these lights shall not be exhibited in conjunction
with the combined lantern permitted by paragraph (b) of this Rule.
Sailing vessel underway. Same for Inland.
 
#4 ·
The problem with lights on the mast in addition to not being legal as pointed out above is the Jib or Genoa could obscure the lights at some points of sail

Yes the masthead lights have problems with many people not looking up or understanding what the light mean. Many many years ago I sailed on a 60 ft boat with about an 80 ft mast, the owner after getting honked at and almost ran over a few times had us add temporary lights on the bow pulpit in addition to the masthead light, yes the boat was not legal but we had fewer problems with other vessels after that.

I see many sailboats now with lights on the bow pulpit as opposed to mounting them on the deck where they are closer to the water and when healed over even closer to the water and harder to see.

You don't say what the length of your vessel is, but vessels under 12 meters are only required to have sidelights that are visible for 1 nm, you could get a slightly larger light for vessels 12 to under 50 meters in length and the visibility is 2 nm. which should give you the increased visibility you desire.
 
#7 ·
<...>
You don't say what the length of your vessel is, but vessels under 12 meters are only required to have sidelights that are visible for 1 nm, you could get a slightly larger light for vessels 12 to under 50 meters in length and the visibility is 2 nm. which should give you the increased visibility you desire.
Thank you for the thoughtful response, nwsaildude.

It seems like there is just no 'perfect' way to mount the side lights. The 2nm lights is a good idea, I will consider that. I have to think that no matter how bright a light may be, it will still be hard to see when heeled over such that the light is pointed at the water or up at the sky.

Maybe I need side lights with some sort of gimbals? Or gyroscopic stabilization? :)

Back in reality - I am still trying to find time to get the wires run and the lights mounted.

Thanks again!

Scott.
 
#5 ·
I've been pondering a similar question as well. My boat doesn't have an anchor light at the masthead, and the stern light currently is about 2' above the waterline. There's roughly 2 and a half months before the end of my season, and I don't feel like paying a haulout fee or finding a trailer to step the mast, install an anchor light, and re-launch just for a couple overnights on the hook. Can I get away with running a stern light on a long extension pole light my 17' bowrider uses, or would the powers that be really hassle me for anchoring a sailboat if the stern light is in the wrong location?

I'm not planning to anchor in a main channel, more like on the edge of the bay, maybe even up a creek. i just want the lights more for being legal more than being seen.
 
#6 ·
I've been pondering a similar question as well. My boat doesn't have an anchor light at the masthead, and the stern light currently is about 2' above the waterline. There's roughly 2 and a half months before the end of my season, and I don't feel like paying a haulout fee or finding a trailer to step the mast, install an anchor light, and re-launch just for a couple overnights on the hook. Can I get away with running a stern light on a long extension pole light my 17' bowrider uses, or would the powers that be really hassle me for anchoring a sailboat if the stern light is in the wrong location?

I'm not planning to anchor in a main channel, more like on the edge of the bay, maybe even up a creek. i just want the lights more for being legal more than being seen.
I would get a battery powered white light and tie it as high as you can reach on the forestay.
 
#9 ·
Since those early days I have learned quite a bit and would be unlikely to repeat the dual lighting. Yes you are only allowed to show lights that you are legally entitled to, I cover that clearly in the boating safety classes I now teach. You are also not allowed to show lights that could be confusing (the extra lights added for Christmas decorations could be considered confusing, as could the extra spotlight on some commercial vessels I saw in Europe, the extra white spotlights being designed to turn the stern of the ship into one very large white billboard).

Your point is very valid and is also part of the reason I noted that we were not legal with that display
 
#10 · (Edited)
There is no height requirement for "sidelights." Nor do they have to be on or near the bow. On most commercial ships the "sidelights" are carried on the "house", the big structure on the stern. Many people get confused thinking that since they see a red or green light on a commercial ship that must be the front (bow) of the ship. Not necessarily so.

The provision for a tricolor is to make a single fixture legal. Note that the same is true for the red/green combination light. That fixture is specifically noted as legal in the COLREGS. ->In a vessel of less than 20 meters in length the sidelights may be combined in one lantern carried on the fore and aft centerline of the vessel.

In theory you could mount your red and green lights at the stern. The problem is -> "Sidelights" means a green light on the starboard side and a red light on the port side each showing an unbroken light over an arc of the horizon of 112.5 degree No matter where you mount the sidelights above the deck level on a sailboat except in front of the forestay the jib is going to interrupt the "unbroken light" unless you have a fractional rig and mount the light(s) above the forestay.

A couple of other notes:
1) Offshore a tricolor seems to me to be a better solution. Setting aside the luminosity (how bright it is) of the tricolor it it more visible in larger seas then deck mounted lights. Many offshore sailors have both deck mounted lights and tricolors. In shore tricolors are a bit of a problem, most people aren't looking 65 feet in the air to see your tricolor so we run the deck lights.
2) Anchor lights have the same problem. Coming into an anchorage at night one can see the anchor lights of the boats. But as you get closer the masthead white light tends to get lost in the stars. For this reason many of us mount one or more lights at deck level (the solar powered lights used to light household walks are frequently used.}
3) Any white all around light hanging anywhere on the boat visible for 2 miles qualifies as an "anchor light"

Fair winds and following seas :)
 
#11 ·
You are welcome

Seems to me I see some lights that say "Powerboat" on them and others indicate for use on "Sailboats" - I have not checked the manufactures specs. but that leads me to think the vertical spread on some lights is narrow and others it is wider. Something to check on (bit easier than mounting the light on gimbals or gyro-stabilized :) )

Good luck with your project
 
#12 ·
If the boat has an engine, she's required to show a white masthead (steaming) light a minimum of one meter above the sidelights. That would make mounting the side lights at the mast top a no no. If there's no engine, then all you need is a tricolor.
To get approval, the light fixtures must account for a certain amount of heeling without losing horizontal visibility. If your boat sails on her ear, that might not be enough. I'm not sure what could be done about that.
 
#14 ·
When it comes to visibility remember that it is not only your nav lights. Most commercial ships with the exception of tankers have deck lights in addition to the nav lights. Cruise ships look like a city at night, in fact it is usually hard to pick out the nav lights in the glare of the other lights and the jumbotron! If under sail and you want to be seen put a little light on your sails! The down side (other than electrical use) is that you are affecting your night vision. But you are doing that when you look at your chart plotter, radar, etc.

I have a big halogen light (like an old fashioned car fog lamp) aimed up at my main sail. 99.44% of the time it is turned off. But if someone gets too close I fire that puppy up. It is really hard to not see Reboot when that light is on!

Fair winds and following seas :)
 
#15 ·
And a sailing vessel (no engine in use) under 7 meters in length only needs to show a white light or torch (flashlight) shown in time to avoid a collision. Seven meters is about 23 feet, which is pretty big to not have real lights. I think the limit should be more like 16 feet, but that is the rule.
 
#16 ·
IMHO for most of us, the most practical solution is deck level running lights, a steaming light half way up or so, and a tricolor at the mast head. Use the deck level near shore and in harbors, and the tricolor (pie in the sky) offshore. In the harbor, no one is going to be looking up that high. At sea, I want to be seen as far away as possible. You should not illuminate both sets of lights at the same time.

Most/many of us have anchor lights also at the mast head. I used to think fine, until after the fireworks this year I almost did not see a sailboat at anchor off the beach in Vineyard Sound that had only a mast head anchor light, as I was in a crowd and looking horizontally, not up. Something to be said for a anchor light hung in the foretriangle. An anchorage full of masthead lights is going to get someone's attention at a distance, but up close, not so much.
 
#18 ·
The colored lights, in my opinion are primarily for communicating the heading of your boat to others. For just basic visibility it is hard to beat an all around white light. Mine is on the backstay, and is bright, it lights up the sails, it cannot be confused with anything else. It loudly says "somebody is here". I use it in busy areas or when napping...it is a little annoying when up enjoying the stars do it is on a switch...ya know.

White lights are your friend. They say "I am here" and if the colored lights are not seen they say "Go away, I'm not getting out of your way".

Side light on the mast. Above the headsail sheave. Should be okay. Relation to the stern light is not defined or necessary as they are not really visible at the same time.
 
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