Safe Boating Minute: your boat’s capacity on the water

This is your 2022 Safe Boating Minute produced by the Coast Guard Auxiliary. I’m Captain Mark.

This month we are going to discuss the capacity of boats on the water. That is not as simple a consideration as it might sound. So to begin let’s discuss the implications. 

A boat floats on the water because the boat is designed to displace – or push aside- a mass of water that is greater than the mass of the boat. Said another way you can make just about anything buoyant as long as there is enough mass to hold the boat up. 

The reality is that water, with lots of dissolved material like a salty ocean, can actually support a larger vessel simply because the water itself weighs more per gallon. 

Also, by making a boat surface larger it is held up by more water so it is more stable overall. Finally, by making sure the hull rides above the water and is filled with air, boat designers can increase the floatation and allow the vessel to carry more material. 

That is why large ocean-going commercial vessels are as wide as they are. Large ships are generally marked with a Plimsoll line that shows loaders the maximum immersion depth when a vessel is fully loaded. 

Next week we’ll talk more about capacity as it relates to pleasure boats. Don’t forget Flotilla 12-02 is offering its more in-depth basic 2-day course Boating Skills and Seamanship on February 19^th and 26^th at the Tasley Firehouse. The cost is $25.00 to cover books and supplies. 

The course is filling up so please call Jerry Phillips at 442-5229 or go to the VA Boater Education web site to sign up. 

These boating safety minutes are a Public Service of Flotilla 12-02 of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary. We need new members and any citizen over 17 is welcome to join. For more information call Russell Vreeland at 757-442-7029.