These items may sound a bit different, but these are very essential for the one who buys a new boat. And there are some essential accessories you need to buy while buying a boat.
- A Life jacket and throwable flotation devices
- A life ring
- Whistles or horns
- VHF radio
- Flares
- Bucket
- First aid kit
- Fire extinguisher
- Tool kit
- Knife
- Anchor
- A set of shackles
- Torchlight
- Binoculars
- Cooler box and Drybags
- Ropes and boat bumpers
- Boating shoes
These are the basic equipment you might need for boating in lakes or ponds. But, if you are going for boating in seas or oceans, then you need to carry more. At the bottom of the post, I mentioned all the equipment you might need based on the needs.
1. Life jacket and throwable flotation devices
A life jacket is essential for every boater, and each person in the boat needs to have one life jacket. The operator(the person who is operating the boat) must wear a life jacket while operating the boat. Kids must always wear a life jacket if the boat is moving in the water.
While buying a life jacket make sure it has a small whistle on it. If anyone falls overboard, and no one knows that someone has fallen overboard, then you can use the whistle to signal others. So, they will come to know your exact location quickly. Nowadays some of them are having a small light on it as well, which is helpful while boating at night. You need to buy a throwable flotation device on the boat.
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Check the price in amazon click here (don’t worry, it will open in new tab).
2. Life ring
A life ring is essential for kids. If the kid falls in the water, then you can throw the life ring near him, so that he will catch that and you can pull the rope tied to a life ring. You can stay afloat in the water with the help of the life ring.
A life ring is useful if you are thinking to swim in the water with kids.
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3. Whistle or horns
A whistle is a sound signaling device with the help of this you can signal others if there are any other boaters near your boat. You can use all these sound signaling devices if there is anyone near you otherwise, there is no use of them.
Horns are much more efficient than whistles. A horn sound travels more distance than a whistle. Remember, you can use them if there is anyone near you.
4. VHF radio
Vhf radio is essential for a boat, with the help of this device you can communicate with others(other boaters or coast guards). If you are in an emergency, then by pressing the emergency switch on the back of the radio it will send your location to the coast guards or other boaters near you.
Vhf radio is a very common device you will see on many boats. The most reliable, least expensive, and the best way to get in touch with the coast guards is with the help of VHF radio.
Check my article on Consider these things while buying a VHF radio (don’t worry, it will open in a new tab). In that article, I mentioned all the things you need to consider while buying a VHF radio (handheld + fixed mount).
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5. Flares
Flares are visual signaling devices with the help of these you can signal other boaters if you are in an emergency. If you are using a small boat(under 16 feet), then you need to have them on your boat. The orange smoke comes out of the flares signals other boats that someone is in danger.
Some of them require a flare gun to launch and some are by hand. Generally, these flares will last for around 3 years. So, it is good to have them on your boat.
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Check the price in amazon click here (don’t worry, it will open in new tab).
6. Bucket
A small bucket is very helpful for a boat. Suppose, if water gets into the boat, then you need to clean it up. Tie a rope to it, if the water is inside a bilge and you can’t go inside it, then you can use the rope. If you have a bilge pump you might not need it, but keep a small bucket in the boat.
7. First aid kit
First aid kit is essential for a boat. You might encounter so many dangers in the boat(while fishing or while using a tool kit or if you fell in the boat). It is recommended to have a first aid kit in your boat regardless of the size and usage. While using it, don’t forget to check the expiry date.
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8. Fire extinguisher
A fire extinguisher is useful in a boat. So make sure that you mount your fire extinguisher in a location that is easy to reach in the event of an emergency. Ideally, it should be within arm’s reach of you and your passengers.
Now, let’s quickly review the types of fire extinguishers you need on your boat based on the boat size.
- If your boat is less than 26 feet, you need one B1 fire extinguisher onboard.
- If your boat is between 26 and 40 feet, you need either two B1 or a single B2 fire extinguisher.
- And finally, if your boat is between 40 and 65 feet, you need either three B1 extinguishers or two B2 extinguishers.
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9. Tool kit
Regardless of the size of the boat, it is good to have a small tool kit in the boat. You don’t know what will happen in the boat, you need to be prepared for everything. Suppose you are in the middle of the trip and the motor fails if it is a small work, you can fix it immediately. You can fix small repairs on your own.
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10. Knife
Keep a small knife in the tool kit or carry it with you on the boat. You can use the knife to cut the ropes for knots or while making a thimble. There are many advantages of having a small knife in the boat.
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11. Anchor
An anchor is essential in a boat without this you can’t stay at one place in the water. So, make sure that you are carrying the anchor in the boat.
Check my article on Choosing a perfect anchor for your boat (don’t worry, it will open in a new tab). In that article, I explained everything you need to know while choosing an anchor.
Check my article on Choosing ropes and chains for anchoring a boat (don’t worry, it will open in new tab). In that article, I explained all the things you need to know while buying a rope or chain for an anchor
12. A set of shackles
- Bow shackles
- Safety pin shackles
- Piling shackles
- Headboard shackles
Shackles are essential in the boat for linking the anchor and even if the chain breaks you use these. You can use these for hanging some items in the boat.
To avoid the noise from shackles(when they hit any metals parts), you can use an insulation tape on the shackle. So, you no need to worry about the noises. Check all the types of shackles in slide-share click here (don’t worry it will open in new tab)
13. Torchlight
Torchlight is essential if you are boating at night. With the help of this, you can signal others for help. If you are in an emergency, you can use a torchlight to indicate that you are there for help. So, buy a brighter light.
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If you are thinking to buy a torchlight for your boat, then click on the link click here (linked to Amazon)
14. Binoculars
Binoculars are optional for a boat. But, it is good to have binoculars in the boat. During an emergency, you can use them to see the people far away from you, and you can signal them.
If you are in the middle of the sea or lake and your boat is not working, then you need to signal others with flares. If you have binoculars, then you can see whether anyone is near you or not, then only you will use the flares.
If you don’t have binoculars, then randomly you will use the flares(in different time intervals) because you can’t see whether anyone is near you or not. Then you might waste the flares unnecessarily. So, if you have binoculars in the boat, it will be helpful.
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Check this awesome Bushnell binocular in amazon click here (don’t worry, it will open in new tab).
15. Cooler box and Drybags
- You can use the dry bags for keeping your valuable items away from water because these are waterproof bags. you can use these bags when you are using dinghies. So, you use this as a backpack in the boat.
- You can store your food in the cooler. Suppose you are finishing on a hot summer day, after some time you may feel like drinking cold water or cool drinks. You can keep cool drinks in the cooler box before you start your trip.
Types of drybags
- Barrel Roll Top Dry Bags
- Dry Bag Holdalls
- Rucksack Dry Bags
- Mobile Phone Dry Bags
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Check the price of the cooler box in amazon click here (don’t worry, it will open in a new tab).
16. Ropes and boat bumpers
The rope is essential in the boat. You can tie this to a life ring, and threw it in the water, to save a person who is drowning in the water. Can be used for
- Docking the boat
- Anchoring the boat
- Towing the boat and for rigging,
You can prevent dock damage by using bumpers. These are not expensive to buy. By tieing some of them to your dock, you can save a lot of money. Just in case if any dock incident happens to your boat.
17. Boating shoes
These are very essential on a boat. On a boat, the floor will be slippery to avoid that we need non-slippery shoes. And those shoes shouldn’t be waterproof because if water goes inside the shoes it will bother you. And sole of the shoes should be broader than the normal shoes, then it will not slip.
Check my article on the recommended gear on shoes click here (don’t worry, it will open in new tab).
Key takeaways
In the below table, I listed all the rest of the equipment you might need based on the needs.
| Equipment | Needs | Quantity |
| Life jacket | Must for a boat | for each person |
| Life ring | Must for a boat | for each person |
| Flotation devices | Must for a boat | it depends(but, nice to have for each person) |
| Whistles or horns | Must for a boat | 1+ |
| Ladder | Nice to have a rope ladder (if you don’t have any) | 1 |
| VHF radio | Optional, nice to have (no need license in the USA) | 1 (boat under 65 feet (optional)) |
| EPIRB | Optional(you can use if you are boating in seas or oceans) (no need license) | 1 |
| Chartplotter | Optional(you can use if you are boating in seas or oceans) | 1 |
| Automatic Identification System(AIS) | Optional(you can use if you are boating in seas or oceans) | 1 |
| Satellite phone or messenger | Optional(you can use if you are boating in seas or oceans) | 1 |
| GPS | Yes | 1 |
| Thermal imaging camera | for boating at night | 1 |
| Torchlight | Nice to have | 1+ |
| Binoculars | Nice to have | 1 |
| Flares | Must for every boat under 16 feet | 4+ |
| Bucket | Nice to have | 1 |
| Paddles or Oras | Nice to have | 1 set |
| Documentation | Must for a boat | All documents |
| Ropes | Nice to have | it depends |
| Lights at night | Must for a boat | it depends (2 at the bow 1 mast light 1 stern light) |
| Depth finder | Nice to have | 1 |
| First aid kit | Must for a boat | it depends(1+) |
| Tool kit | Nice to have | 1 |
| Fire extinguisher | Must for a boat | boat under 26 feet (type B1) boat b/w 26-40 feet (two B1 or one B2) boat b/w 40-65 feet (three B1 or two B2) |
| Extra gas | Nice to have | it depends |
| Knife | Nice to have | it depends(1+) |
| Bilge pump | Nice to have | 1 |
| Anchor | Must for a boat | it depends(1+) |
| Maps | Nice to have | it depends |