Boat burned up at the marina

[giroux68]

It was 67 degrees today. Went to check on the boat at Baldridge Marina. Saw the smoke from a few docks over, then the flames! Lots of people standing in the next slips staring at it, trying to untie the closest boats. I kept waiting for the explosion of 50 gallons of gas to go up. Some marina worker said it must have been a diesel boat. Don't know how it started. But the fire dept took about 10 plus minutes to get there and run hose out to the end of the dock. They had it mostly out in minutes. There was a dude using the dock garden hose on it, it was as effective as pissing on a forest fire.

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[giroux68]

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[HangOutdoors]

Wonder if someone either wanted a new boat or couldn't afford to keep paying for their boat in these different times. Fires on boats happen a lot around here on the Great Lakes, yet no one is ever on them for the most part when the fire starts.

 

[Elliott]

Wet slipped boat hooked to shore power (?) - all it takes is fuel leak and the bilge pump coming on or a battery charger and battery mishap.

 

[svana]

Wonder if someone either wanted a new boat or couldn't afford to keep paying for their boat in these different times. Fires on boats happen a lot around here on the Great Lakes, yet no one is ever on them for the most part when the fire starts.

In fairness...I feel like if someone's on the boat they're often in a position to put it out (at least moreso than someone not on the boat lol). Assuming they've got an extinguisher on board.

 

[Neutron]

My Four Winns had an automatic Fireboy fire suppression system. Glad i never needed it.
Cheap insurance if the fire is in the engine compartment

 

[tdonoughue]

Actually, gas tanks that are full rarely explode. The vapor is very combustive, but the liquid fuel is not very combustive at all. Another reason to fill up before the off-season. A mostly empty tank will fill with vapor and, if compromised, will leak that explosive stuff.

In a fire, it is not the gasoline you need to worry about--it is the vapor above the gasoline that will get you.

Separately, my Yamaha doesn't have @Neutron 's fancy suppression system. So I compensate by carrying a CO2 extinguisher in addition to my normal complement of extinguishers. Carry that specifically in case there is an engine fire. I can shoot that through the fire port and flood the compartment with CO2 much more effectively than trying to get dry chemical everywhere (and then having that corrode everything later).

 

[tabbibus]

sees the post (ooh that sucks, hope that never happens to me)
opens the post, sees OP in cumming (oh shit! Is it my boat???!!!!!)
OP says baldridge marina (my soul returns to my body).

 

[212s]

Unfortunate situation.
Proper bilge pumps and bilge blowers are ignition protected and can't start fires unless damaged. A marine battery charger should be ignition protected too (Noco and Promariner are good brands). A battery issue or wiring issue sparking is likely in older boats that are not maintained. And leaving something on like a heater, stove, etc. in a houseboat or cruiser. We hear about lots of camping trailers burning due to appliances left on.

However for boats, most fires we've heard about have been during fueling - the blowers are off due to careless captains and fumes are sparked when they fire up the engine without using the blowers first. I've also heard of people fueling with the engine running. And there's the people fueling at the slip with gas cans and using the BBQ at the same time.
??

 

[zipper]

I remember seeing a post where @gmtech16450yz installed a fire suppression system in his engine bay, triggered from the cockpit.
Found it. https://jetboaters.net/threads/gmtech-custom-fishing-rod-holding-tubes.16169/

 

[Elliott]

Unfortunate situation.
Proper bilge pumps and bilge blowers are ignition protected and can't start fires unless damaged. A marine battery charger should be ignition protected too (Noco and Promariner are good brands). A battery issue or wiring issue sparking is likely in older boats that are not maintained. And leaving something on like a heater, stove, etc. in a houseboat or cruiser. We hear about lots of camping trailers burning due to appliances left on.

However for boats, most fires we've heard about have been during fueling - the blowers are off due to careless captains and fumes are sparked when they fire up the engine without using the blowers first. I've also heard of people fueling with the engine running. And there's the people fueling at the slip with gas cans and using the BBQ at the same time.
??

Yeah - what I said is still true. Although bilge pumps and proper marine chargers are ignition protected they can still start fires through a variety of ways: poor upkeep leading to loose or corroded connections causing a spark, short or low voltage leading to wires/motor overheating and etc. Also, some people use non-marine battery chargers (especially ones not permanently installed) in non-approved ways to charge their boat batteries.

My point was that a non-attended boat in a wet slip has several potential sources of fire. It is my guess that unattended boat fires are much less common (although it still happens) with boats stored in racks, because they usually have no shore power and their batteries are switched off. Wet slipped boats typically have some devices active/hot mostly with or sometimes without shore power, and these devices occasionally cause a problem.

 

[zipper]

Unfortunate situation...

However for boats, most fires we've heard about have been during fueling - the blowers are off due to careless captains and fumes are sparked when they fire up the engine without using the blowers first. I've also heard of people fueling with the engine running. And there's the people fueling at the slip with gas cans and using the BBQ at the same time.
??

No Marina we have been at in the last 4 years will let you refuel your boat in your slip or use your boat grill while at the Marina. Although I have seen transient boaters come into the marina and not follow the rules. Like this guy that ignored the rules and set his up on the gunwale right in front of the USCG station. I think he thought he could hide behind all that canvas, but the wind was the right direction and I could smell it.

 

[212s]

No Marina we have been at in the last 4 years will let you refuel your boat in your slip or use your boat grill while at the Marina.

We're often near the marinas in our area and while the rules say no refueling in your slip, we see it happen all the time. We see people party on their boats with BBQ's and drinks and carelessness in their slips. We see people getting fuel at the official pumps and smoking nearby.
People are dumb.

 

[212s]

Yeah - what I said is still true. Although bilge pumps and proper marine chargers are ignition protected they can still start fires through a variety of ways: poor upkeep leading to loose or corroded connections causing a spark, short or low voltage leading to wires/motor overheating and etc.

Not sure I agree with that...the testing process for ignition-protected devices includes their inability to cause ignition even if the device causes ignition inside the device. You'd have to really damage such a device for it to cause a fire...and I've never heard of a fire starting from any ignition-protected devices, it's usually user error in some form.

My point was that a non-attended boat in a wet slip has several potential sources of fire.

I agree with that.

 

[Elliott]

Not sure I agree with that...the testing process for ignition-protected devices includes their inability to cause ignition even if the device causes ignition inside the device. You'd have to really damage such a device for it to cause a fire...and I've never heard of a fire starting from any ignition-protected devices, it's usually user error in some form.

I agree with that.

It is not that the ignition protected device starts the fire by not containing an internal spark; it is that the ignition protected device opens a circuit / demands power which reveals a problem in the electrical system of the boat. For example, there is a loose connection, corrosion, chafed wires, low voltage and etc.; depending on the problem with the boat's electrical system it may remain dormant until there is a demand for power.

 

[tabbibus]

I need to go check on Toothless this weekend.

 

[giroux68]

Sorry to almost give you a heart attack.

 

[AZMark]

Actually, gas tanks that are full rarely explode. The vapor is very combustive, but the liquid fuel is not very combustive at all. Another reason to fill up before the off-season. A mostly empty tank will fill with vapor and, if compromised, will leak that explosive stuff.

In a fire, it is not the gasoline you need to worry about--it is the vapor above the gasoline that will get you.

Separately, my Yamaha doesn't have @Neutron 's fancy suppression system. So I compensate by carrying a CO2 extinguisher in addition to my normal complement of extinguishers. Carry that specifically in case there is an engine fire. I can shoot that through the fire port and flood the compartment with CO2 much more effectively than trying to get dry chemical everywhere (and then having that corrode everything later).

I bought a halotron one for same reason. Several times what a regular dry chemical extinguisher costs but if I ever need it it’ll be worth it.