An Epirb, a nifty device what could save your life. Here's a guide on how we chose ours

What to compare?

Battery lifetime

Since we learned a new battery was going to cost us €300 and 6 years of juice we decided to compare these values with other, new, epirbs. All new epirb batteries last 10 years. that's a big win. Even if you don't plan to cruise for 10 years, you could always sell it after your 3 years circumnavigation.

Battery costs

We know a GME battery is going to cost us €300, how about other brands? Most other brands are cheaper, mainly because there is a company in the Netherlands so we don't have to pay for international port costs. One brand stands out. they sell batteries for €134 and advertise that you can just unscrew your old and screw on your new battery. We do this also with our lifejacket cylinders so why not with our epirb battery.

Mhz, AIS and GPS

Just open all individual data sheet of as much epirbs as you can find and compare what they say. We found the same Mhz frequency and gps value across the comparison. Ais however, is an option. a €300 option. Since we are also buying personal AIS man over board beacons we decided that we don't want/need a epirb with AIS.

Holder and activation
Does your eprib come with a holder? Some do, some don't. Just be aware of it and add the extra costs to the total price. The holders come in 2 categories. one of which is automatically activating the eprib and let it float to the water surface in case of a sinking ship. This requires an outside installation. On our boat we don't need this feature. so we are looking for a 'normal' holder. The eprib can be activated by water, only when its taken out its holder.

Warranty and 10 years-calculation

Ofcourse compare the warranty period and policy. one of the epirbs stands out and is promising a new eprib if your current one has been used justifiable. Their goal is to safe life's and encourage carrying an epirb. Most brands offer a 5 year warranty, because our GME was already 6 years old, we could change the battery but the warranty on the unit it self is not valid anymore. To get a fair overview I made the calculation for the coming 10 years. in short: or you replace your GME battery twice (now and over 6 years) for €600, or, you buy a new eprib with 5 years warranty and 10 years of battery life for €600.

Our choice

After diving into 8 different epirbs we choose ACR type 4 to be the right one for us. The price was €570 with a 5 year warranty. As red above, this epirb offers a replacement on the unit if registered and fired justifiable. This epirb has a battery life of 10 years and is replaceable by the user. Citizens of the USA can test the eprib by receiving an Email send from the unit itself. This type of feedback is really nice to have. instead of testing it and only receiving some light strobes you are now certain it laid connection with a satellite.

The final price

After ordering including registration of our MMSI (no additional costs from this company)we received our Epirb. However.. The battery was already 1,5 years old. Meaning it would only last 8,5 years and not 10. We had good contact with the seller and agreed on a discount of roughly €100. A new battery replacement will cost us €134. Because the old GME epirb was still showing positive results during the test I decided to sell it online for a open value. Eventually it got sold for €175. From their point of view not a bad deal.. (€175+€300=€475 for a 6 year valid epirb)
And from our point of view, also not a bad deal at all: €570-€100-€175=€295 for a 8,5 year valid epirb

Here's to never use it!

So inconclusion, see what works for you. Compare as many as you can and hopefully you'll never need to use it.

Stay Safe!

Sailing Aim

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