2024 ABCs of California Boating

Required Equipment

Fire Extinguishers Motorboats are required to carry readily accessible fire extinguishers accepted for marine use by the Coast Guard. The size and number of extinguishers accepted for use on motorboats depend on the size of your boat and whether or not you have a fixed extinguishing system installed aboard. Fire extinguishers are not required for outboard pleasure boats less than 26 feet in length, or those that are not carrying passengers for hire, have no permanently installed fuel tanks, or do not have spaces in which explosive or flammable gases or vapors can collect. Beginning April 2022, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) issued new regulations for fire extinguisher dates of manufacture and label classifications. Fire extinguishers must not be more than 12 years old according to the date of manufacture stamped on the bottle. Boaters can find the manufacture date stamped on the bottom of the bottle or near the UL label. This may be two or four digits — if it is two, as in 06, that means 2006. Additionally, while the new regulation does not change the type (USCG rated) or quantity requirements for USCG-approved fire extinguishers aboard, it does specify the minimum Underwriter Laboratory (UL) classification of extinguishers to be carried aboard certain vessels — depending on the boat’s model year. Vessels model year 2018 or newer must carry fire extinguishers labeled as 5-B, 10-B or 20-B. The old labels of B-I or B-II only are no longer acceptable. Vessels model year 2017 or older may keep serviceable extinguishers labeled B-I and B-II if they are less than 12 years old. This is the result of phasing out older B-I and B-II labels for newer 5-B, 10-B, and 20-B extinguisher classifications. The number in this new rating refers to the size in square feet of the potential fire the device is suitable to extinguish and not the exact weight of the dry chemical inside the bottle. See the tables on the following page. There are no changes to rechargeable or fixed mount (i.e., engine room) extinguisher regulations. The following charts describe the required fire extinguisher type by boat size and age. It includes the newer UL-listed equivalents. All disposable fire extinguishers must be replaced no later than 12 years from the date of manufacture. Remember, the number required by law is only the minimum. Extra extinguishers provide additional safety.

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