Life Jackets - formerly known as Personal Floatation Devices (PFDs)
A Life Jacket (aka Personal Floatation Device) is a mandatory requirement when kayaking in most waters around Australia - there are some states where the legislation does not mandate it but we recommend you always paddle wearing a correctly fitted life jacket. Studies show that wearing a life jacket can increase your chances of survival greatly. The life jacket alone is not going to save your life. Let someone know before you head out, a great understanding of weather interpretation, wearing the correct clothing, a good understanding of the basic essential strokes, self and assisted rescues and how to raise the alarm if it all goes to custard is the key to enjoying water sports safely.
Always wear your life jacket
Let someone know before you go
Be aware of your own limitations / capabilities and those of your paddle buddy and the limitations of your kayak. Practise getting back on /in you craft.
Always check the weather forecast (from the BOM) and know how to interpret it for the on-water conditions of the area you are paddling
Carry your phone in a waterproof case (Aquapac)
Undertake training with a qualified instructor
Types of Life Jackets
Life Jacket Type 2 (we use and recommend Type 2 for paddle sports)
Life Jacket Type 1
Life Jacket Inflatable Type 1 (not recommended for paddle sports!)
Life Jackets for Children (Type 1)
Life Jacket Type 3 (not safety colours!)
Pet buoyancy aids
Life jackets we USE and RECOMMEND
Life Jacket Type 2 (Level 50)
This life jacket will provide less buoyancy than a Type 1 (Level 100) but is sufficient to keep your head above water. Like a Type 1 (Level 100) they are manufactured in high visibility colours such as yellow and red.
We use and recommend a Type 2 (Level 50) Life Jacket for adults sea kayaking, recreational kayaking, kayak fishing, white water and surf ski paddling - the best combination of comfort, visibility, utility and buoyancy on the water. They are appropriate for canoeing and kayaking activities and allow you to undertake self- or assisted rescues.
Kayak Touring
Sea Kayaking life jackets ideally have a variety of pockets so you can keep snacks, communications and safety gear close by. Some have hydration pockets on the back for a water bladder The Kokotat Outfit Tour and Kokatat MsFit Tour are good examples that we use and recommend. The MsFit Tour is a women’s fit life jacket - while the foam is not specifically molded, there is a slight difference in how the foam is distributed and the body of the life jacket is a little shorter than the Outfit Tour (also a different size guide).
Other suitable life jackets for kayak touring are: Ultra Pinnacle, Astral Designs Bluejacket, Sea To Summit Quest Hydration and Palm Equipment Kaikoura.
Recreational Kayaking
For more low-key paddling - short sit-on-top trips, close to shore, flat water lake and rivers you may choose a more budget-friendly life jacket. Make sure it does have sufficient buoyancy rating for you! Some may be Level 50S rather than Level 50 - less visible, in trendy colours like blue, green and purple.
The Ultra Rewa (Women’s Life jacket), Palm Equipment Meander in Men’s & Women’s fit and Palm Universal are well-made inexpensive life jackets.
Surf / Ocean Ski Paddling
Surf ski paddlers tend to favour shorter, more intense workouts - a more slim-line life jacket is preferred (less bulkiness or pockets), such as the Mocke Racer Life Jacket and Vaikobi V3 Ocean Racer Life Jacket.
Kayak Fishing
For kayak fishing, again you want plenty of pockets - a typical sea kayaking or recreational kayaking life jacket may be fine, including the Sea To Summit Fishing Life Jacket, although some fishing kayaks have a high backed, comfort seat, so specialty Fishing Kayak Life Jackets such as the Kokatat Bahia Tour and Kokatat Leviathon have the buoyancy up high, with just a mesh lower back.
White water Rescue
Rescue life jackets for white water and swift water rescues differ from sea kayak life jackets by the addition of a quick-release waist belt and Bungee Tow (Cow’s Tail) - the Kokatat Guide, Sea To Summit Leader, Astral Designs Greenjacket and NRS Zen Rescue PFDs are good examples of these.
Life Jacket Type 1 (Level 100 or greater)
This has always been recognised as a ‘life jacket’. A Type 1 (or Level 100 and above) will provide a high level of buoyancy and keeps the wearer in a safe floating position (face up) through the use of buoyancy behind the head. They are made in high visibility colours with reflective patches.
Life Jackets Type 1 (Level 100 or greater) such as the Ultra Raider Life Jacket are designed for survival situations (and boating!) and can make performing activities such as paddling and self- and assisted rescues more difficult. They are a requirement in many boating situations (due to size of yacht/power boat, sole occupant or child) and are also used for participants in rafting activities.
Ultra Raider PFD
Inflatable Type 1 Life Jacket (Level 150)
Inflatable Type 1 (Level 150) life jackets are designed to be less bulky and offer no immediate buoyancy until inflated, so people are often reluctant to inflate them. Generally when you capsize, buoyancy gives you the opportunity to resolve the immediate problem (keep contact with your kayak and paddle), recover and undertake a self- or assisted rescue.
We do not recommend these for paddle sports, due to the annual maintenance requirement and if deployed their bulkiness in the chest region makes self- and assisted rescue extremely difficult - you may need to deflate it to perform a self rescue. If you do utilise this life jacket we recommend training in it and understanding its capabilities.
Ultra Inflatable L150
Children's Life Jackets
Children's life jackets in Type 1 (Level 100) offer the greatest security, particularly for small children / toddlers. The Ultra Raider Junior range of life jackets are available sized according to age and weight (years 1-2, 3-4, 4-6, 6-8, 8-10, 12-14) and provide the higher level of floatation in a safe floating position. Smaller sizes for toddlers have an additional strap between the legs to stop smaller children from sliding out.
Ultra Raider Junior (toddler)
Life Jacket Type 3 (Level 50S)
The Life jacket Type 3 (Level 50S) has similar buoyancy to a Type 2 Life Jacket but are manufactured in a wide variety of colours that are not necessarily highly visible and may lack reflective strips.
They are shaped or equipped for particular activities, eg. camouflage colours (so you can hide from the fish!) - the ‘S’ in Level 50S stands for Special. Their visibility for paddle sports is not always great, hence we prefer Type 2 (Level 50) which are in high visibility colours and have reflective strips.
Ultra Rewa Blue
Pet Buoyancy Aids
Don't forget about your best friend when you are out on the water! life jackets / buoyancy aids for pets are now available and in a range of sizes to suit your dog (or cat - we have had yachting cat customers!). They have a handle on the back so that you can retrieve them when they get overexcited and jump overboard.
Baltic Pet Buoyancy Aids give good support in the water and are available in a wide variety of sizes from XS to XXL. The yachting cat fitted Small.
Baltic Pet Buoyancy Aid
We use and Recommend
We use different life jackets for different types of paddling (or boating)
Kokatat Outfit Tour (sea kayaking)
Kokatat MsFit Tour (sea kayaking)
Palm Equipment Kaikoura (sea kayaking)
Sea To Summit Quest Hydration (sea kayaking)
Ultra Raider (on the boat)
Ultra Raider Junior (for my kids)
NRS Zen Rescue (white water instructing)
Vaikobi V3 Ocean Racer (ocean ski paddling)
Sea to Summit Commercial Multifit (for groups)
Additional safety equipment we recommended to attach to your PFD:
Whistle (Fox 40)
Safety knife
rescueME PLB1
Hydration system (Camelback Crux Reservoir) - or secure it to the floor of the cockpit, keeping the weight low
Silva handheld compass
Aquapac Phone Case to keep your phone safe!
VHF Marine Radio
View our YouTube video for more information on the accessories we attach to our life jacket: