Had a great day sailing on Monday, but an unfortunate surprise at the end. When I unloaded my drysock from the hull, I found that my cellphone, which was enclosed in a ziplock baggie, was sitting in about 1/2 inch of water inside the baggie. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> Boy, they don't make ziplock baggies like they used too...

Anyway, after spending $89 for a refurbed phone, my question is what the rest of you do to waterproof cellphones, etc. while sailing. (I know, I could leave my phone in the car, but I like to have it as a safety measure since I often sail by myself.) I know there are products available to enclose/encase phones--which should I look for or avoid? How bulletproof (waterproof?) are they, and are there cheaper solutions? (I know, $89 ain't that cheap, either, but I'm still a cheapskate at heart!)

Thanks!

We use one of these or a pelican box for the phone.

Catsailor Phone Bag

Agreed, the "ziplock" method is not foolproof. I think they are recommended for "perishables" of which your phone should not be... <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

Clayton

NRS carries a ton of stuff like that. The cater to kayakers and rafters mostly.

They make dry bags for VHF, GPS and cell phones. I have them, and they do work. I duct tape the opening as an extra measure.

For the flip-phone, I'd have to open up the bag, but I only use the phone on shore anyway... If its an SOS, I'd have to figure something out.

West Marine has a bunch of different sizes that also have some flotation built it.

Using one of those pelican boxes didn't work for me last year. Got about 4 drops of saltwater in it and that was it. Thats all it takes to screw up a cellphone. I double wrap it these days.

Double wrap it in what?

Dry bag inside pleican box (probably overkill but, like I said, only takes a couple drops of saline to kill all the electronics)

I use a mason jar,,in a bag,,,keeps it fresh and tasty

I use a pelican case and then put that in a dry bag. Never had a problem. I have a friend who uses a nalgene water bottle. These are mostly used as water bottles for backpacking. They're cheap and they don't leak.

You can find them at Bill Jackson's or even Wally World.