Hullmark: a free boat management app for Canadian waters
Hullmark keeps the paperwork side of owning a boat in one place: the safety gear you are required to carry, when the next service is due, what the rules of the road actually say, and where you went. It runs in a browser on a phone at the dock. There is no app store, no account fee, and no subscription.
What it covers
- The required safety-gear checklist for your vessel, so a boarding is not a guess.
- Rules of the road, in plain language, for when you need the answer now.
- Maintenance schedules and reminders, so a service is not remembered late.
- A voyage logbook with the trips you actually made.
- Document storage for registration, insurance and survey.
- Depth charts and navigation.
- Expenses, inventory and crew, for anyone running more than one boat.
Required safety equipment in Canada, by boat length
Transport Canada's Small Vessel Regulations set the minimum gear a pleasure craft must carry. Hullmark builds the checklist for your boat's type and length from the same tables, so a boarding is not a guess. The summary below follows the 2026 Safe Boating Guide (TP 511E).
| Boat | Lifesaving | Visual signals | Vessel and navigation | Fire |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sail and power, up to 6 m (19'8") | 1 lifejacket or PFD per person, a reboarding device, a 15 m buoyant heaving line | With a motor: a watertight flashlight, or 3 flares (1 may be smoke), or an electronic distress signal and 1 smoke signal | A paddle or an anchor with 15 m of line; a bailer or manual bilge pump; a sound signal; navigation lights; compass; radar reflector | 1 5BC extinguisher with an inboard engine, a fixed fuel tank or a fuel-burning appliance |
| Sail and power, 6 to 9 m (19'8" to 29'6") | 1 lifejacket or PFD per person, a reboarding device, a 15 m heaving line or a lifebuoy on a 15 m line | A watertight flashlight and 6 flares (2 may be smoke), or an electronic signal and 1 smoke signal | As above | 1 5BC extinguisher with an inboard engine or a fuel-burning appliance |
| Sail and power, 9 to 12 m (29'6" to 39'4") | 1 lifejacket or PFD per person, a reboarding device, a 15 m heaving line and a lifebuoy on a 15 m line | A watertight flashlight and 12 flares (6 may be smoke), or an electronic signal and 1 smoke signal | An anchor with 30 m of line; a manual bilge pump; sound signal, lights, compass, radar reflector | 1 10BC extinguisher with a motor, and 1 more with a fuel-burning appliance |
| Canoes, kayaks, rowboats, paddleboards | 1 lifejacket or PFD per person, a reboarding device, a 15 m heaving line | Over 6 m: flashlight and 6 flares, or an electronic signal and 1 smoke signal | A bailer or bilge pump, a sound signal, lights when needed | None |
Two details catch people out. Flares are good for four years from the date of manufacture, not the date you bought them, and Hullmark reminds you before they lapse. A reboarding device is required when the freeboard is more than 0.5 m; a swim ladder counts.
Licence and proof of competency
- Everyone operating a motorized pleasure craft, of any length or engine power, including electric, must carry proof of competency, such as a Pleasure Craft Operator Card. The card is good for life.
- A pleasure craft with engines of 7.5 kW (10 hp) or more, and a sailboat over 6 m, needs a Pleasure Craft Licence unless it is registered. The licence number goes on both sides of the bow, and the licence is valid for five years.
- Operators under 12 without direct supervision may run up to 10 hp; 12 to 15 year olds up to 40 hp.
Rules of the road, in plain language
- Overtaking: the boat coming up from behind keeps clear, always, whether it is sail or power.
- Head-on: two power boats meeting both turn to starboard (right) and pass port to port.
- Crossing: the power boat that sees the other on its starboard side gives way.
- Power and sail: power gives way to sail, except when the sailboat is overtaking or in a narrow channel it must not impede a vessel that can only use that channel.
- Narrow channels: keep to the starboard side; boats under 20 m and sailboats must not block a ship that can only navigate in the channel.
- Sound signals: one short blast, I am turning to starboard; two, to port; three, I am going astern; five or more, danger or doubt.
Maintenance that Hullmark tracks
Reminders run by date and by engine hours, from the systems you add. A typical season looks like this:
- Spring commissioning: batteries charged and tested, raw-water impeller checked, anodes (zincs) inspected, bilge pump and float switch tested, flare dates and extinguisher gauges checked, inflatable lifejacket cartridges inspected.
- In season: oil and filter by engine hours, fuel filter and water separator, belts and hoses, steering and throttle cables.
- Haul-out and winterizing: fuel stabilized, engine and water systems drained or run with antifreeze, lower unit oil changed, batteries brought in or kept on a maintainer, cover or shrink-wrap on.
Questions
What safety equipment do I need on a boat in Canada?
It depends on the boat's type and length. Every boat needs a lifejacket or PFD for each person and a sound signal; boats over 6 m add flares and a lifebuoy or heaving line; 9 to 12 m boats need 12 flares, a lifebuoy and a heaving line. Hullmark builds the list for your boat.
Do I need a boating licence in Canada?
You need proof of competency, usually a Pleasure Craft Operator Card, to operate any motorized pleasure craft. The boat itself needs a Pleasure Craft Licence if its engines total 10 hp or more.
How long are marine flares good for?
Four years from the date of manufacture stamped on them.
Is Hullmark really free?
Yes. It is free to use in any browser, with no app store, no account fee and no subscription.
What it costs
Nothing. Hullmark is free to use, there is no app to install, and it works in the browser you already have.
Who makes it
Hullmark is built and maintained by 3D3D, a Canadian 3D printing, software and AI studio. It came out of real time on the water rather than a product plan. See the Hullmark page, what else we do for boats, or get in touch.