[bolger] Re: Riding stately at anchor
>DRAGGING:This part I'm not too worried about. This particular block'o'crete is
>> Use a 100# mushroom in the muck.
>The bigger the anchor, the better. Be aware that blocks have little
>holding power, maybe 10% of an anchor of similar weight (unless you
>physically bury the block deep into the bottom). Your bucket of
>concrete will have even less.
field tested and exhibits excellent "burying in the muck" behavior.
>RUST:I found a table of horizontal forces and #800 (that's working, not
>> couple the proper length of 3/8" chain to this, then a swivel, then
>> another length of similar or lighter chain.
>I've found that light galvanized chain does well when new, but even
>3/8 chain can rust away to nothing in a season or two. Your 3/16,
>800# chain sounds like the minimum for anchoring, where it will be
>inspected with every use. PLEASE DON'T RELY ON IT FOR A MOORING!!!
breaking strength) is far more than the LSME can be expected to
generate in a 60 knot wind. On that basis, I thought the 3/16 would
be sufficient. However, I had not considered the rust factor. Have to
keep an eye on how quickly it's eroding.
>FOULING:This was just stupid on my part. Don't know why I overlooked it.
>> couple your mooring pennant to the top or the chain
>> with a swivel. then attach a mooring float.
>One swivel is essential, Two are better. And I've found the swivels
>rust much faster than either chain or shackles.
>CHAFING:Again, I considered the table of horzontal forces, but not chafe.
>Your pennant will fail because of chafing, not because your stem,
>mast, and cleat all failed. 3/8 sounds very light for a boat you
>care about.
Another thing to keep an eye on. The way the line runs, chafe should
be very, very low. But it wouldn't hurt to make the line bigger.
>I use nylon, not polypropylene, BECAUSE it sinks. Most of myThis I'm not worried about. There might be a dozen boats at the
>experience with polypropylene is untangling it from prop or rudder.
>Your 25' will be a prop-magnet.
height of the Summer. All well away (they need deeper water.)
>And most importantly, rely on local knowledge. If there are peopleI think compared to the local boats, I'm over-geared. But hey, this
>nearby who have moored similar sized boats for 20, 40, or more years,
>ask them what works! You may be surprised (and it never hurts to
>defer to their suggestions - they're good people to be friends with)
is Montauk. Things are a little more relaxed (or cavalier.) I got the
cement from a Capri 16 that sat on it year-round for at least 4 years
through thick and thin till it was destroyed in a Summer squall. The
mast was ripped off, but the anchor held. I'm also at about double
the scope of the typical set up.
We've got weather over the next few days, and I *won't* be there to
check up on her. We'll see what's left when I get back on Montauk.
;-)
YIBB,
David
CRUMBLING EMPIRE PRODUCTIONS
134 West 26th St. 12th Floor
New York, New York 10001
http://www.crumblingempire.com
(212) 247-0296
David,
Djost certainly is on track with the "right" way to do it. If you
are going to take short cuts, consider them carefully. Remember, if
there's a failure at any point in the mooring system, you 'may' lose
your boat.
Four problems I've had with moorings in shallow water (well, only
four that come to mind right now ;)
DRAGGING:
holding power, maybe 10% of an anchor of similar weight (unless you
physically bury the block deep into the bottom). Your bucket of
concrete will have even less.
Your original plan will probably be OK, far better than the block-
only approach. The weight 10-20' from the 50# mushroom will keep the
chain on the bottom, so the force on the mushroom will be horizontal.
This is similar to using a heavy chain.
RUST:
3/8 chain can rust away to nothing in a season or two. Your 3/16,
800# chain sounds like the minimum for anchoring, where it will be
inspected with every use. PLEASE DON'T RELY ON IT FOR A MOORING!!!
FOULING:
rust much faster than either chain or shackles.
CHAFING:
Your pennant will fail because of chafing, not because your stem,
mast, and cleat all failed. 3/8 sounds very light for a boat you
care about.
I use nylon, not polypropylene, BECAUSE it sinks. Most of my
experience with polypropylene is untangling it from prop or rudder.
Your 25' will be a prop-magnet.
assembly allows maximum holding power in a tight anchorage. The
heavy chain keeps dragging force horizontal, the big bouy provides
floatation to keep the bow from being dragged down, allowing boat to
ride over waves without straining the anchor with each swell.
I
pennant line __ ______I__________
(badly rendered) __/ \ boat
................O..__/.......\....................
o--
/ swivel & shackle - just below bouy
/
/ light chain (1.5 x depth??)
/ anchor /
{----o~~~~~~~~o
\ heavy chain on bottom (as long as possible)
And most importantly, rely on local knowledge. If there are people
nearby who have moored similar sized boats for 20, 40, or more years,
ask them what works! You may be surprised (and it never hurts to
defer to their suggestions - they're good people to be friends with)
Curtis
Djost certainly is on track with the "right" way to do it. If you
are going to take short cuts, consider them carefully. Remember, if
there's a failure at any point in the mooring system, you 'may' lose
your boat.
Four problems I've had with moorings in shallow water (well, only
four that come to mind right now ;)
DRAGGING:
> Use a 100# mushroom in the muck.The bigger the anchor, the better. Be aware that blocks have little
holding power, maybe 10% of an anchor of similar weight (unless you
physically bury the block deep into the bottom). Your bucket of
concrete will have even less.
Your original plan will probably be OK, far better than the block-
only approach. The weight 10-20' from the 50# mushroom will keep the
chain on the bottom, so the force on the mushroom will be horizontal.
This is similar to using a heavy chain.
RUST:
> couple the proper length of 3/8" chain to this, then a swivel, thenI've found that light galvanized chain does well when new, but even
> another length of similar or lighter chain.
3/8 chain can rust away to nothing in a season or two. Your 3/16,
800# chain sounds like the minimum for anchoring, where it will be
inspected with every use. PLEASE DON'T RELY ON IT FOR A MOORING!!!
FOULING:
> couple your mooring pennant to the top or the chainOne swivel is essential, Two are better. And I've found the swivels
> with a swivel. then attach a mooring float.
rust much faster than either chain or shackles.
CHAFING:
Your pennant will fail because of chafing, not because your stem,
mast, and cleat all failed. 3/8 sounds very light for a boat you
care about.
I use nylon, not polypropylene, BECAUSE it sinks. Most of my
experience with polypropylene is untangling it from prop or rudder.
Your 25' will be a prop-magnet.
> match the scope of other boats aroundThe traditional Mushroom/Heavy chain/light chain/float/pennant
assembly allows maximum holding power in a tight anchorage. The
heavy chain keeps dragging force horizontal, the big bouy provides
floatation to keep the bow from being dragged down, allowing boat to
ride over waves without straining the anchor with each swell.
I
pennant line __ ______I__________
(badly rendered) __/ \ boat
................O..__/.......\....................
o--
/ swivel & shackle - just below bouy
/
/ light chain (1.5 x depth??)
/ anchor /
{----o~~~~~~~~o
\ heavy chain on bottom (as long as possible)
And most importantly, rely on local knowledge. If there are people
nearby who have moored similar sized boats for 20, 40, or more years,
ask them what works! You may be surprised (and it never hurts to
defer to their suggestions - they're good people to be friends with)
Curtis
David,
Use a 100# mushroom in the muck. It will sink and spin itself in.
couple the proper length of 3/8" chain to this, then a swivel, then
another length of similar or lighter chain. couple your mooring
pennant to the top or the chain with a swivel. then attach a mooring
float. It is not usually a good idea to moor to the top of the float
since that is actually the weakest link in the system. Unless you
use one of the Taylor balls that lets the chain go up through a tube
in the ball to the top.
I lost one boat in hurricane Bob due to its mooring dragging on a
rode that was not long enough to accomodate the tidal surge. The
second boat rode out 2 hurricanes with similar surge due to a longer
scope and properly secured chain. The swivel is critical in these
elements as it prevents the chain from kinking up and spinning the
mooring out. Of course, the best answer for LSME is to just pull
her out prior to the onslaught when the watch is posted.
Check with your local harbormaster for information as to how they
recommend boats in your area moor. It would be good to match the
scope of other boats around you so that all boats in the mooring area
swing in a similar manner. Check in Chapmans Piloting, or visit this
web site for more information on mooring. Bear in mind that the town
of Harwich, MA has only a 3-4 foot tide. I am not sure as to your
tidal range in NYC.
http://www.capecod.net/harbormaster/
Use a 100# mushroom in the muck. It will sink and spin itself in.
couple the proper length of 3/8" chain to this, then a swivel, then
another length of similar or lighter chain. couple your mooring
pennant to the top or the chain with a swivel. then attach a mooring
float. It is not usually a good idea to moor to the top of the float
since that is actually the weakest link in the system. Unless you
use one of the Taylor balls that lets the chain go up through a tube
in the ball to the top.
I lost one boat in hurricane Bob due to its mooring dragging on a
rode that was not long enough to accomodate the tidal surge. The
second boat rode out 2 hurricanes with similar surge due to a longer
scope and properly secured chain. The swivel is critical in these
elements as it prevents the chain from kinking up and spinning the
mooring out. Of course, the best answer for LSME is to just pull
her out prior to the onslaught when the watch is posted.
Check with your local harbormaster for information as to how they
recommend boats in your area moor. It would be good to match the
scope of other boats around you so that all boats in the mooring area
swing in a similar manner. Check in Chapmans Piloting, or visit this
web site for more information on mooring. Bear in mind that the town
of Harwich, MA has only a 3-4 foot tide. I am not sure as to your
tidal range in NYC.
http://www.capecod.net/harbormaster/
FBBB --
So that block of concrete weighs more like #100. After reading all
about anchoring in the "Off-shore Cruising Handbook" I decided that
was enough on its own.
I attached 25 feet of 3/16" galvanized chain (working load #800) and
shackled that to 25 feet of 3/8 inch polypropylene I spliced around a
galvanized eye. The polypropylene runs through an oversized lobster
buoy and terminates in a spliced loop.
After much rumination, I ended up boring a 3/4" hole through the
bowsprit just ahead of the false stem. The line runs up through this
hole, back around the foremast in a clove hitch and then ties off on
the halyard cleat.
Water depth where she's anchored is between 2 1/2 feet and 5 feet on
average, maybe 6 if the tides really, really high. Even at 6 feet,
that's still a 4:1 rode, which is what is recommended for an all
chain rode. Add the polypropylene pendant and I think we're in good
shape.
Yes, I know poly isn't the preferred fiber for anchorage, but it's
bright yellow and floats.
After I got this all rigged together, I tied off the poly end to the
scooner and put the anchor and chain in the lil'winnie. As I rowed
off the beach with the LSME in tow I felt downright nautical. Tide
was near dead low (0.2 today) and even 100 yards off the beach the
water was only about two feet, but that's enough so I let the chain
play out and went to dump the anchor over the side.
This was not such an easy thing to do.
The teal has a lot of stability, but not enough for me and a #100
block of cement to lean on a rail. Finally I wrestled the anchor onto
the aft thwart and rolled it off like a depth charge.
She looks good sitting out there, first boat on a mooring this
season. Hopefully that doesn't mean it's too early. If she gets away,
it'll like be on a Nor'wester which'll put her back up on the beach.
I'll keep telling myself that when I'm in the city and a big blow
comes up.
YIBB,
David
CRUMBLING EMPIRE PRODUCTIONS
134 West 26th St. 12th Floor
New York, New York 10001
http://www.crumblingempire.com
(212) 247-0296
So that block of concrete weighs more like #100. After reading all
about anchoring in the "Off-shore Cruising Handbook" I decided that
was enough on its own.
I attached 25 feet of 3/16" galvanized chain (working load #800) and
shackled that to 25 feet of 3/8 inch polypropylene I spliced around a
galvanized eye. The polypropylene runs through an oversized lobster
buoy and terminates in a spliced loop.
After much rumination, I ended up boring a 3/4" hole through the
bowsprit just ahead of the false stem. The line runs up through this
hole, back around the foremast in a clove hitch and then ties off on
the halyard cleat.
Water depth where she's anchored is between 2 1/2 feet and 5 feet on
average, maybe 6 if the tides really, really high. Even at 6 feet,
that's still a 4:1 rode, which is what is recommended for an all
chain rode. Add the polypropylene pendant and I think we're in good
shape.
Yes, I know poly isn't the preferred fiber for anchorage, but it's
bright yellow and floats.
After I got this all rigged together, I tied off the poly end to the
scooner and put the anchor and chain in the lil'winnie. As I rowed
off the beach with the LSME in tow I felt downright nautical. Tide
was near dead low (0.2 today) and even 100 yards off the beach the
water was only about two feet, but that's enough so I let the chain
play out and went to dump the anchor over the side.
This was not such an easy thing to do.
The teal has a lot of stability, but not enough for me and a #100
block of cement to lean on a rail. Finally I wrestled the anchor onto
the aft thwart and rolled it off like a depth charge.
She looks good sitting out there, first boat on a mooring this
season. Hopefully that doesn't mean it's too early. If she gets away,
it'll like be on a Nor'wester which'll put her back up on the beach.
I'll keep telling myself that when I'm in the city and a big blow
comes up.
YIBB,
David
CRUMBLING EMPIRE PRODUCTIONS
134 West 26th St. 12th Floor
New York, New York 10001
http://www.crumblingempire.com
(212) 247-0296