| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 159.1 | | SPRITE::SPENCER | | Tue Aug 20 1985 12:22 | 27 |
| Sounds like you've got a pretty good set-up for something temporary. My
family has always moored out rather than used slips, and my experience is
limited to the ocean, including some fairly exposed places in Maine.
For some real peace of mind, at minimum cost, you could add perhaps 15' of
really heavy chain--1/2" perhaps--between the 5/16" chain and the mushroom.
The trick, as you apparently know, is to keep the eye of the mushroom down
on the bottom in any conditions you may get.
If you're now using a 9' pennant from the floating buoy to the boat's bow,
how can the chain be holding the bow down in heavy weather? Is it a function
of the waves, or perhaps the wind? Is it fixed on deck, or to an eye on
the stem nearer the waterline?
In more than 50 years, we (as a family) never had any boats drag their moorings,
and have had only two occasions when boats came adrift. The first was a
failed piece of hardware, a snap shackle. The lesson was to use proper knots
rather than trust hardware. This includes doubling a line to a substantial
structural member of the boat in addition to using the deck cleat -- normally
fine for trailering and fairweather daytrips, but pitifully small for secure
unattended mooring. The other time a yacht club hand re-led our carefully
prepared pennant to what he thought was a better position, but in so doing
created an unprotected chafe point. After two days of horsing around in
high winds and moderate waves, 12 tons of boat snapped the remaining strands
and turned tail for the lee shore rocks.
John.
|
| 159.2 | | FES2::ORTLER | | Tue Aug 20 1985 14:48 | 9 |
| Hi,
My name is Ed and I have a Hobie 14' which I sail on Lakes,
I have been to Henderson Harbor in upstate New York. What size
Hobie Cat do other readers have and where do they frequently sail?
Ed Ortler MR0 DTN 231-5845
CAVEAT::ORTLER
|
| 159.3 | | AUTUMN::RICHARDSN | | Wed Aug 21 1985 08:33 | 19 |
| Re: 1
In strong winds, the 9' pennant is strung right out tight. It is attached
to the boat at a eye on the bow, about 14" above the waterline. (the eye
is the one used to pull the boat up on a trailer using a winch)
With the pennant strung out tight, and the boat riding up a wave, the bow
dips pretty deep into the water. It never picked up water over the bow,
but it just looked too close for my liking. I've been diving around the
anchor when this has happend, and the 30' of chain is nowhere near being
used to act as a shock-absorber. (Only a few feet of the chain on the
bottom rises to meet the swells) That is why I'm sure the anchor won't
get dragged... the chain could never get off the bottom to pull the anchor
verticlly. Also, the boat weighs less than a ton, so wind blows it pretty
good.
Does that help??
Eric
|
| 159.4 | | SUMMIT::THOMAS | | Wed Aug 21 1985 11:03 | 6 |
| Just a shot in the dark..
Is the buoy large enough to carry the full weight of the chain?
If not , could the chain be pulig the bow down?
Ed
|
| 159.5 | | SUMMIT::THOMAS | | Wed Aug 21 1985 16:09 | 9 |
| Another shot in the dark...
Could there be a weight distribution problem in the boat, i.e., it normally sits
bow down or could it have collected some rain water, or lake water over the bow?
Everything else about the mooring sounds reasonable
Ed
|
| 159.6 | | PULSAR::BERENS | | Wed Aug 21 1985 18:22 | 13 |
| Er, you might want to use a nylon pennant rather than a dacron one.
Nylon is much more elastic and absorbs shock better as a result. The
problem is waves, not wind. What kind of bottom is the mushroom sitting
on? Mushrooms are only effective if they can bury themselves fairly deeply.
I too would suggest some heavier chain between the mushroom and the 5/16ths
chain, but that might be overkill given the shallow water you are in.
The weight of the mushroom or mooring block required really depends on the
location and the bottom. We have, I think, a 1250 lb block in a muddy
bottom for a 32' boat. I have heard of other harbors where we might have
to use a 5000 lb block.
Alan
|
| 159.7 | | AUTUMN::RICHARDSN | | Thu Aug 22 1985 16:02 | 20 |
| RE: 5 & 6
Interesting thoughts, but I doubt any of the things you've mentioned are
coming into play. The bouy is large enough to float quite high supporting
the chain. The boat rides very bow-high in the water in it's normal resting
postion, and rain water goes to the back of the boat.
Maybe the boat just "naturally" wants to dip down at the bow in heavy
waves. Since it's open lake, not sheltered, I suppose it's possible the
boat is just taking a beating and is doing well considering the circumstances.
Part of my concern is because the boat is 2nd hand to us, and the first
owner moored it.... and it filled up and flipped over at his mooring. I
don't know the situation around his problem (bad mooring set-up, never drained
rainwater, whatever) but I am a bit cautious with it now.
Better safe than sorry....
Thanks again,
Eric
|