Advanced Mooring Systems

[jaypea]

Came across this note in the latest RYA Newsletter which i thought might be of interest. I haven't seen the Studland Bay mooring markers yet which are apparently of the helical type but if the tech becomes proven, it does seem a good way for us to go. I'd put a cleverer [shorter] link up but I'm not clever enough, sorry!
Advanced Mooring Systems | Inbrief | e-newsletters | News & Events | RYA - Royal Yachting Association

 

[rszemeti]

I'll pass. I have seen rode worn through, when I leave my boat on a mooring, I like to know it is not going to be found on the rocks a week later. its either a nice bit of really THICK chain or I'm not interested. What is on the ground is less of a worry, I assume it is usually a large concrete block. The "screw in" thing sounds like it would need a diver or 4 to lay it ... and would need a weekly dive inspection to ensure the currents were no eroding the sea bed around it and gradually exposing it.

 

[Kelpie]

My main concern would be that in the name of keeping chain off the seabed, you introduce a lot more movement/wear at the linkage between anchor and chain. This will be a similar amount of wear to the connection between riser and ground chain in a conventional mooring- but it will be harder to monitor and maintain because you can't pull it to the surface.

 

[Aja]

My mooring is in 25 metres. How will they be fixed into the sea bed? It sounds as if there is need of some special machinery?

 

[Daydream believer]

In our mooring area, which is in an east coast MCZ, the sea bed is just thick black mud with little or no marine growth. At least there is never any sign of any .
the mud is constantly on the move & changes from shingle to mud & back again. So the experiment to avoid damaging the sea bed would be a pointless exercise. That being said, I understand experiments are being carried out in the Essex estuaries.
Just hope that they stay away from our bit.

 

[boomerangben]

I cannot see how “dampening effect” of chain remains unchanged when floats are attached. Catenaries rely on rodes of negligible axial stiffness acting under gravity. The greater the mass per unit length, the greater the “dampening effect”. Am I missing something?

 

[Boathook]

Be interesting if they try a few at Studland. Water not particularly deep and some of the boats quite large.

 

[langstonelayabout]

I was just having a chuckle. Advanced Mooring Systems.

I'd read the article in the IRA magazine and was wondering how their performance had been categorised in order that supposedly 'different' systems could be assessed as 'Advanced' or not.

The comments above would need to be addressed through life testing of such systems but at whose risk the rope-based system is only time will tell. Also, getting the insurance companies to buy into the new and 'Advanced' mooring systems may be seen as a measure of their confidence.

25m of water? Carry on as you are, please. (could consider the extra floats if you really insist)
Trying to save the seabed? Too late in most mooring areas.
Drying moorings in 1m of soft mud with chalk underneath (as per my sailing club)? Helical anchor, possibly.
Elastic rode from helical anchor? Not with my boat, thanks sonny.

Life testing will prove the efficacy of these systems, but we'll need the insurance companies to accept the design, materials and maintenance regime before we accept them as a risk ourselves.

And please someone answer the question: what is 'Advanced' about these designs please?

 

[thinwater]

Read up on the Storm Soft system, becoming popular in the US. They have survived some massive huricane strikes and lots of noreasters, with much better survival rates than chain moorings. I don't know the specifics of this product, but the concept is absolutly proven. As they say, the devil is in the details.