Assembling a Mooring

[claymore]

Just been allocated a mooring spot and thinking about putting the bits and pieces together.

Although I will get a commercial company to do the underwater stuff, I'm thinking about what will be on the surface and how I will moor to it all.

A mooring I used to rent had a chain which you led over the bow roller and then there were two strops (rope) which went one to each foredeck cleat.

I always thought this was a sound arrangement and was thinking of copying it - however, if I buy a boat friendly buoy such as a hippo - then a chain either from the top or from underneath, attached to the riser is probably going to damage the buoy.

Any thoughts?

 

[fireball]

All ours are floating buoy (sinking one would be good eh?) with the riser coming up through the middle to a swivel and then 'head gear' taken off that to the boat. We wouldn't lift the riser anyway and wouldn't want the weight of it on the cleats the whole time. The headgear is 1 x 8mm chain and 1 x 20+mm 3 strand line - the line can be doubled up and is usually protected from chaff. This arrangement doesn't hurt the inflatable buoys significantly although we do have a turnover in replacement kit.
Our riser chain is replaced every 4 years - main due to wear at the end of the chain where the water height chaffs it against itself and the seabed.

The best advise would be to look at what the majority do in your area and situation and copy it.

 

[VicS]

My mooring is all chain except for the pick up buoy and the rope on that.

It's a drying mooring so there is never a huge weight hanging on the bow... about 15ft of 3/8" chain at HWS.

The rope on the pickup buoy is long enough to allow the whole chain to sink to the bottom when not in use .

There is no other buoy.

We did experiment with the chain being lead through a large permanent buoy a few years ago but retuned to the original set up.

Be aware that the buoys with a rod through the middle may not be suitable for the boat to be moored to the top ring, The boat must be moored to the bottom of the buoy.

My chain has a loop formed in the top end which drops over a proper fitting for chain on the deck... not to ordinary cleats.
I lash the chain to the bow roller.
I have never seen the need for any additional bits of rope.

A large permanent buoy will support the weight of the riser chain leaving only the weight of the short length leading from the buoy to the boat to be supported by the boat.

 

[orion50]

Good advice so far which I won't repeat. Another aspect to consider is ease of lifting the tackle onto deck. It is worthwhile having a decent length of lifting strop/line so that your crew can lift this without much physical effort. (ie they are not lifting any chain). Experimentation with this really improved matters for us.

 

[Seajet]

Our club mooring buoys have a central stainless tube which the heavy riser goes through, then a swivel on top with chain to the foredeck.

I don't find a need for a rope strop as well as she's in a sheltered half tide spot, but would fit one if in exposed deep water.

One thing I found the hard way when I had an exposed deep water mooring with nylon strop, even a 20mm strop housed in a plastic 'food grade' tube was cut to ribbons within 3 months as at slack water it would wrap around the underside of the buoy, where there were surprisingly ultra-sharp barnacles.

NB the weakest part of a mooring is usually the swivel/s, overspec' these as much as possible and watch them like a hawk !

 

[JayBee]

Just been allocated a mooring spot and thinking about putting the bits and pieces together.

Although I will get a commercial company to do the underwater stuff, I'm thinking about what will be on the surface and how I will moor to it all.

A mooring I used to rent had a chain which you led over the bow roller and then there were two strops (rope) which went one to each foredeck cleat.

I always thought this was a sound arrangement and was thinking of copying it - however, if I buy a boat friendly buoy such as a hippo - then a chain either from the top or from underneath, attached to the riser is probably going to damage the buoy.

Any thoughts?

This is exactly the arrangement I settled on for my Hippo buoy. The buoy was supplied with a short length of chain, which passes through it and is attached to the swivel/riser under the buoy. The upper end of the chain terminates in a large shackle which rides on a galvanised steel plate with a narrow slot cut in it. This plate takes the weight of the whole riser and protects the buoy from chafe in that area.

I use a 1.5m chain pennant from the shackle on the buoy, through the bow roller; this terminates on deck with two rope strops to the foredeck cleats.

In any conditions other than flat calm with no tidal stream, the chain pennant rides clear of the top surface of the buoy. In calm, tideless conditions the chain will rest on the buoy, but there is no movement and hence no chafe.

The boat is often away from its mooring for several months. When leaving, we remove the mooring pennant and take it with us. This is a much better arrangement than our previous one, where we found that an inflatable buoy with a rope pennant attached beneath it turns into a (inedible) mussel farm.

 

[chewi]

Be aware that the buoys with a rod through the middle may not be suitable for the boat to be moored to the top ring, The boat must be moored to the bottom of the buoy.


A large permanent buoy will support the weight of the riser chain leaving only the weight of the short length leading from the buoy to the boat to be supported by the boat.

In bouncy weather picking up the mooring and hanging onto 4metres or so of riser was too much , as the boat rises but the chain does not!!! so I needed a carrier buoy.


Vics knows what hes's talking about from what I've read, nevertheless I think I must disagree! ( at least in my circumstances )


I have had my own boat secured to the bottom of a carrier buoy, but in bouncy weather the sea saw action of the boat lifting the carrier from its bottom wore out the shackle, and the boat went adrift, so I now fit a swivel below the carrier, a short chain through it to its top, a slotted tufnol ring on the top to carry the riser weight, then a chain to the cleat with a rope pickup & smaller float. There is no rod though, which might be Ok by VicS.

I tie the dinghy tender to the chain, and throw the pickup line into the tender for an easy pickup.

ps I use 42mm bathroom pipe as chafe protection down the hole in the buoy.

 

[VicS]

Depends on the size of the boat and the chain obviously.

The large buoys we used briefly had a galvanised tube through the centre with a slotted flange on the top. Initially the idea was to cut the chain 12 ft from the end, feed the bottom section up through the buoy with one link poking through the slot in the flange and then shackle the top bit back on.

However the yard owner then decided he did not want us cutting the chains so various less than satisfactory alternatives were tried.

I merely fixed a short length of chain through the buoy and shackled it on to the riser a couple of feet or so below the surface. This meant the boat was moored to the original uncut chain but the main weight of the chain was supported by the buoy. The shackle only lasted for 1 season!

I found that if away for several days the dinghy painter wound itself round the chain below the buoy trapping everything where it could not be reached.

Happily went back to the old system when it was decided not to continue with the big buoys.

I concede that it would be a problem with nothing supporting a long heavy chain.

You might have noticed no mention of swivels !

Our pick up buoys are wooden boxes filled with polystyrene off cuts. They are painted a dark colour so that in the wintertime when there are no boats out there they do not offend the bird watchers!

 

[William_H]

Buoys

Depth of water and amount and weight of chain might dictate thee need for a large buoy to take the weight of the chain. However in shallow water a lighter buoy which can be hoisted onto the deck can be a lot less trouble. ie no weed on the buoy and no bumping of the buoy on the hull.
I prefer several rope pennants from chain to the boat as I think chain might be harsh on the deck and stain with rust. But I have never used chain. good luck olewill

 

[VicS]

I think chain might be harsh on the deck and stain with rust

After 30 + years the bow roller is showing a littel bit of wear, but it will see me out!. No problems with the deck except for rust stains.

Not really worried about the rust stains. I have some oxalic acid based cleaner that gets rid of them .. seldom bother though.

Wish I could find something to remove the droppings from the turnstones! Far more of a problem

 

[shaxi]

After 30 + years the bow roller is showing a littel bit of wear, but it will see me out!. No problems with the deck except for rust stains.

it i will be glad if i would have one ,and i think that the feeling when you have a trip with it will be wonderful and remind you the memories !

 

[chewi]

The large buoys we used briefly had a galvanised tube through the centre with a slotted flange on the top. Initially the idea was to cut the chain 12 ft from the end, feed the bottom section up through the buoy with one link poking through the slot in the flange and then shackle the top bit back on.

Much the same as mine, but I use top chain through the buoy and shaackle it to the riser underneath the buoy. I have sacrificial 42mm PVC chafe pipe in the buoy and a tufnol ring on top. The tufnol has lasted about 6yrs during which the shackle has settled itself into a worn recess and prevents wear. The recess is now too deep so its time to replace it.

I have no neeed to cut the riser to do all this. Perhaps your yard would allow you to "sheepshank" its overlength risers rather than cut them!

 

[fireball]

Depends on the size of the boat and the chain obviously.

Entirely!! I wouldn't want to have to lift our heavy chain each time we moored ... !

The large buoys we used briefly had a galvanised tube through the centre with a slotted flange on the top. Initially the idea was to cut the chain 12 ft from the end, feed the bottom section up through the buoy with one link poking through the slot in the flange and then shackle the top bit back on.

Eugh! Don't think I like that method!
Ours doesn't have a galvanised tube - it has a plastic tube - for added protection we thread the tube through some drain pipe (just fits) and the whole lot goes through the buoy. We then put a plate on the top and bottom to keep the buoy in place (ie - pull the riser up and the buoy comes with it) - the shackle underneath keeps the bottom plate in place and does not compromise the security of the chain.

I found that if away for several days the dinghy painter wound itself round the chain below the buoy trapping everything where it could not be reached.

I always tie the dinghy close to the buoy and place the strops in the dinghy - not only does it keep them clean it also makes it easier to grab them.

 

[rob2]

Back in my youff, when wooden boats were the norm and I was learning to sail a new fangled GRP dinghy all the books described moorings like VicS has. The advantages of no Hippo bouy is that there is nothing to bump and grind against the bow when the tide turns or the boat forereaches on the mooring and the chain is lowered out of the harsh, aerated layer when not in use. I guess boats were smaller then, so the tackle was generally lighter, but you're not looking to lift a thrasher chain, just the riser and strop.

Our club moorings specify a Hippo bouy with the chain strop shackled beneath the bouy. I always dropped the chain onto a cleat and lashed it down on the bow roller.

Rob.

 

[claymore]

Thank You

Thank you to all who have contributed to this thread. The Hippo is purchased and on its way and having checked with the Moorings Association and the contractors (Northwest Marine) I am now clear about the spec and shape and size of it all.
The PBO article which Bilbo kindly forwarded was really good for a kinesthetic learner such as myself. (Better with pictures than explanations if Jimi is reading this)