How to tie mooring buoy to chain?

[barrow_matt]

I have a swing mooring that requires a new marker buoy which should be arriving tomorrow.

What is the best method of tying the buoy to the chain?

I have some climbing rope (braid on braid?) is this suitable for submerged sea use?, some blue nylon 3 strand, or could maybe find something else (Shackle?)?

It is a round A Buoy with a single mounting hole, it is a large A5 buoy as the mooring is heavy chain and can float up to 10m deep which I expect could be close to 100Kg.

 

[Seajet]

If I understand correctly, this is the line between pick-up buoy and large permanently floating buoy ?

In which case the line will take the weight of the boat when moored ?

Nylon rope will be best as it has a little elasticity to take the shock out in waves, though it will be too short a strop to have much give.

If using a knot I'd use a fishermens' bend, also known as an anchor hitch, onto a large, smooth bow shackle, with the small loose 'bitter end' of the knot whipped tightly secure.

Even with the strop going to the top of the buoy, beware chafe; the strops often go under and around the large buoy in certain conditions; barnacles grow under such buoys and they are sharp as knives.

A splice is better than a knot, a decent chandlery will do this if you're unsure.

The strop should be through a plastic hose to assist chafe protection.

Beware, when I had a 30' boat on a deep water mooring in a relatively exposed part of Chichester harbour, she went through a 14mm nylon, plastic hose protected strop every few months, one certainly didn't last a season...this can become an expensive and worrying pain.

A chain backup is a good idea, takes a lot to chafe through chain ! Make it a decent enough size to take the boat in a gale, not a token effort as one sometimes sees.

Even if someone else is maintaining the mooring, try to check general chain condition and whether there's a working swivel in line; jammed, old swivels are no.1 cause of boats going adrift, ideally they should be replaced annually.

 

[VicS]

one of these then.

A bowline through the eye of the buoy

How is the chain terminated. With a large link or a loop to drop over what ever deck fitting you have.
If so another bowline.

At the chain take the rope round twice before finishing the bowline to reduce chafe.

Alternatively eyesplices. Long soft eye on the buoy. Hard eye and shackle onto the chain.

Use 3strand rope so that the ends can be tucked into the lay of the rope.

Avoid shackles if you can. If they are not fitted they cannot come undone!


How are you going to pick it up. With a smaller pick up buoy? Surely not by fishing for the rope under the buoy/

 

[sarabande]

BM, you might like to look at this site

http://www.divingbelle.co.uk/

which is run by a very competent moorings firm. They have all kinds of specs, with diagrams.


If you are talking about the riser to buoy connection, then rope in any form is a no-no.

 

[Seajet]

3 replies, 3 different views !

Shackles are easy to do up tight then wire-lock ( 'mouse' ) with monel seizing wire, but with respect bowline knots are notorious for shaking / coming loose, which is why I suggested a fishermans' bend.

I think we need a clearer idea of the OP's situation.

 

[VicS]

3 replies, 3 different views !

Shackles are easy to do up tight then wire-lock ( 'mouse' ) with monel seizing wire, but with respect bowline knots are notorious for shaking / coming loose, which is why I suggested a fishermans' bend.

I think we need a clearer idea of the OP's situation.

Our moorings have bowlines, at least on to the chain, thats why I suggested it. No problems with them. The ends being tucked prevent then from shaking undone.

Fisherman's bend ...aka Anchor bend. ?? need to whip the end to the standing part to make it really secure but otherwise no problems with it on the chain. May not be suitable for the buoy though.


On reflection I would prefer my alternative. Soft eye spliced onto the buoy and hard eye with moused shackle onto the chain.

 

[Seajet]

On reflection I would prefer my alternative. Soft eye spliced onto the buoy and hard eye with moused shackle onto the chain.

Thought that was my line ! Doesn't matter, we generally agree; now let's find the real situation is totally different...

 

[barrow_matt]

To clarify there are already 2 ropes from the top of the chain to the pickup buoy for securing the boat, this is the main marker buoy that needs replacing on to the top of the chain.

It is just a case of connecting the buoy to the chain so the load on the buoy is only the weight of the chain, but it is a heavy chain and high tide hence going for the safer choice of an A5 size buoy

 

[GrahamM376]

Use a heavy shackle, well moused. Assume you have a swivel at the top of the chain?

 

[William_H]

BM, you might like to look at this site

http://www.divingbelle.co.uk/

which is run by a very competent moorings firm. They have all kinds of specs, with diagrams.


If you are talking about the riser to buoy connection, then rope in any form is a no-no.

A suitable rope can be far longer lasting than chain in the load part of a mooring. Chain can wear remarkably quickly. Rope has a degree of springyness than can be useful. But yes a rope can chafe more easily than chain. I am not saying I have the courage to go all rope on my mooring but a friend has and it has survived for 5 years now. ie much longer than a chain. Certainly I use multiple ropes from buoy and chain to the boat. olewill

 

[KREW2]

I prefer to shackle and wire it up about it about 2 meters down from the end of the riser, assuming your chain is long enough, you will probably need 2 shackles, a large one for the buoy and a second that will fit through the large one on the buoy, and onto the riser chain. Then attatch the bridle you bring on board to the end of the riser. As this will now be above the waterline it will allow you to look at the join between riser and bridle every time you moor.