Lifting keel boats

[boatmike]

I am looking at boats that can be kept on a mud mooring alongside a drying pontoon in Portsmouth harbour. Southerlys in particular. I have discounted them so far because I think I would end up with mud up the slot causing jam ups. Am I right? Any Southerly owners out there with advice?

 

[Daverw]

We don’t have a southerly but a kelt29 lifting keel, on club pontoon and drying mud berth for last 4 years and never had a problem with keel jamming.

People kept telling us about stones jamming etc but when challenge never had actually seen it happen just heard about it

 

[Ian_Edwards]

I've had 3 lifting keel boats, the first 2 kept on drying moorings in Stonehaven Harbour.. April to September.

The first was a Jaguar 21, vertical dagger board, no problems in 6 years, the second a Parker 275, again a dagger board, no problems in 13 years.

I currently have a Southerly 46RS (swinging keel), but I keep that on a deepwater mooring in the summer, but when I do use a drying mooring whilst cruising, I haven't had a problem in the last 7 years.

I think the problems occur when the seabed has stones which are just the right size to get into the space between the keel and the centre board box. Stonehaven has thick gelatinous mud, and if you try and walk in it, it goes half way up your wellies. With the current Southerly, I've only ever dried her out on sand.

 

[lw395]

We don’t have a southerly but a kelt29 lifting keel, on club pontoon and drying mud berth for last 4 years and never had a problem with keel jamming.

People kept telling us about stones jamming etc but when challenge never had actually seen it happen just heard about it

I have seen it happen. But this was on the RYA's 'Sonata 7' lift keelers. The keel on these things was like a cast iron centreboard case below the boat, with a piovting iron centreboard. So on mud, the whole thing would often be buried with the boat upright.
So perhaps a boat like that which presses its centreboard slot 18inches (?) into the mud is way more vulnerable than one where the slot mostly sits on top of the mud?

Lots of lift keelers do indeed dry out with no problem, that is what they are for?

 

[graham]

I think problems occur with boats that don't get used very much.each tide a bit more mud gets forced in which the. goes hard and jams the keel.Boats used regullarilly don't suffer so much. I have had 2lifting keel boats kept on half tide mud moorings without problem.

 

[TSB240]

Lift keelers with bulbs at the base can completely prevent stones jamming. But some need legs to dry our comfortably in sheltered sandy locations. Deep mud not a problem. Apart from low water access........

 

[UK-WOOZY]

my jeanneau has a gate valve to screw a large diameter hose onto so its above the water line to shove a stick down to knock the centerboad free if it gets stuck

 

[neil_s]

It did happen once to my Seal, but I now leave the keel down just a tiny bit. It seems that the slight up and down action at each low tide dislodges any stones. My mooring is on the edge of a creek, so, depending on wind direction, it can be in deep mud or on muddy shingle. 17 years experience!

 

[alahol2]

It did happen once to my Seal, but I now leave the keel down just a tiny bit. It seems that the slight up and down action at each low tide dislodges any stones. My mooring is on the edge of a creek, so, depending on wind direction, it can be in deep mud or on muddy shingle. 17 years experience!

Ditto. Not a Seal but a Stag on the edge of deep water. Leave about 6" of keel down. Centreplate stays free.

 

[greeny]

It did happen once to my Seal, but I now leave the keel down just a tiny bit. It seems that the slight up and down action at each low tide dislodges any stones. My mooring is on the edge of a creek, so, depending on wind direction, it can be in deep mud or on muddy shingle. 17 years experience!

Same for me if I am drying out on anchor over a few tides

 

[Bathdave]

We have a southerly 115 ...it lives in a marina but we have dried out on mud.

I know of some that do live on drying moorings

There's an excellent southerly owners site SOA where I think the question has been raised

You need to apply for access but prospective owners with questions frequently join

 

[E39mad]

The Southerly (all bar the 28) has a ballasted cast iron keel not a centre/dagger board - I have never heard of a keel jamming due to mud it the slot. In the earlier boats with the triangular shaped keels two thirds of the ballast is in the grounding plate and a third in the keel itself which uses a hydraulic ram to raise it.

 

[boatmike]

I think problems occur with boats that don't get used very much.each tide a bit more mud gets forced in which the. goes hard and jams the keel.Boats used regullarilly don't suffer so much. I have had 2lifting keel boats kept on half tide mud moorings without problem.

That rings true. Visited Northshore marine last week to look at a Southerly 115. Guy there was very honest and said effectively the same. One or two tides OK. Regular rise and fall and it packs......

 

[jwilson]

I've owned a small lifting keel boat with a 3/8 inch galvanised plate centreboard, which could and did jam with gravel a couple of times, freed by thumping the exposed top, but I can't imagine it jamming with mud on a cast keel as heavy as those on a Southerly.

 

[GeorgeLlewellin]

I have a Beneteau 323 with lifting keel, I have kept it on a drying mooring for 7 months each summer for more than 10 years. The bottom is firm with sand and shingle, never a problem.
George

 

[DownWest]

We had this a few times with stones on the Crouch, but way back. Steel plate in between steel shallow ballast keel. Like above, we had a hole in the case and gave it a wack. Not something that bothered us.
Southerlys, with their hefty cast keels, would just grind the stones on the way out.

 

[Daydream believer]

Where is our resident Anderson expert?

 

[DownWest]

Where is our resident Anderson expert?

Might be looking at something more intersting? Keels on those are lift, so not so subject to the problem, as the bulb snuggs up under the hull..

 

[LiftyK]

Never a problem on my Parker 21 and then 275 boats on a drying mooring for more than 20 years.

 

[langstonelayabout]

Where is our resident Anderson expert?

I guess he's not around at the moment, but his boat has a significant bulb at the bottom of the lift keel that fits flush to the contours of the hull so I don't envisage that an Anderson 22 would experience any concerns.

The E-Boat I kept on a drying mooring (next to his Anderson 22) was always fine too. The E-Boat had a 300kg cast iron keel that lifted vertically. I always left it about 9" down when on the mooring to keep the CofG lower and never had any concerns with mud or any stones/shells stopping the keel lowering correctly.