Putting down your own mooring

VirgoVoyager

VirgoVoyager

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West Lothian, Scotland
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We may have the opportunity of putting down our own mooring in the West of Scotland. All the formalities are taken care of, leaving the practicalities. Does anyone out there have any advice about this? Concrete blocks? Lada engines? (only joking) Arrangements for chains etc? Possibly looking for the "Beginners Guide to Laying Moorings"!

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If you use a single block as a sinker you should keep in mind its profile above the sea bed, as after a season, ground chain can end up wrapped several times around the sinker block. This can be overcome by using either a large diameter low profile sinker block or two sinker blocks separated by about ten mtrs of heavy ground chain with a swivel and riser attached in the centre of the ground chain.
Sinkers can be made of almost anything heavy:
Railway engine wheel
Large flywheel
Lorry tyre filled with chain and cement
Engine block
Riser chain should be 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 times the max water depth and one or two sizes up than your anchor chain.
The surface end of the riser chain should terminate in a buoy with sufficient buoyancy to keep it all afloat.
The boat should be connected to the same riser chain at the bottom of the riser buoy.
A rope and pickup float should be attached to the end of the riser chain.

All IMHO naturally!


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On my mooring, which is a single block, I have at the bottom attached to the weight
about 12 feet of very heavy chain, Ex Ships anchor chain in my case.
The weight of this acts as a shock absorber.IMHO.

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Hi,

WE have just been laying three in the Beulieu River. These are ones that dry out so we created them from four wheel drive tyres filed with concrete. In the concrete we put cross rods which went through some very heavy chain. Once the concrete had set we dug holes in the mud at low springs and marked the holes. To get the sinkers out which weigh about 1/3 of a ton each we floated them out having attached a floatation bag. When we got them over the hole diconnected the floation bag. The final job was to make sure they were in the hole and if not slide them in and fill in the hole. Once they were under the mud the effective weight is around 3/4 of ton. Non drying out sinkers in the river are made from two railway engine wheels throught wich a chain is threaded. These are just dropped over a launch. One thig that is worth considering is looping the riser so if it needs replacing you can attach a new chain to the old one and pull it through. There has been articals in the boat mags so it is worth doing a search and getting photocopies of them. If you want any more help PM me and I will give you my phone number.



<hr width=100% size=1>Take care.

Dave

Dave Knowles
Southampton - UK

http://www.MyCleopatra.co.uk
 
Beware of using anything round (e.g. lorry tyre filled with iron/concrete) as an anchor. If the bottom is at all hard (i.e. not soft mud) there is a danger of the anchor rolling along the sea bed in a blow.

Unless you're in a very sheltered spot (i.e. little wind and/or swell/surge) I'd go for a heavy black ground chain with an anchor at each end (the type used by fish farms are ideal) and a central galvanised riser with swivel (at the bottom). Large buoy supporting the riser. Pick-up buoy/rope coming off top of riser to the boat wih permanent chafe protection on the rope where it lies in the fairlead.


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<<Non drying out sinkers in the river are made from two railway engine wheels throught wich a chain is threaded. These are just dropped over a launch.>>
I'm sure you're right but how on earth do you get the railway wheels onto the launch, leave alone just dropped over the side?

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THese are put in using a crane on a small barge by the harbourmaster on the river. Depending on the size of the boat you arre going to have to lay a sinker of at least 1 to. In Chichester harbour they lay 2 ton concrete sinkers with 3/4 inch chain. A 1 ton sinker you could probably float out having worked out how much floatation you need. What we did was to fill a sack that you get gravel delivered in these days with the floation bag and fenders and this worked for us. It is not easy though so you must have everything worked out carefully before you start.

<hr width=100% size=1>Take care.

Dave

Dave Knowles
Southampton - UK

http://www.MyCleopatra.co.uk
 
On the West Coast of Scotland Gael Force probably have more experience of supplying moorings than anybody else. Take their advice - the fellow to ask for is Mike Thoms (01463229400). I found him very helpful in supplying the gear for a mooring for my boat. For yachts up to 30' Gael Force recoomend a rope riser with a swivel at the top for easy inspection. They believe this to be as strong as chain but impervious to corrosion and also requires a much smaller flotation buoy. Whether there is any problem over abrasive wear I shall no doubt in the fullness of time find out.

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If you cast your own concrete sinker(s) then it's a good idea to cast in a concave bottom shape that way you can improve the suction force.

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Don't know about life expectancy of rope as a riser !
But what would be intersting to watch, would be the reaction of different types of boat
in wind against tide conditions in close packed moorings !...

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I have just spoken to Marlow Ropes and they say that their multiplat nylon rope would be the one and it will not rot. Therefore the only thing that would shorten it's life is chaffing but of course chain not only wears away but also rots. Why I wandere do we not use rope? I can only imagine it is because in the past rope was made from organic materials that did rot.

The other plus point is the rope stretch would act as a shock absorber.

<hr width=100% size=1>Take care.

Dave

Dave Knowles
Southampton - UK

http://www.MyCleopatra.co.uk
 
Stuart

Depends where on the West Coast. I had a new mooring laid for me in the Kyles last season. One off purchase. This is laid by the same company that laid my brothers and father's moorings - all rope risers. The mooring is lifeted and inspected every spring. Mooring company carries insurance on the mooring - not me.

If you want more info - let me know.

Regards

Donald

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Re: Rope Riser

It's an interesting thought.
I wonder if it would be better or worse if the rope was threaded through a plastic pipe?
More difficult to inspect but more protection against external chafing.
Would the rope chafe on the pipe?


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Many of us use rope risers in this area as there is an abundant supply of multi-plait
of 50mm upwards which is jetty mooring line abandonned by commercial shipping. I bring my mooring ashore each spring and have not had to renew any part for at least five years. I know some which have been in the water for 10 years. Weld a ring say 9 inches diameter through the last link of heavy ground chain - feed an eye splice of the rope through the ring and back on itself. Once initial weight comes on and it 'clenches' there is no noticeable friction or wear.Further eye splice at the top end with buoy attached and finally suitable diameter strop similarly attached with eye splice. No shackle any where in the system as that is usually the most vulnerable point. Don't like concrete either - too buoyant and usually stands very proud of the bottom which the boat might sit on on a drying or shallow mooring. Scrap metal is virtually valueless and our local quarry will let us have old rock crusher jaws - flat steel stabs 3" thick by 1 metre sq. Ideal sinkers.

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