Swinging Moorings

[gjeffery]

My boat. like many modern GRP designs doesn't have a Sampson post or bits to which to make a chain fast. Do designers intend all plastic boats to moor up to pontoons?

I intend to put the boat on a swinging mooring, and I would welcome any advice on the suitability and practical difficulties of making the chain (about 6mm) fast onto the alloy mooring cleats located on the toe rail close to the bow.

In particular, is a single (RCD complient!) mooring cleat likely to be strong enough to withstand the mooring loads, and what is the best way of making the bitter end of the chain off, after it has been cleated?

 

[hlb]

I'd suggest making up some sort of harness, round both cleats. Maybe chain covered in plastic pipe with a padlock.

<font color=blue> Haydn

 

[snowleopard]

making sure...

that a failure of one cleat won't allow the boat to go adrift!

 

[gjeffery]

Re: making sure...

Thanks for the advice. I can't believe that I am alone in having this concern, and I am trying to find out what other people do, and what is regarded as best practice. I have also asked the HM about any harbour requirements that may exist.

As a minimum, I think a chain onto one cleat and a rope onto the second cleat is necessary. The suggestion of a chain bridle, taking in both cleats, and distributing the load, is sensible.

I think there is an issue of design here. I would willingly swap a (nominal) forrard berth in return for a bullkhead supporting a strong point in the middle of the deck.

 

[Guest]

Post deleted by danfoley

 

[chrisD]

I agree that a snubber makes sense.

Instead of a rubber snubber, we use a stainless steel spring snubber which works very well: you pass the chain down through the middle of the spring and shackle it to each end with a few inches of slack chain inside the spring. Thus the chain isn't severed but the spring snubber stretches and takes up some of the slack. The snubber can be on the deck between the centre cleat and the bow roller. It works very well and removes all the snatching. I assume it also softens the shock on the cleat.

 

[mick]

I keep a Sadler 26 on a swinging mooring in Rothesay Bay and the mooring loop goes over a windlass on the foredeck which is supported by a great stainless pad underneath the deck. I never use the windlass for anything else. Just in case, I always run a strong rope round the base of the mast and through the mooring loop. My boat broke free in a gale last season, but nothing failed on the boat-it was the mooring rope that broke.

 

[Trevor_swfyc]

Re: Rubber Snubber

A word of warning, please see my answer about 16 topics ago under BOW ROLLERS AND MOORINGS.
Trevor.
Moorings Officer SWFYC.

 

[bedouin]

Bedouin lives on a mooring, attached with a chain (probably about 10mm). I cleat the chain off to the mooring cleat and it doesn't cause any problems.

I take one full turn of chain round the cleat and then use the pick-up rope that is splice to the end to secure the chain. The chain comes over the bow-roller (secured by a drop-nose pin).

The affect of the heavy chain and buoy is to absorb any snatch forces, so the load is not as great as you might imagine - I have never felt the need for a snubber.

 

[mtb]

Have people watched the way their craft move re wind and tide, it is a worthwhile effort .
Any thing with a fair free board or a mast will react some times violently to big gusts of wind .
Last year when we had the big storm I went down to see how my tug was fairing ,Reedhawk was fine on it's fore and aft mooring but some of the yacht's were diving from side with amazing zest .
The moorings at Wells Next The Sea are put in and maintained to a degree by the harbour but it's an owners responsibility to look after their moorings
My moorings are not swinging and have steel cables from a crane , I like the knowledge that I cant do any more than that to keep things where they are .
When I use swing moorings I double up on every thing, and drop the anchor as a stand by
If I had a fibreglass boat I would not hesitate to put in strong mooring points.

Cheers
Mick

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://homepage.ntlworld.com/boats/>http://homepage.ntlworld.com/boats/</A>

 

[brianrunyard]

You say"When I use swing moorings I double up on every thing, and drop the anchor as a stand by".
Isn't there a danger of the anchor chain and mooring winding around each other and effectively being shortened?

Brian
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/brunyard

 

[mtb]

It's not happened so far , I try to drop the anchor as close to where the ground tackle lays. Mind you most of the time every thing swings in the same arc and I do try to keep the lengths the same re chain .
cheers
mick

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://homepage.ntlworld.com/boats/>http://homepage.ntlworld.com/boats/</A>

 

[hlb]

Mick. That sounds imposible. You need much more chain out on an anchor than a mooring. I would not dream of putting an anchor down any where near moorings. Dont like dropping anchors in rivers at all much. To easy to get it wrapped round all the crap down there.

<font color=blue> Haydn

 

[gjeffery]

Thanks for that. The stainless spring snubber sounds good - but I have not been able to find one on the web. Please, have you any idea who supplies them?

 

[pete]

I have kept boats on a my swinging mooring for about 7 years now and have tried various combinations of tackle but have found for me the best is to use heavy chain up the mooring buoy with a heavy swivel just below the buoy then from the buoy I have two heavy nylon strops coming through fairleads on each side of the bow (one each side) onto the sampson post in the centre.
I inspect every thing each year and have been using the same strops for the last 4 years and they are still in good condition ,
personally I would never use chain on my boat again as I have seen the damage done to the fibreglass on friends boats mainly if the chain wraps around the keel and the chain then runs back along the hull.in three cases I know off, the cheeks of the bow roller fitting were bent over with the chain escaping and then gouging into the boat.

good luck
pete

 

[gjeffery]

Thanks for that. My first preferance was to use nylon rope, appropriately protected from chafe - but I have been led by more conventional wisdom. Very few boats locally seem to be on rope. If I can get away with heavy rope strops, that would go a long way towards solving my problem.

I am still unsure about the effects of the RCD in that my boat is coded and the cleats are an RCD controlled item. If I fit a sampson post and that fails, I might be in more difficulty than had the EC approved cleats provided by the builder failed!

 

[chas]

My boat is kept on a mooring and I also have two cleats . I have a loop at the end of the mooring cable which goes over one cleat with a line to keep it in place. I then have a shackle in the mooring cable about 18 in inboard from the bow roller and I reeve a preventer through this from the other cleat using springy nylon. This preventer is hauled taught enough to form a dog leg in the mooring cable so the weight is on the preventer. I find that this prevents any snatch if there is any sea running.

Hope this makes sense!

 

[max_power]

Re: Rubber Snubber

Makes sense Trevor.

I do use a snubber though when away and anchored up. I also use a rope with a rolling hitch to stop the 'grumbling chain' - it works.

 

[pete]

The nylon strops I refer to are of the flat webbing variety with sewn in loops at both ends they are used for crane slings amongst other things and are tested to take very heavy loads
if there is any chafe is will show well before the webbing breaks and you have two for added security, my strops are about 4 inches wide.
good luck

Pete

 

[gjeffery]

Thanks. Yes, it does make sense abd it is helpful. Presumably then, if the cleat taking the mooring cable carries away, load is transferred to the preventer. I guess your mooring cable is chain? In which case does the chain wear the cleat?

I would be useful to know what the design load of the cleats is, and on my boat, if it is assumed that this will be in line with the hull sides. This property is of course validated by the RCD!