long term anchoring

[pantagruel]

I need advice.

I live on Lake St-Clair, Ontario which often is the victim of sudden
wind storms.

The water is very shallow for nearly a kilometer from shore (2-3 feet)

The bottom is mostly clay.

I have an 18.5 foot boat (with a 6ft sunscreen that acts as a sail)
which I anchor in front of my house during the summer. No one else
does that.in my area. Everyone trailers, uses marinas, and in some
few instances have boat lifts. If I had to do that, I would not use my
boat.

So I have been a bit of a rebel, and anchor my boat all summer about
100ft from shore. Been doing that for 3 years with no problems.

Except last night when my boat ended up on the beach, a few feet from
a pile of rocks.

I have been using two anchors. The boat anchor, and a larger one.
Both are "fluke" types and both are on a 50ft rope.

Last night after unbeaching the boat, I added 50ft to the heavier
anchor rope.

Am I courting disaster? Should I join the crowd and trailer the boat
etc, Or can I continue enjoying having the boat in the water, at my
doorstep ?

[Gualtier Malde]

Post by pantagruel
I need advice.
I live on Lake St-Clair, Ontario which often is the victim of sudden
wind storms.
The water is very shallow for nearly a kilometer from shore (2-3 feet)
The bottom is mostly clay.
I have an 18.5 foot boat (with a 6ft sunscreen that acts as a sail)
which I anchor in front of my house during the summer. No one else
does that.in my area. Everyone trailers, uses marinas, and in some
few instances have boat lifts. If I had to do that, I would not use my
boat.
So I have been a bit of a rebel, and anchor my boat all summer about
100ft from shore. Been doing that for 3 years with no problems.
Except last night when my boat ended up on the beach, a few feet from
a pile of rocks.
I have been using two anchors. The boat anchor, and a larger one.
Both are "fluke" types and both are on a 50ft rope.
Last night after unbeaching the boat, I added 50ft to the heavier
anchor rope.
Am I courting disaster? Should I join the crowd and trailer the boat
etc, Or can I continue enjoying having the boat in the water, at my
doorstep ?

One thought: You said "50 ft rope" and didn't mention chain. I think that you
would get some advantage from 20' of chain or so. For permanent moorage, when
there is no-one around you and you can swing freely, I'd use even a 7:1 scope,
which is well under 50'.

Finally you might consider an anchor that keeps itself buried or re-buries when
swinging, like a good plow or Bruce.

That was three thoughts, wasn't it? Resembles the Spanish Inquisition, which I
wasn't expecting. <g>

Chuck
Seattle

[Mike Romain]

Post by pantagruel
I need advice.
I live on Lake St-Clair, Ontario which often is the victim of sudden
wind storms.
The water is very shallow for nearly a kilometer from shore (2-3 feet)
The bottom is mostly clay.
I have an 18.5 foot boat (with a 6ft sunscreen that acts as a sail)
which I anchor in front of my house during the summer. No one else
does that.in my area. Everyone trailers, uses marinas, and in some
few instances have boat lifts. If I had to do that, I would not use my
boat.
So I have been a bit of a rebel, and anchor my boat all summer about
100ft from shore. Been doing that for 3 years with no problems.
Except last night when my boat ended up on the beach, a few feet from
a pile of rocks.
I have been using two anchors. The boat anchor, and a larger one.
Both are "fluke" types and both are on a 50ft rope.
Last night after unbeaching the boat, I added 50ft to the heavier
anchor rope.
Am I courting disaster? Should I join the crowd and trailer the boat
etc, Or can I continue enjoying having the boat in the water, at my
doorstep ?

Well, considering the number of branches I found over my yard yesterday
when I got home from a trip and the number of cars that had to be off
the side of the road on the 400 because of wind and lack of visibility,
I sure would want a boat to be anchored down 'really really' well or
tied to the dock.

I actually checked my insurance to make sure both my car and Jeep have
tree branch coverage after seeing the yard.

And that wasn't even considered a Bad storm was it?

Maybe set a few more anchors?

Mike

[Bad Monkey]

Solution: do some research, then get one or two decent anchors. Fluke
types are not general purpose anchors and should not be relied upon
for anything other than uni-directional pulls.

If you want to permanently anchor your boat, almost like a mooring,
you will want the best type you can find, and use a large size.

Start here: http://www.rocna.com/

[P. Drummond]

Post by pantagruel
So I have been a bit of a rebel, and anchor my boat all summer about
100ft from shore. Been doing that for 3 years with no problems.
Except last night when my boat ended up on the beach, a few feet from
a pile of rocks.

You didn't mention if both anchors were set in opposite directions (so
your boat lies to one or the other depending on wind). Did they both
drag? You could replace the smaller anchor with a larger and add chain
to both. Have you looked into getting permission (Transport Canada)
to put in a permanent mooring? It would be more secure than anchors.

[Canuck57]

Post by P. Drummond

Post by pantagruel
So I have been a bit of a rebel, and anchor my boat all summer about
100ft from shore. Been doing that for 3 years with no problems.
Except last night when my boat ended up on the beach, a few feet from
a pile of rocks.

You didn't mention if both anchors were set in opposite directions (so
your boat lies to one or the other depending on wind). Did they both drag?
You could replace the smaller anchor with a larger and add chain to both.
Have you looked into getting permission (Transport Canada) to put in a
permanent mooring? It would be more secure than anchors.
--
Pat Drummond (delete INVALID from address)
Aloha 32 Sailboat for sale http://boating.ncf.ca/aloha
Avon Life Raft for sale http://boating.ncf.ca/forsale

Must not reside in Canada. Waiting for the government... LOL.

[pantagruel]

Thank you for your input.

The 2 anchors are fluke types without chains. But there are rubber
shock absorbers on each line which should reduce the tug on the
anchors.

A local retailler suggested an auger type anchor, which I am seriously
considering. He recommends attaching to that auger a floating and
pivoting ball. I am not sure why this expensive ball would be
necessary. Just tie the line to the anchor and the boat should swing
around with wind it seems to me. Not that I don't want to spend what
is needed, but I have had that boat for about 10 years, and I don't
dare add up the money it has caused me to spend, ..And it is a fine
boat with an excellent motor (18.5 Doral with a 90hp 4-stroke
Mercury).

As per the direction of anchoring, the only winds that are
threatenning in this location are those from the north. Winds from
other directions do not affect the boat at all. So I lay the anchors
in the same general direction: on the north side of the location,
keeping the boat about 100ft from shore (2-3 feet of water!)

As I said, the bottom is clay like. It takes all my strength to pull
the larger anchor vertically when I have to and it comes up with huge
pieces of clay...

What is a 7:1 scope ?

Thanks again...

[P. Drummond]

Post by pantagruel
Thank you for your input.
The 2 anchors are fluke types without chains. But there are rubber
shock absorbers on each line which should reduce the tug on the
anchors.

Most anchors work in mud (clay), especially after they get dug in.
Still a length of chain will help a lot in strong wind by keeping the
rode (line) low and pulling horizontally rather than vertically.

Post by pantagruel
keeping the boat about 100ft from shore (2-3 feet of water!)
What is a 7:1 scope ?

In 3 ft of water with a boat cleat 2 ft above the water, vertical
distance is 5 ft. A 7:1 scope would require 35 ft (7x5) of anchor
line and chain for secure holding.

[Gualtier Malde]

Post by pantagruel
A local retailler suggested an auger type anchor, which I am seriously
considering. He recommends attaching to that auger a floating and
pivoting ball. I am not sure why this expensive ball would be
necessary.

When you get into augurs you are talking about a "mooring", not just anchoring.
That implies a pretty permanent arrangement and that is why the floating ball
is there, because it is anticipated that you would leave and return. I believe
that an augur is about the safest arrangement you can have. Washington State
parks moorages use them for fairly hefty vessels. I have only watched an
installation but I would not want to do that repeatedly.

The difference is time the boat will spend on moorings and whether or not you
own/have permission for the "real estate".

Chuck
Seattle

[taas]

Say, if you're doing this permanently and behind your home, why don't you
install a mooring buoy? A mooring buoy, chained to a nice big piece of
concrete is much better than an anchor. And.... even more comfortable than
the anchors.

An anchor is notoriously unreliable, as the boat can turn and twist around
them, breaking them from whatever is holding it in the ground.

Cheers!

Post by pantagruel
I need advice.
I live on Lake St-Clair, Ontario which often is the victim of sudden
wind storms.
The water is very shallow for nearly a kilometer from shore (2-3 feet)
The bottom is mostly clay.
I have an 18.5 foot boat (with a 6ft sunscreen that acts as a sail)
which I anchor in front of my house during the summer. No one else
does that.in my area. Everyone trailers, uses marinas, and in some
few instances have boat lifts. If I had to do that, I would not use my
boat.
So I have been a bit of a rebel, and anchor my boat all summer about
100ft from shore. Been doing that for 3 years with no problems.
Except last night when my boat ended up on the beach, a few feet from
a pile of rocks.
I have been using two anchors. The boat anchor, and a larger one.
Both are "fluke" types and both are on a 50ft rope.
Last night after unbeaching the boat, I added 50ft to the heavier
anchor rope.
Am I courting disaster? Should I join the crowd and trailer the boat
etc, Or can I continue enjoying having the boat in the water, at my
doorstep ?