Dock Lines & Mooring Lines (are synonymous terms)
• Dock Lines are used to Moor (connect / fasten) or Make Fast a boat to a dock or a permanent mooring like a pile, pier, wharf, or buoy field. Most often the connecting points are cleats, but not always. Fenders are employed to cushion the movement of the boat against the mooring.
• Loop (Eye) — Dock Lines are provided with a spliced loop on one end (eye), which provides for an easy method for making fast around a cleat, pile, bolted eye ring, etc. While the bitter end (free end) of the dock line is made fast to another cleat and the slack adjusted for tension (slack removed).
• Bow, Stern, and Spring Lines — Most average sized boats can be moored using two groups of dock lines (4 dock lines). For the first group there is one each of a Bow Line and a Stern Line, which are +/- 2/3 the length of the boat, and are used to make fast the bow and stern to the mooring. For the second group there is an After Bow Spring Line and a Forward Quarter Spring Line, which are +/- the same length of the boat. The spring lines criss-cross each other forming an x-pattern to the mooring. (Please refer to sketch.)
• Breast Lines — Larger and heavier boats use the same lines mentioned above, but can use two additional spring lines and two breast lines. Boats up to +/- 20 feet use 3/8” diameter dock lines, while larger and heavier boats longer than 20’ use 1/2” and larger diameters.
• Buoy Field Mooring — When a boat is moored to a buoy field, custom mooring lines can be utilized, which have characteristic of both dock lines and anchor lines. A typical line will have a dock line eye for connecting to the boat’s cleat and an anchor line thimble eye with a stainless steel hook for making fast to the buoy cable. The mooring line might be fitted with a buoy or rope float.
• Lake Shore Mooring — For many inland applications, a power boat is moored from the lakeshore where the bow faces outward to the lake and the stern faces the shore. The bow is moored using an anchor line secured to the lake bottom, while the stern is moored to an anchor line secured to the shoreline. The bow line may have a chain rode attached. Both mooring lines might well be fitted with buoys or rope floats; especially, the bow connection. The bow and stern lines will have some type of hardware required to make the connections to the boat like eye hooks or spring clips.
• Augers — As an alternate to using anchors, a boat owner may use augers. Set one auger to the lake bottom to secure the bow and set another auger on shore to secure the stern. Here a variety of mooring lines can be utilized like anchor lines, dock lines, plain straight lines, and or custom mooring lines. The bow line may have a chain rode attached. Both mooring lines might well be fitted with buoys or rope floats; especially, the bow connection. The bow and stern lines will have some type of hardware required to make the connections to the boat like eye hooks or spring clips.
• House Boats — typically use a minimum of four 5/8" to 3/4" diameter dock lines for each side of the boat and secured in locations to prevent the boat from moving side-to-side, forward and backward, during bad weather conditions using the classical dockline techniques mentioned above. The bitter end (free end) of the dock lines are made fast to cleats located on the house boat and or the dock and the slack adjusted for tension (slack removed).
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Anchor Lines
• Anchor Lines are used to temporarily Moor (connect / fasten) or Make Fast a boat to a lake or sea bottom.
• Thimble Eye — Anchor Lines are provided with a thimble eye splice on one end, which provides for chafe protection for an anchor shackle. An anchor shackle connects the thimble eye of the anchor line directly to the anchor or in most applications a chain rode. Three strand nylon anchor lines can be spliced directly to the chain rode. The bitter end (free end) of the anchor line is made fast to the boat’s cleat or bow eye ring and the slack adjusted for tension (slack removed).
• Proof Coil Anchor Chain — For most applications, a long nylon anchor line connected to a chain rode is adequate. Vessels without a windlass can use standard Proof Coil Anchor Chain. Larger boats; especially, ocean going are provided with a chain windlass. Windlasses require either BBB Chain or High Test Chain.
• Rode Chain has two purposes. First, the chain portion of the rode will resist chafe that would otherwise occur if a nylon line was lying along the bottom. Secondly, the weight of the chain portion has the effect of keeping the angle of pull on the anchor low, which keeps the anchor flukes dug in.
• Scope is defined as the ratio of the distance from the bow (plus freeboard) to the bottom divided into the length of anchor line paid out. The typical minimum scope is from 3-5. The larger the scope ratio, the better the holding power of the anchor because the angle of pull on the flukes remains low. (Please refer to sketch.)
• Scope Ratio — For a 40ft depth (including freeboard) and a scope ratio of 5 desired, then the length of rode required for this ratio is 200ft (5 x 40). Not all boat owners decide to carry this long of a rode package. But during a bad storm, the longer the scope (10:1) the better the holding power of the anchor.
• Small Scope Ratio increases the angle of pull and in turn reduces the holding power of the anchor. Heavier rode chain and anchor can be used to mitigate this from occurring. The heavier chain and anchor will keep the angle of pull low when the scope ratio is also low.
• Anchor Rode Package — An example of a rode package is 100 – 200 foot of double braid nylon line connected to 1/4” – 1/2” proof coil chain in a 10’ length connected to an adequately sized anchor. The connection between the nylon anchor line and the rode chain should consist of a thimble (on the end of the anchor line for chafe protection) to a shackle or anchor swivel on the chain end. Seize the shackle pin with a nylon cable tie. The connection between the rode chain and anchor can be another anchor shackle. |
Tow Lines & Misc Info
• Tow Lines are used to tow a recreational power boat behind a larger boat like a houseboat or yacht.
• Thimble Eye Splice — Tow Lines like anchor lines are provided with a thimble eye splice on one end, which provides for chafe protection for connection to a shackle, swivel eye hook, or spring clip. The hook or clip connects the thimble eye of the tow line directly to the bow eye of the power boat. The bitter end (free end) of the tow line is made fast to the towing vessel’s stern cleat and the slack adjusted for tension (slack removed). The tow line might be fitted with a rope float.
• Permanent or Shackle Connections — The connection between the tow line and the hook can be a permanent connection (the hook is connected directly to the thimble) or temporary (the hook is connected to the thimble via a shackle).
• Thimble Eye — The tow line can also be provided with a thimble eye on each end of the tow line. Connections are made as already stated, but are required on each end of the tow line. For boaters who tow often this is the most convenient method.
• Custom Towing Bridle — The ultimate tow line solution; especially, for ocean going applications, is a custom towing bridle made to the customer’s specifications.
• Chafe Protection — Use Leather, Nylon Cordura Tubing, or Dipping to increase the life span of your lines as they rub against cleats, chocks, and your moorings. Chafe protection is most often used on dock line eyes, but for anchor and tow lines thimbles and rode chain provide chafe protection.
• Large Boat in a Slip — When any boat is moored for long periods of time in a slip, use the classical dock lines techniques already mentioned, but often dock lines are utilized on both the port and starboard sides of the boat. Therefore, a large boat may need two bow lines, four spring lines, and two stern lines. Add breast lines if required. Slip Dock Lines are often short due to the close proximity of the cleats on the boat and the dock. Chafe Protection for slip dock lines is higly recommended.
• House Boat Anchoring — House boats typically use a minimum of four to six 5/8" to 3/4" diameter anchor lines with at least two lines aft and two lines forward one on each corner of the house boat. House boat anchor lines may or may not have chain rodes attached. Some house boats have windlasses. When anchoring to the lake shore many techinques are used depending on the shore conditions. The anchors are secured on shore in locations to prevent the boat from moving side-to-side, forward and backward, during bad weather conditions using the classical dock line techniques. However, the anchors may get secured/wrapped around large rocks, buried in sand, and secured with steel pins. Slack can be removed on shore at the anchor or on the house boat at a cleat. Use the house boat's engines as required to set the anchors. It is highly recommended to utilize a thimble and chain rode as means of chafe protection for each anchor line.
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