Slip Protection

[daydreamerbob]

Come Wednesday - if all goes well, I will be placing my very much faster blue hull in a 2 sided 26X10 slip. As i do not want to lose any speed by scuffing her white - what is the best way to protect the hull. I know lines and spring lines and tangled ropes and stuff - but what about those bumper things - are some less scuff friendly than others?


You all are great.

[Kelly Hanson East]

Taylor made fenders are great - you can get them in

Turtle Blue

to match that hull and not leave marks

(Scuffs come off with acetone, but protect your hands when working with that with appropriate gloves like Nitrile)

[hart]

Check around at the local firehouses - especially the volunteer ones. Every so often they sell off old fire hose for cheap. That stuff is great for lining wood edges and pilings with. When I kept a slip I did that in addition to fenders.

[kmclemore]

You might try prayer. That's about all I know that has even a hope of working!

Seriously, though, I use fat (8-10" dia.) fenders and I use a hook similar to Kelly-Hanson's "Fender Tender II"... it allows you to locate your fenders pretty much anywhere along the lifelines, so you can get your protection properly placed.

[Scott]

As noted in the previous 2 posts, those bumper thingys are called fenders. Not that I'm an elitist sailor, I must however also point out that the stick thingy is the tiller and the white cloth thingys are sails Ok weve got that straight.

Oh yeah, that wet stuff is the water.

Just kidding

[Beam's Reach]

That's what I love about this board. Everthing is kept in simple terms that we can all understand.

Ok, time to get off the typing thingy and go out and change all that black gooey stuff out of the big fan pusher thingy on the back of the boat. Boat? Is that right? Yeah, I think I got that one right.

[cuisto]

I know you will love THESE

One one each corner and one one each side half way in and i think you'll slide right in.

I am now in a 2 boat slip but have one on my corner allowing me to slide in and out tight to my dock so as not to rub my neighbour.

[tangentair]

I know you will love THESE

One one each corner and one one each side half way in and i think you'll slide right in.

I am now in a 2 boat slip but have one on my corner allowing me to slide in and out tight to my dock so as not to rub my neighbour.

Love thy neighbor right? slide in and out tight? I have to go take a cold shower now, oh my goodness, yes a cold shower and any port in a storm. sorry... that was set up low and slow and just inside.....

[puggsy]

HI BOB...This is quite important . If your will be alongside a floating dock, you can tie up quite firmly with bow and stern lines and two springers. for a diagram might i suggest you get a swag of boating books from your local library. Many of them have easy to follow drawings. As the floating slip goes up and down with the tide, so will the as you will be tied up alongside it.
As for buffers, hang them off your saftey line staunchions between the hull and the dock.
With this next scenario, you will not need buffers...as nothing is left to touch.
However, if the slip/ pen is fixed, with fixed piles/ poles, imagine this. a rectangle representing the four piles or a fixed jetty with two piles...you are at right angles to the jetty. four points A B C D . AB and CD being the shorter lengths. Run two bow lines from both A and B to the bow. Making sure they are slack lines to allow for tide.
At the stern run another two lines from both C and D TO CROSS OVER EACH OTHER and attach to the stern cleats ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE HULL. these can be moderately close but not slack or tight. They allow the stern to rise and fall having the length of the full beam of the boat plus the distance from the hull to the pile. a sort of scissor action.
then down each side run a 'springer' . four if you want. From A and B down each side to a cleat either midships or a bit aft. The same can be done from C and D forward to the midships cleat or one further forrard.
six ropes minimum...
Our harbour here has both floating and fixed and it is surprising how many owners do not know the correct system.
Get back to me if you are unsure of what I said. Regards...puggsy 06

P.S. I had a 40ft heavy jarrah timber ketch for 6 years [ charter] that weighted 16 tons. You dont't mess with this sort of weight . To
have a boat left to use, it has to be done right.

One final point...with the fixed piles and six ropes...in most cases the piles have hanging chains fixed to them with concrete block weights on the chains. Your ropes attach to just the chains midway between the weight and where the chain attaches to the pile. This way, when the boat does move at all, it pulls on the weighted chain and is not a direct snatch or tug against the fixture. The weights go up and down and are usually set so that they are under water. A plastic bucket makes a good mould with a lifting ring set into the top. As much weight as you can handle.

[Scott]

Ok, time to get off the typing thingy and go out and change all that black gooey stuff out of the big fan pusher thingy on the back of the boat. Boat? Is that right? Yeah, I think I got that one right.

Hee hee hee.

[daydreamerbob]

Pugs-
Thanks - I really need to understand this as i will be sliping her tomorrow! I am in a non-tidal lake. 2 sided slip.
DDB

[tangentair]

DDB
You might want to click on latitudes and attitudes how to videos and take a look at the following
Capt Jack - Mooring
Capt Jack - Docking Solo
Capt Jack - Backing Out
Capt Jack - Lasso a Piling
they are about 1 minute long and may give you some confidence. On a non-tidal lake you biggest worry in my experience will be the drunks trying to dock their boats.

[School House Steve]

When you move out of the slip and on the water, make sure you stow the fender thingys on deck, in the cockpit or down below. Nothing says NOVICE more than seeing a boat under way with its fenders still over the side dragging in the water.

[John McDonough]

When I kept my 26X high freeboard baat in Marina, I collected Large foam pads, 4" thick and tied them to the two vertical post at the dock and the lhorozontal area beteween the posts. I then wrapped rugs around the foam. Why carry all those bumpers on your boat.

In windy conditions the 26 was hard to steer into the slip at low speed. I built a large V out of 2" x 6" x 4` wood and covered it with thick foam and rugs also. I would enter the slip fast and just as the bow enters the wooden V I would hit R and let it hit the faom V. Put it back in F and turn the wheel L bringing the aft into the dock.

I do the same when leaving, especially singlehanded. Put the boat in F, run it into the V and cut the wheel to keep the stern against the dock. Untie and secure all dock lines. put boat in R and go.

Good Luck..