Protect your boat - Mooring/dock tying in waves

[Deephaven]

You got lucky big ole whitecaps didn't roll in or a fleet of wakesurf boats didn't drive by.  

[K1500]

Before I sunk a temporary and likely illegal mooring, I would just trailer it. Even moored you would be worried about it. We stay on a lake where I can rent a slip for $17 per day, but it would take longer to get from the campsite to the slip than it would to just launch the boat. 

[NHBull]

You can buy these or make a pair

 

 

 

[K1500]

Those look like just what the OP needs. 

[gim]

I’d be so angry if I left my boat out there one night and came out the next morning to a hull all scratched up. But that’s just me.

[Jigfishn10]

So everything I have on moorings is for saltwater. Harbors and bays up here for me are 15-20’ is 150 lbs but again that’s ocean.

The best advice I saw as a rule of thumb, and you can use your best judgement, is 5-10 lbs times the length of your boat. So 20 ft x 5 lbs = 100 lb mooring.

Chain length of 1.5 time the water depth was correct.

Hope this helps. 

[Deephaven]

55 minutes ago, gimruis said:

I’d be so angry if I left my boat out there one night and came out the next morning to a hull all scratched up. But that’s just me.

Exactly the reason for the thread.  When the kids go to bed I am going to fish and if I can leave the boat at the dock it is killer.  Part of the reason I paid extra for lake front.

38 minutes ago, Jigfishn10 said:

So everything I have on moorings is for saltwater. Harbors and bays up here for me are 15-20’ is 150 lbs but again that’s ocean.

The best advice I saw as a rule of thumb, and you can use your best judgement, is 5-10 lbs times the length of your boat. So 20 ft x 5 lbs = 100 lb mooring.

Chain length of 1.5 time the water depth was correct.

Hope this helps. 

Definitely.  Thanks!

[gim]

1 minute ago, Deephaven said:

Exactly the reason for the thread.  When the kids go to bed I am going to fish and if I can leave the boat at the dock it is killer.  Part of the reason I paid extra for lake front.

Is that the boat in your profile? Ranger fiberglass tiller?

[Deephaven]

Just now, gimruis said:

Is that the boat in your profile? Ranger fiberglass tiller?

Yes.  Never fished out of it.  Test drove it November 20th, rewinterized and put in storage while I filled out the paperwork.  Needed a family friendly boat for taking 2-4 boys out fishing.  It is pristine hull wise and I plan on keeping it that way.  My stuff is usually nicer when I sell it then when I bought it.

 

[gim]

1 minute ago, Deephaven said:

Yes.  Never fished out of it.  Test drove it November 20th, rewinterized and put in storage while I filled out the paperwork.  Needed a family friendly boat for taking 2-4 boys out fishing.  It is pristine hull wise and I plan on keeping it that way.  My stuff is usually nicer when I sell it then when I bought it.

 

Oh man. You must be getting antsy for some open water.

[Deephaven]

1 minute ago, gimruis said:

Oh man. You must be getting antsy for some open water.

Especially because I sold my 521vx 9 years ago and have been fishing on other peoples boats since.  Drives me nuts.  Can't wait to load it with tackle. 

[michaelb]

This is not my area of expertise at all (I mostly kayak), but I have a 75 lb mooring for my boat and 150 lb mooring for my swim raft. Both with long heavy chains and shackles, etc. It just does not seem practical at all to think about hauling this sort of set up for a week vacation. I don't know how deep your water off the dock would be, but either mooring is very heavy and awkward and hard to move. I would not want to load one on my boat and drop it into the water. First, that can be very dangerous as heavy chain is pulled overboard, but also, there is a serious risk you damage or scratch your boat doing that. You cannot hold it off to the side of the boat and drop it in. You are not going to be able easily pull it back out from on your boat either. I have done both of those things from my plastic swim raft, but it is a beast to get up out of the water. So, I usually walk them in the water with someone else helping.

 

So I would have a system for tying off (including the things pictured here) and then pull the boat out if bad weather is expected, as others are suggesting. Are you going to a spot without internet or cell service to check the weather? You may find that the local NWS offers hourly wind predictions including direction.

[schplurg]

4 hours ago, NHBull said:

You can buy these or make a pair

 

 

 

 

I started typing that in my last post - that someone should invent something like that but didn't think anyone would understand what I was talking about. Very cool.

 

Problem is that if your cleats don't line up to the dock you gotta figure out another way to mount that.

[jbsoonerfan]

Sometimes I leave the lake to go get lunch or something, I just pull the boat out and take it with me. I fail to see how it is that much effort.

 

IMO, that is the only way to know 100% it is safe.

[J Francho]

7 hours ago, Deephaven said:

You got lucky big ole whitecaps didn't roll in or a fleet of wakesurf boats didn't drive by.  

The boat wakes happen all day. White caps happen for every storm. The boats were left tied to the dock all spring through fall. In 30 years I don't recall any getting damage. You are over thinking this. 

[NHBull]

7 hours ago, schplurg said:

 

I started typing that in my last post - that someone should invent something like that but didn't think anyone would understand what I was talking about. Very cool.

 

Problem is that if your cleats don't line up to the dock you gotta figure out another way to mount that.

I have seen the line go through the spacing of the runners on a dock and not on a post or cleat.

if you add spring lines it won’t matter if they are not perfectly perpendicular. They can be made for about 10.00

[Deephaven]

Guys as I said in the first post, I am not interested in tying to the dock.  I've learned and know better.  If you think that is a solution don't post.  Just interested in options to keep my boat AWAY from the dock.

Yes trailering is great.  I have 2 little kids with me though and the launch is more than 10min each way.  Sort of defeats the purpose of paying for the lake front to pull it 4 times a day...

As for why not tying and my experience in rough water.  My 30' Sea Ray is circled here.  This was a normal weekend for years for me.  I watched everyone elses boat get scratched up like hell because they don't know how to anchor or tie.  My other dock experiences I highlighted above.  When the weather gets bad my boat will NOT be rubbing up against a dock or anything for that matter.

Let's keep this on topic.  Currently I have the mooring option.  It's a pain, but safe and I will do it.  Any other ideas to keep the boat OFF the dock?

 

[J Francho]

3 minutes ago, Deephaven said:

Any other ideas to keep the boat OFF the dock?

 

Power Poles or Talons.

[Deephaven]

1 minute ago, J Francho said:

 

Power Poles or Talons.

Do they hold in big waves in a few feet of water?  I've not owned a boat with any and am seriously contemplating adding although I have a kicker so that means either a custom mount or only 1.  A little afraid they would break.

[J Francho]

Whatever would break them would probably also break your boat.

[gim]

2 minutes ago, Deephaven said:

Do they hold in big waves in a few feet of water? 

 

I have a 12 foot stern mount talon.  It has a "rough water" mode so that it tries to dig deeper and absorbs the waves.  Would it hold in big waves?  I don't know.  I've never been out there in heavy chop because I only have an 18 foot aluminum bass boat.  Plus the waves would likely come right over the transom anyways.  You might have better luck seeing as that you have a fiberglass deep V boat.  If you had two of them deployed, then the boat would stay positioned into the waves and taking waves over the stern obviously wouldn't be an issue.

[J Francho]

1 minute ago, gimruis said:

taking waves over the stern obviously wouldn't be an issue.

This is what typically sinks boats.  The bow should always be pointed toward incoming waves.

[gim]

My folks have wave wackers mounted on the transom of their 2090 Warrior.  They do a lot of back trolling into the waves when they walleye fish.  I can tell you that if you don't have those things when back trolling you take on water really quick.  I don't think they're designed to use in a mooring situation or on a dock, but they are effective at what they're designed to do.  I was with them once on Lake of the Woods and one of them snapped apart after hours of taking on heavy chop.  We had to leave after that.

[J Francho]

Just a thought - you'll want to check with local and USCG regulations for mooring.  There's laws.

[TOXIC]

This post made me dizzy.  You put up a picture of a raft off as the reason you don’t want to tie to a dock?  You are willing to sink a mooring or use an anchor offshore?  If you don’t want to tie off to the dock, then pull your boat out.  Period.  I know I wouldn’t be the one wading out to get the boat in the morning.  I have tied my boats off to docks on a lot of big water and have had some pretty nasty storms come in.  My inflatable bumpers have always done their job even to the point where some of them have rubbed rubber onto the hull.  No damage and easily removed.  I can guarantee you I am as picky about my boat as anyone.  But seriously, learn how to properly tie off to the dock with bumpers, watch the weather and if there’s a chance of a big storm, pull the boat out.  I would never trust a mooring or an anchor in a big storm, at least not one you could put in yourself.