Where to Put the Chain ?

[Orchidius]

Hey there,

I'm prepping my boat to cross the big blue from Europe to the caribean. One of the changes I'm going to have to make is the ground tackle. I've set my sights on a rocna, which leaves the rode. Here in the North sea, many daysailors use about 10m of chain and nylon rope the rest of the way. That's also how my boat came when I first got it. The question is not only how much chain to get, but mostly where to put it...

My boat is an old classic steel cruiser, without an anchor/chain locker (or anchor roller/windlass for that matter). The closest opening that leads below is the hatch to air the front berth. Leading wet chain through there would pretty much make the whole cabin wet... There is a storage space forward of the front berth, but its fairly small and leading wet chain over the matrasses doesn't seem like a good idea...

Any clues where to put it all...? The chain/rope rode it came with was just left on the front deck...

Oh yes, boat is a 29footer with a 1,65m draught.

[robert sailor]

If it where my boat and I was going to be doing a lot of cruising in coral waters I would fashion some sort of locker forward and if I didn't have the room I would still fashion a hause pipe that exited on the bow and lead down to the bilge and I would store all my chain in the bilge which is a good place for it in a smaller boat as it keeps the weight centralized.

[Orchidius]

How much chain would you get for cruising in the caribbean on a boat the size of mine and how much volume would that be? I'm having a hard time visualising how big a pile of chain it would be... A bathtub full?

[savoir]

Think about 50m of 6mm chain and an anchor around 12-15kg. You will need a custom bow roller and that might be expensive. That amount of chain will almost fill a plastic milk crate - not so bulky. Fabricate a fiberglass box in the bow under the deck and a chain pipe hole in the deck above the middle of the box. A boat of that size doesn't need a windlass but it will need a chain lock on the deck a little aft of the anchor shank.

[DoubleWhisky]

Originally Posted by Orchidius

There is a storage space forward of the front berth, but its fairly small and leading wet chain over the matrasses doesn't seem like a good idea...

If Your boat is steel one, the modifications should be not difficult and not overly expensive. May be fitting a small hatch leading to this storage space is doable? And making this space watertight by glassing it from inside? Without the windlass a chain storage in the bilge (best place anyway) can be not convenient, as You need to pull it up all the way by hand...

[DoubleWhisky]

Originally Posted by Orchidius

Oh yes, boat is a 29footer with a 1,65m draught.

And what will be the total weight in cruising mode?

[SimonV]

50 meters of 6mm chain will fit in a 20 litre bucket. Weighs about 40kg .

[Orchidius]

The paperwork has her noted as weighing 4,5 metric tonnes, that's empty I presume. A very rough estimate would be to add 1,5-2 tonnes to that for full cruising weight.

Making a hatch in the deck is not an option right now (teak deck), but the wood is coming off in a year or two after which I can consider it again.

I could maybe have the chain in two lengths in two bilge compartiments and just take it out as I need it? Or is it crucial to have the entire ground tackle ready to go at all times (not possible in any case unless I keep the chain on deck or make a hatch).

Also, with 50m of chain, would you still keep some rope rode ready as well, and how much of what thickness?

[Artful Dodger]

To add my two cents worth, when we went to Carb I carried two lengths of chain 200ft on one anchor and 300ft on the other. I found that I was more comfortable always putting out a minimum of 125ft. I found once the weather is bad it is very difficult to work on the anchoring as the weather at that time is having it's way. Our boat was 33ft long and weighted 10 ton. There were lots of boats dragging but we never did, as we survived two Hurricane blows. I also installed two windlasses.

[savoir]

3/8" three strand rode will do and you don't need much, 15m would be plenty

[bletso]

Chain locker? heh heh

Seriously, if you can lead it below then use some PVC pipe to pass the chain thru passing through the cabin.

[boatman61]

Fit a hawse pipe as far forward (over the space forward of the bunk) and to one side of the bow roller as you can.. weld a decent sizes cleat slightly further aft and central for securing the chain while at anchor and to hold the anchor in place while sailing.. this positioning makes it easy to feed the chain down as you haul it in hand over hand.
When you choose the hawse pipe.. make sure its large enough to take the rope to chain splice/eye thimble comfortably when you need to feed it back down.
50 metres of chain and 10 metres of rope should be adequate for the EU and Caribbean...

[glenn.225]

I'm sure you are aware but if you do install some type of hawse pipe leading to bilge, make sure it can be sealed, a lot of water can come in through it.

A better option may be some sort of low profile box (wood, FG or metal) securely bolted to the foredeck. Chain could be stored below on long passages and stored there for daily use.