Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

Regarding boats that are kept in the water year around or are too large to
easily transport, what do the boat owners do when a hurricane is forecast to
hit the area? What if they do not live near the boat, i.e., out of state?

Just curious.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

what do the boat owners do when a hurricane is forecast

Either tie the boat up very well in a protected spot or run. You only hope the
forcast is correct and you run the right way.

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

Whenthe tailend of hurricanes make it up here, we double-up the lines.
that is...two bow lines, two stern , two forward and two aft spring lines.

stealth wrote in message
...
Regarding boats that are kept in the water year around or are too large to
easily transport, what do the boat owners do when a hurricane is forecast
to
hit the area? What if they do not live near the boat, i.e., out of state?

Just curious.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"stealth" wrote in message
...
Regarding boats that are kept in the water year around or are too large to
easily transport, what do the boat owners do when a hurricane is forecast
to
hit the area? What if they do not live near the boat, i.e., out of state?

Just curious.

s



Tie it down to the lift really well, get the lift as high as I can and worry
a lot.

Even if you have a trailer towing a boat in hurricane evacuation traffic
would be trying, to say the least.

Written 1/2 mile in from the Atlantic in Central Florida. Also lived in
Broward County in South Florida during Andrew in 1992. Tied up the boat
good, put out anchors in the channel, taped all the hatches & vents and
wished it well. It was ok when we came home but the tide had been about 4
feet higher than a normal high tide. We were lucky to be about 60 miles
north of the eye.

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"stealth" wrote in message ...
Regarding boats that are kept in the water year around or are too large to
easily transport, what do the boat owners do when a hurricane is forecast to
hit the area? What if they do not live near the boat, i.e., out of state?

Just curious.

s

If you can get to the boat, take it out far enough off shore to not
get blown in, trail a couple of warps, and ride it out. The navy did
a bunch of research on drogues to prevent pitchpoling. The one the
discovered was best had a lead weight on the end (about 50 lbs for mid
30's footer) with a whole bunch of nylon ripstop funnels sewed on
nylon line. The *worst* place for a boat is in the harbor during a
hurricane.

Probably be a good idea to fit plywood shutters on your portlights if
they are the the larger variety.

Batten down the hatches and don't forget your dramamine!

-Kevin

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"stealth" wrote in message ...
Regarding boats that are kept in the water year around or are too large to
easily transport, what do the boat owners do when a hurricane is forecast to
hit the area? What if they do not live near the boat, i.e., out of state?

Just curious.

s


Oh, one more thing. Make *sure* everything is tied down real well. I
heard of one fellow who got out in some rough weather and he forgot
that he stowed the spare anchor below the sole. When the boat turned
turtle the anchor decided to come out and chase him around the cabin a
bit.

-K

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

Here in Conn. they take the boat upriver to a protected marina
or haul it out for the duration.

Those who would tather have the insurance money do nothing.

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

Find your insurance agent's home address and send him flowers. When he calls
to thank you, remind him that you know where he lives.

"stealth" wrote in message
...
Regarding boats that are kept in the water year around or are too large to
easily transport, what do the boat owners do when a hurricane is forecast
to
hit the area? What if they do not live near the boat, i.e., out of state?

Just curious.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
Find your insurance agent's home address and send him flowers. When he
calls
to thank you, remind him that you know where he lives.




So the concensus is that you tie the boat up and hope for the best. I would
have thought that a boat would take a severe thrashing beating up against
the dock once the water churned up due to the storm. Thanks for the
feedback.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"stealth" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
Find your insurance agent's home address and send him flowers. When he
calls
to thank you, remind him that you know where he lives.




So the concensus is that you tie the boat up and hope for the best. I
would
have thought that a boat would take a severe thrashing beating up against
the dock once the water churned up due to the storm. Thanks for the
feedback.


I don't know if it's a consensus, really. What if the boat's too big to
transport, but too small to take out to sea? Or, what if your level of skill
for the "out to sea" idea is just not up to par?

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

If it is possible you want to move your boat off the water and move it
inland. If it is not possible you want to tie it up, with extra lines and
spring lines, and keep it off of the dock. Even if it is covered by
insurance, you will have to pay for the deductible, put up the headache of
having it repaired, and anything you can do to minimize a claim is to your
benefit.

My insurance gives me an extra 10% off any year I do not file a claim, but
most importantly, it is the right thing to do to minimize the probability
you will have to file a claim.


"stealth" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
Find your insurance agent's home address and send him flowers. When he
calls
to thank you, remind him that you know where he lives.




So the concensus is that you tie the boat up and hope for the best. I
would
have thought that a boat would take a severe thrashing beating up against
the dock once the water churned up due to the storm. Thanks for the
feedback.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

If it is not possible you want to tie it up, with extra lines and
spring lines, and keep it off of the dock.

The "keep it off the dock" is a real important consideration. Even in a fairly
minor "near miss" you can end up with an extra 6 foot of tide. I usually pull
my boat out of the dock and tie it off the end of the dock, well clear. There
are some outlying piles and a tree that I use for this. This way I don't have
to worry about the boat coming out the roof of my lift and/or finding it
sitting on the pier.

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"Gfretwell" wrote in message
...
If it is not possible you want to tie it up, with extra lines and
spring lines, and keep it off of the dock.

The "keep it off the dock" is a real important consideration. Even in a
fairly
minor "near miss" you can end up with an extra 6 foot of tide. I usually
pull
my boat out of the dock and tie it off the end of the dock, well clear.
There
are some outlying piles and a tree that I use for this. This way I don't
have
to worry about the boat coming out the roof of my lift and/or finding it
sitting on the pier.


But how would one do this with a 40'-50' boat kept in a year around slip at
a marina? This was the general inquisition of my original post.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"stealth" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
Find your insurance agent's home address and send him flowers. When he
calls
to thank you, remind him that you know where he lives.




So the concensus is that you tie the boat up and hope for the best. I
would
have thought that a boat would take a severe thrashing beating up
against
the dock once the water churned up due to the storm. Thanks for the
feedback.





I don't know if it's a consensus, really. What if the boat's too big to
transport, but too small to take out to sea? Or, what if your level of
skill
for the "out to sea" idea is just not up to par?




Precisely my question; what does one do under these circumstances? For
instance, Florida marinas are chock full of high dollar large boats with
inexperienced out of state owners, yet hurricanes in that area are not
uncommon. Do these boat owners just "chance" that their boat will be
alright?

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"Bill Cole" wrote in message
news:efm7b.401722$YN5.264638@sccrnsc01...
If it is possible you want to move your boat off the water and move it
inland. If it is not possible you want to tie it up, with extra lines and
spring lines, and keep it off of the dock. Even if it is covered by
insurance, you will have to pay for the deductible, put up the headache of
having it repaired, and anything you can do to minimize a claim is to your
benefit.

My insurance gives me an extra 10% off any year I do not file a claim, but
most importantly, it is the right thing to do to minimize the probability
you will have to file a claim.


I agree. But the question remains as what does one do with their boat when a
hurricane is forcast for the area adn the boat is kept in a slip at a marina
and too large to trailer inland? Obviously, this should be of great concern
for those who own expensive boats in hurricane country.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"stealth" wrote in message
...

"Bill Cole" wrote in message
news:efm7b.401722$YN5.264638@sccrnsc01...
If it is possible you want to move your boat off the water and move it
inland. If it is not possible you want to tie it up, with extra lines
and
spring lines, and keep it off of the dock. Even if it is covered by
insurance, you will have to pay for the deductible, put up the headache
of
having it repaired, and anything you can do to minimize a claim is to
your
benefit.

My insurance gives me an extra 10% off any year I do not file a claim,
but
most importantly, it is the right thing to do to minimize the
probability
you will have to file a claim.


I agree. But the question remains as what does one do with their boat when
a
hurricane is forcast for the area adn the boat is kept in a slip at a
marina
and too large to trailer inland? Obviously, this should be of great
concern
for those who own expensive boats in hurricane country.

It sounds to me like there are only two alternatives left:

1) Hit the books (and newsgroups) before a hurricane, to be sure you know of
creative ways of tying the boat up in storms. And, make sure you have the
necessary ropes to do the job. Consult with more experienced people IN
PERSON, standing next to your boat.

2) Have it hauled out of the water. But....we've all seen news photos of
boats blown off their stands by storms....

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

This way I don't
have
to worry about the boat coming out the roof of my lift and/or finding it
sitting on the pier.


But how would one do this with a 40'-50' boat kept in a year around slip at
a marina? This was the general inquisition of my original post.


If you think about it you will remember seeing pictures of big boats sitting up
on the road after any big storm. At a certain point you are simply left with
the option of trying to run from the storm or just tying up well and crossing
your fingers.
In a big boat (40' of more) running may be the best option but you need to act
early and guess right on the direction you run.
If I really expect the worst I will put my boat up on a trailer. Park it cross
ways in front of the garage door, park my truck in front of that and a car in
front of that.
My thinking is all of that metal will protect the boat and the garage door.
If not I imagine everything I own was a goner anyway.

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"Keith" wrote in message
...
See: http://www.boatus.com/hurricanes/brochure.asp

Probably one of the best sites on how to weather a hurricane. Florida made
a
law making it illegal for marina owners to require you to leave in case of
a
hurricane, but I don't think there is a Federal one. They'd have to tow my
boat out if they wanted it out... and then be responsible for it.

--


Good info. Thanks.

s

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

"stealth" wrote in message ...
"Keith" wrote in message
snip

Good info. Thanks.

s

I would think, unless you have a real sheltered area, it would be
better to put the boat out to anchor (with one or two good ground
holders), and lots of nylon rode. A large bag of vegatable oil with a
hole poked in it, floating above the anchor should create a slick that
will prevent waves breaking on the boat. The same could be done with
the drogue if one decides to go offshore and ride it out. I've heard
the same thing can be accomplished with air bubbles too (which also
significantly cut down on the wave action).

With something like a powerboat, though, the question arises: Do you
want to tie the drogue off the bow or the stern. If you tie off the
bow, the wave action is somewhat mitigated (as it is usually stronger)
however the boat will be going backwards at quite a clip, which could
cause it to swamp, rudder damage, etc... If you tie the drogue off
the stern, then you stand the chance of getting pooped by a big wave.
Conventional wisdom, at least with sailboats, is to tie off the stern
though, to prevent rudder damage, although granted, usually sailboats
have a lot bigger rudders than power boats do.

I guess probably the best scenario would be for a power boater to go
below and turn your rudders around backwards if possible (i.e.
disconnect the linkage) plus stow all the gear you can as far forward
as you can (to stop the stern from digging in) and tie the drogue off
the bow.

-Kevin

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

Kevin,

I would imagine that you wouldn't want to drogue your boat unless you
had a lot of water at your stern to ride it out. Probably something you
wouldn't want to do unless you were miles out to sea. It was my impression
that you would only put the drogue from the bow to keep the bow into the
waves.

Paul

"Kevin Rudisill" wrote in message
m...
"stealth" wrote in message
...
"Keith" wrote in message
snip

Good info. Thanks.

s

I would think, unless you have a real sheltered area, it would be
better to put the boat out to anchor (with one or two good ground
holders), and lots of nylon rode. A large bag of vegatable oil with a
hole poked in it, floating above the anchor should create a slick that
will prevent waves breaking on the boat. The same could be done with
the drogue if one decides to go offshore and ride it out. I've heard
the same thing can be accomplished with air bubbles too (which also
significantly cut down on the wave action).

With something like a powerboat, though, the question arises: Do you
want to tie the drogue off the bow or the stern. If you tie off the
bow, the wave action is somewhat mitigated (as it is usually stronger)
however the boat will be going backwards at quite a clip, which could
cause it to swamp, rudder damage, etc... If you tie the drogue off
the stern, then you stand the chance of getting pooped by a big wave.
Conventional wisdom, at least with sailboats, is to tie off the stern
though, to prevent rudder damage, although granted, usually sailboats
have a lot bigger rudders than power boats do.

I guess probably the best scenario would be for a power boater to go
below and turn your rudders around backwards if possible (i.e.
disconnect the linkage) plus stow all the gear you can as far forward
as you can (to stop the stern from digging in) and tie the drogue off
the bow.

-Kevin

Boats docked on coastal waters question....
 

Drogues are just for sailboats. Powerboats need a sea anchor deployed
from the bow that will reduse speed to a bare minimum. See seaanchor.com
and dddb.com for some good info on the topic.