Hello all We have just taken delivery of a new 37ft Beneteau (our first boat). I replaced the standard anchor setup (chain & warp) with 50 metres of chain and a 35lb Manson anchor. I would ideally like to get rid of the original anchor setup because of the immense weight involved (whew!) Is it really important to have 2 anchor setups? How often are we likely to deploy 2 anchors together? I'd hate to get rid of it only to find I need it every second time I want to anchor. Any advice would be appreciated. Cheers Tony
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Giving anchor advice is risky
Telling someone what sort of anchor and line is a bit like telling someone who to marry. It might work and then again, it might not. And then again I don't know the type of holding ground you have. I have a Hunter 380 (37 feet) so I suspect we're fairly close in size and weight. I have a 33 lb Bruce with 120 feet of chain and 200 feet of line. This is primary anchoring system. In the stern I have a 14 lb fortress with 10 feet of chain and 150 ft of line as back up and for emergencies. I also have 200 ft of floating line to tie to the shore if needed. Most of our places in the Pacific Northwest are relatively deep--I generally anchor in 20 to 30 feet of water with a mud bottom. Hope this helps. Les
Telling someone what sort of anchor and line is a bit like telling someone who to marry. It might work and then again, it might not. And then again I don't know the type of holding ground you have. I have a Hunter 380 (37 feet) so I suspect we're fairly close in size and weight. I have a 33 lb Bruce with 120 feet of chain and 200 feet of line. This is primary anchoring system. In the stern I have a 14 lb fortress with 10 feet of chain and 150 ft of line as back up and for emergencies. I also have 200 ft of floating line to tie to the shore if needed. Most of our places in the Pacific Northwest are relatively deep--I generally anchor in 20 to 30 feet of water with a mud bottom. Hope this helps. Les
A couple of questions
What was the standard anchor setup? I'm curious as to what anchor/chain/warp combination would weigh more than 50 meters of chain and a Manson anchor. By the way, what's a Manson? There are several good reasons for having two anchors, but a lot depends on how and where you anchor. If you stay in one area where the conditons are pretty similar you may be OK with only one anchor. Here are a couple of reasons for two anchors: Your primary anchor may be stuck and the only way to get free is to drop the chain (don't forget to put a marker buoy on the end before you drop it overboard) and leave your ground tackle on the bottom. A second anchor will allow you to reanchor a short distance away so you can dive on your primary and retrieve it (and the chain!). If you can't go back, you will at least be able to anchor at your next stop. If you're anchoring in a narrow area with strong reversing tidal currents, a single anchor may pull out or you may drift into an obstruction when the current reverses. A second anchor will enable you to anchor in a Bahamian moor which is more secure and also reduces the swing of the boat considerably. Some anchors work better in certain bottom conditions than others and there is no single anchor that will work well everywhere. Two different types of anchor give you wider anchoring capability. If the weight of the second ground tackle in the bow is an issue, keep it somewhere below or even in the cockpit locker. Just make sure you can deploy it in a hurry when you need it. Happy sailing. Peter H23 "Raven"
What was the standard anchor setup? I'm curious as to what anchor/chain/warp combination would weigh more than 50 meters of chain and a Manson anchor. By the way, what's a Manson? There are several good reasons for having two anchors, but a lot depends on how and where you anchor. If you stay in one area where the conditons are pretty similar you may be OK with only one anchor. Here are a couple of reasons for two anchors: Your primary anchor may be stuck and the only way to get free is to drop the chain (don't forget to put a marker buoy on the end before you drop it overboard) and leave your ground tackle on the bottom. A second anchor will allow you to reanchor a short distance away so you can dive on your primary and retrieve it (and the chain!). If you can't go back, you will at least be able to anchor at your next stop. If you're anchoring in a narrow area with strong reversing tidal currents, a single anchor may pull out or you may drift into an obstruction when the current reverses. A second anchor will enable you to anchor in a Bahamian moor which is more secure and also reduces the swing of the boat considerably. Some anchors work better in certain bottom conditions than others and there is no single anchor that will work well everywhere. Two different types of anchor give you wider anchoring capability. If the weight of the second ground tackle in the bow is an issue, keep it somewhere below or even in the cockpit locker. Just make sure you can deploy it in a hurry when you need it. Happy sailing. Peter H23 "Raven"
Heavy!
It sounds like you have about three times the needed chain... at least. Like Les said, giving anchoring advise is really sticking your neck out. If you were in SoCal's sandy but deep bottoms, I'd say a Fortress aluminum anchor and 12 meters of chain for most conditions. Rick D>
It sounds like you have about three times the needed chain... at least. Like Les said, giving anchoring advise is really sticking your neck out. If you were in SoCal's sandy but deep bottoms, I'd say a Fortress aluminum anchor and 12 meters of chain for most conditions. Rick D>
I see what you mean
I see what you mean by 'anchor advice' being risky. The dealer I bought the boat from suggested the change and the extra chain instead of line. He suggested a second anchor is 'very rarely' needed. I just wanted to get rid of some weight from the stern starboard side of the boat. It lists slightly in that direction because of the extra weight from batteries etc we've added. The deep locker is on that side and everything heavy and large tends to finish up there. Most of our anchoring will be in 10-25 ft water with muddy bottom. The Manson is a faily common anchor here in Oz, it apparently came from NZ. Thanks again Tony
I see what you mean by 'anchor advice' being risky. The dealer I bought the boat from suggested the change and the extra chain instead of line. He suggested a second anchor is 'very rarely' needed. I just wanted to get rid of some weight from the stern starboard side of the boat. It lists slightly in that direction because of the extra weight from batteries etc we've added. The deep locker is on that side and everything heavy and large tends to finish up there. Most of our anchoring will be in 10-25 ft water with muddy bottom. The Manson is a faily common anchor here in Oz, it apparently came from NZ. Thanks again Tony
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