Beached Oday 23

[kdnichols]

OK...so my Oday 23 broke it's mooring and has been beached for 2 months in Columbia, SC. I've been waiting until the weather got warmer to work on it.

I bought a 250 lb. anchor, 40' of 1/2 chain, 15' of 3/8 chain and 3 shackles while I was on a business trip near Oriental, NC last week.

1.) The Oday 23's keel is stuck in the sand. Any suggestion on getting the boat out?

2.) Any suggestions on getting that 250 lb. anchor and mooring out about 60'-70'?

It's a medium sized lake and I have the only sailboat. Not a lot of boat traffic, etc.

The darn mooring tackle cost close to $1000! Didn't tell my wife!!!

Kevin

 

[Shoaldrafter]

OK...so my Oday 23 broke it's mooring and has been beached for 2 months in Columbia, SC. I've been waiting until the weather got warmer to work on it.

I bought a 250 lb. anchor, 40' of 1/2 chain, 15' of 3/8 chain and 3 shackles while I was on a business trip near Oriental, NC last week.

1.) The Oday 23's keel is stuck in the sand. Any suggestion on getting the boat out?

2.) Any suggestions on getting that 250 lb. anchor and mooring out about 60'-70'?

It's a medium sized lake and I have the only sailboat. Not a lot of boat traffic, etc.

The darn mooring tackle cost close to $1000! Didn't tell my wife!!!

Kevin

Kevin,

I am about an hour or so away from you. Unfortunately, except for Thursday, I have a full plate from Friday until Sunday a week. If you are still stuck after that maybe I can come down and help.

Ideas I have. We need to lift boat so it will float out. We need some wide nylon straps like those that hold loads on flatbed trucks or that are used at yards to lift boat by crane or lifting machines.

Need portable air compressor(s) and long air compressor hoses. Mabye a couple of dingys. Object to get flat nylon straps under front and back of boat equally on both sides.

Need several, like many big truck tire tubes. Need to tie nylon straps to tubes below water level and inflate tubes so that they lift boat a few inches to floating and float boat off shoal/mud.

Do not use mast to pull on! The last guy who had this problem used local boat tow guy who did that! $4,000 for new mast.

You do not need fast high speed air pump to inflate tubes. Small cheap DC pumps like from Harbor Freight would do. So what if it takes an hour to inflate. But I would get two pumps, so that you inflate equally from both sides.

Truck inner tubes are the most substantial thing that I know of for this project and can be had a truck tire places. Sometimes they even have used tubes. I would think four would be good number. Think something that will lift two tons.

Alternatively, two pontoon boats with manual winches (wench run) might supply enough lift to slide boat off shoal mud. As you lift, someone would have to operate motor on your boat in reverse. But pontoon boats have limits before they flip over...

Now you could always rent one of those lifting helicopters to just lift boat....

Anyway, this will be several man project.

Invite Keith, maybe he can get Obama's bureaucrats to wave their majic wand. Or bring a hundred bureacrats to simply carry boat off...
Ask Keith how his friends got their boat off... and that was done with some speed...

Ed K

 

[kdnichols]

The boat is in Lake Monticello...the nuclear power lake...the water level is constantly changing.

I was going go and dig out around the keel this weekend. It's actually soft sand....then try to push it from one side to the other.....then hopefully when the water level came up during the day I could float it out.

It's a long shot.

Mooring

Now for setting the mooring....I was thinking about ratchet strapping some large foam blocks together...about 12 of them and laying a 3/4" plywood sheet on top. Then laying the 250 lb anchor and all chain set up.

We could float it out to the mooring point...but somehow I've got to get that anchor and chain to drop w/o getting the chain tangled in the anchor and not getting my head cut off by a chain link.

We're going to try this "project" this weekend. I'll see how it goes.

K

 

[Shoaldrafter]

Keith, laying out?

The boat is in Lake Monticello...the nuclear power lake...the water level is constantly changing.

I was going go and dig out around the keel this weekend. It's actually soft sand....then try to push it from one side to the other.....then hopefully when the water level came up during the day I could float it out.

It's a long shot.

Mooring

Now for setting the mooring....I was thinking about ratchet strapping some large foam blocks together...about 12 of them and laying a 3/4" plywood sheet on top. Then laying the 250 lb anchor and all chain set up.

We could float it out to the mooring point...but somehow I've got to get that anchor and chain to drop w/o getting the chain tangled in the anchor and not getting my head cut off by a chain link.

We're going to try this "project" this weekend. I'll see how it goes.

K

---------------- // -------------------

The one time in several years where Keiths information about Rumkin would be helpful. Instead he is handing out leaflets.

Kevin said, "I was going go and dig out around the keel this weekend. It's actually soft sand....then try to push it from one side to the other.....then hopefully when the water level came up during the day I could float it out."

Consider using 2x4's to keep boat upright while digging and hoping. Still think of some inflatable floation under boat, especially mid sections and front.

Consider digging out under middle and front first then putting two large inner tubes under boat and inflating them. Whatever floats your boat.

Also, suction can be issue holding you in place.

Watch wind so that it does not blow you further on shoal.

Ed K

 

[emergpa1]

Hello guys,
Sorry to be absent. Between spring cleaning, home and boat upkeep and work I've not had any free time.
But today I'm down at Tyndall afb and we r about to go explore (by auto) the apalachicola area
Regarding rumkin, we just had the party barge from the club pull her off by the halyard. She was in sand and the water was pretty calm in that ot. By pulling from the ha,yard she tilted to the side and slid off. She wasn't grounded very hard.
Sorry, I called Obama but all the bureaucrats r busy this weekend. He said maybe next time. Change u thought u could believe in!

 

[Joe11688]

The boat is in Lake Monticello...the nuclear power lake...the water level is constantly changing.

I was going go and dig out around the keel this weekend. It's actually soft sand....then try to push it from one side to the other.....then hopefully when the water level came up during the day I could float it out.

It's a long shot.

Mooring

Now for setting the mooring....I was thinking about ratchet strapping some large foam blocks together...about 12 of them and laying a 3/4" plywood sheet on top. Then laying the 250 lb anchor and all chain set up.

We could float it out to the mooring point...but somehow I've got to get that anchor and chain to drop w/o getting the chain tangled in the anchor and not getting my head cut off by a chain link.

We're going to try this "project" this weekend. I'll see how it goes.

K

Kevin,
Do you know if the water level in that lake can be raised by someone who is in charge of the dams? Just a thought.
Maybe you could lay a kedge anchor way out and use a chain hoist or a set of blocks to put a strain on the stern of the boat while you dig a path for the keel.

 

[John Sluder]

Digging around the keels by hand will take forever, try some thing like this

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/to... Driven Pumps&cm_cat=Google&cm_ven=Aggregates

add a fire hose nozzle (http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200342356_200342356) on the pressure side and you can blast a channel to deeper water.

you can rent them from most industrial rental yards

not sure if you can rent these

http://www.turtlepac.com/products/underwater-lift-bags-a-yacht-floatation.html

 

[Joe11688]

Digging around the keels by hand will take forever, try some thing like this

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/to... Driven Pumps&cm_cat=Google&cm_ven=Aggregates

add a fire hose nozzle (http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200342356_200342356) on the pressure side and you can blast a channel to deeper water.

you can rent them from most industrial rental yards

not sure if you can rent these

http://www.turtlepac.com/products/underwater-lift-bags-a-yacht-floatation.html

That sounds like a good idea to me.

 

[Shoaldrafter]

John, you the man...

Digging around the keels by hand will take forever, try some thing like this

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/to... Driven Pumps&cm_cat=Google&cm_ven=Aggregates

add a fire hose nozzle (http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200342356_200342356) on the pressure side and you can blast a channel to deeper water.

you can rent them from most industrial rental yards

not sure if you can rent these

http://www.turtlepac.com/products/underwater-lift-bags-a-yacht-floatation.html

Kevin,

We are all waiting on progress report. John's suggestion of this web site was great:

http://www.turtlepac.com/products/underwater-lift-bags-a-yacht-floatation.html

Just two of these would probably work and if you bought two would give you a new side line job. Kevin who makes sailboats float...

John, thanks for the web page, much better than truck inner tubes, although I also suspect much more expensive...

Ed K

 

[kdnichols]

OK...so I tried it my way this weekend. I wanted to get the boat out before I set the new mooring.

We shoveled sand and red clay for a few hours Saturday. Then waited for the water to come back up. The boat keel was viewable and we made a lot of progress.

There's no rhyme or reason for the lake water level that is publicly dispersed by the nuclear power company who owns the lake. We can only hope the water goes up during the day I am there.

Well....it didn't budge all day Saturday. I ended up leaving the lake house today around lunch time and the boat is in the same place.

My next attempt will be Saturday, May 7th. I father in-law has a large tractor and he said he may be able to lift the boat and move it into the water's edge for me.

So...that's the next "solution." We have some large webbing and will be able to wrap the boat and attempt the lift!

As far as getting the mooring out...I'm going to ratchet strap 9 very large stryofoam squares together and place a 3/4" piece of plywood over them. Then place the 250 lb. anchor, 40' of 1/2" chain, and 20' of 3/8'...along with the mooring ball on top.

We're going to float it out and "tip" it enough to drop the mooring.

Fun stuff....considering I haven't sailed the boat since October 2010.

Kevin

 

[Joe11688]

Kevin,

Try to inquire about raising the lake level so you can float your boat out of there. There has to be someone who has the authority. It's only a matter of controlling the dams.

 

[kdnichols]

It's a nuclear power plant. The last time I drove down their entrance road, I was greeted by an armed guard with a M16A1. They tend to keep to themselves.

 

[John Sluder]

Try the pump, I have used the 3" honda pumps to blast and channel to empty a boat with water up to the cockpit. At 10K gals and hour you can blast a channel quickly in hard sand. I have recovered many sail boats in Florida after a heavy storm with that set up.

Another option is to drag her back out to deep water. The family member has a tractor. Take the big heavy anchor out it deep water and use a block and tackle from the tractor on land to the anchor then to the boat.

 

[kdnichols]

My beached boat has returned to a new mooring.

The final solutions:

1) Used a tractor, turnbuckle, and 1/2" chain to drag the boat out to deep water. I have to say, the front of the boat took a lot of strain from the pulling, but it came through.

I will say, we pulled a cleat out of the stern and I'll be learning some fiberglass touch up.

2.) Once the boat was in deep enough water, we set about making the mooring and getting it out about 150' from shore. I lashed 9 large styrofoam blocks together and placed a 1/2" plywood piece on top. We then were able to use the tractor to lower the 250 lb. mooring anchor, 40' 1/2" chain and 20' of 3/8" chain along with my mooring buoy.

We then tested the stability of the temporary structure...which was not super great. Moved some weight around and pulled the structure out to a predetermined mooring area we had marked.

From the sailboat we used a hook to tip the plywood, chain, and anchor into the water.

Fairly easy going...other than the fact the chain pulled the 4x6 plywood down...never to be seen again.

All is well...the boat is back at it's mooring and we were too tired to actually take it out!

Looking forward to next weekend.

Kevin

 

[Joe11688]

Beautiful! I'm happy that you finally got it out of there. Have a great sailing season, Kevin.

 

[Shoaldrafter]

Kevin said, " ....

Beautiful! I'm happy that you finally got it out of there. Have a great sailing season, Kevin.

------------------------- // ----------------------

Kevin said, " we pulled a cleat out of the stern and I'll be learning some fiberglass touch up."

Most O'days do not have backing behind the fiberglass on the cleats. I recommend getting a piece of 1/2 inch exterior plywood and cut pieces to fit behind all your cleats. Cut long enough to make sure you have added strength area to prevent this issue.

Once you have pieces sized, coat with penetrating epoxy to provide additional water protection and then epoxy from underneath gunnells and foredeck. After they have dried in place, drill holes to mount cleats again. You may need slightly longer bolts.

This will provide you additional strength for big blows and situations like what you had.

Ed K