Better Lifeline Gate Design?

[Foswick]

I'm sure I'm not the first person to want this.

Our gates have a pretty typical design - just a single strand of wire rope across the top, with a pelican clip.

This is fine except that it leaves a gap underneath that is fine for humans, but my dog can slip underneath. Not usually a problem but, being right by the part of the coaming he needs to step over to go to the foredeck, it makes him vulnerable to unexpected waves and such. He's had a couple of close calls where the toe rail saved him. In general, he is not allowed to go forward unless conditions are fairly benign, but things happen.

I have been trying to come up with a clever gate design that closes this gap, but without requiring a second clip or resulting in some tripping hazard when the gate is open.

My best solution is to run a line from the base of the foreward stanchion to the pelican clip. So, when the gate is closed, there will be an additional diagonal bit that cuts across the space, which should be just barely enough.

Surely someone else has solved this, already.

 

[fred1diver]

Install netting ?

 

[jssailem]

What about clipping a piece of netting?

String just between the stanchions with releases on one or both (if you wanted to remove the net) of the stanchions.

You could run a small rod on the net for the clip side of the gate. Attach the top to the pelican clip. On the bottom, the rod goes into a fixed clip base.

 

[Joe]

I'm not understanding why you don't simply install an identical gate for the lower wire. That's the way my boat and pretty much every other one I've seen are equipped. I'm guessing you want to avoid the extra effort to close two instead of one. Perhaps a swinging gate made with tubing that hinges to one of the stanchions.
However, if it were me... I'd just duplicate the top gate, the dog will think it's all the same wire.

 

[thinwater]

Two cables. Obviously. That's the way all four gates on my PDQ are set up.

 

[Foswick]

Attach the top to the pelican clip. On the bottom, the rod goes into a fixed clip base.

That's a clever approach. I had considered a rod to support a net, but everything I came up with required additional hardware to fuss with to open/close. Your suggestion just requires us to put the bottom end of the rod into the base, then close the gate normally. I can live with that. And, opening the gate is still a one-step operation, which is the more important consideration.

 

[Project_Mayhem]

I've always envisioned something like this so you only have to move one object instead of two lines. a partial (or full if you want to do netting down to the deck) piece of tubing/pipe gets hooked on one stanchion to close and the other when the gate is open

 

[jssailem]

Comes from being on the ranch with my dad. Quick easy gates to keep animals behind the fence yet get into the field to do ranch work.