How long should anchor chain last?

[Rich Stidger]

OK, I know that anchor chain does have a lifetime and it is less than the life of a boat.

In my case, I had brand new Acco 5/16" G4 chain in 5/98 and by 7/06 it was such a mess of rust that I replaced it with identical chain. I remember that in 7/06 thinking that I should have replaced it a good year previously. So for this first length of chain I got 8 years (seasons) but I should have gotten only 7 years.

Now it it 7/13 and this chain that I put in new in 7/06 - 7 years ago - has been flaking badly and is a rusty mess again. In fact it is now so bad that it jumps in the gypsy because the wear of the links now makes the links too long.

Another 7 year life for a second chain. Now I keep my sailboat on a mooring so there is no fresh water rinse except when filling my water tanks, and then it is quite brief. I anchor in salt water and the chain is immersed in water 40-60 nights per year - more or less.

So do you guys think that 7 years is a reasonable life for anchor chain? What life do you get from yours? AND, most importantly, what can I do to lengthen the life? - Short of taking a dock somewhere and rinsing the chain after every cruise.

 

[Buck420]

Hi Rich,
I, too, replaced my (5/16) chain after 7 years, mostly because the red and green fluorescent paint that I had used to mark the chain was causing those (painted) links to rust badly.
I've done several things with the new chain to try to reduce corrosion...
Use colored wire ties to mark the chain
Rinse it w/ fresh water after coming in from each cruise ( when I used the anchor), and leave the anchor locker door open when it rains to let rain water also rinse it.
Sprayed the entire chain ( especially the marked links) with spray grease (aerosol, Home Depot) every couple of years.

The ( now, almost 6 yr old) chain seems to be holding up much better than the first,
and I hope to get 10+ years from it.

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

Afraid That's Probably Your Best Bet ...................

AND, most importantly, what can I do to lengthen the life? - Short of taking a dock somewhere and rinsing the chain after every cruise.

............... for preserving your chain. Our current package of 50 ft. of 5/16 G4 chain and 250 ft. of 9/16 double braided was not too, too bad after 10 years of usage. The ground around here on the wet coast is often pretty nasty with lots of jagged rock to drag your chain over.

Last month I completed the installation of a windlass and had to change from the double braided to three strand. At that time I was half tempted to change to new G4 chain but figured I could get at least another 3-4 years out of the old one.

The one thing that's kept the galvanizing on the chain is most likely religiously hosing it down ASAP after each usage back at the dock.

Any chance of running a reeeeeeeeealy long hose out to your boat ?

 

[capta]

Great post and great timing, thanks.
The galvanizing has pretty much come off our chain in the middle where it has the most interaction with the bottom. I am not worried that the chain itself has weakened, only concerned about the mess it makes of the deck and chain locker. There is no scaling yet, but it does not run as smoothly as it used to into the bottom of the chain locker.
Were I in a major metropolitan area, I could easily find a company to re-galvanize the chain, but I doubt that this will be possible anywhere in the West Indies. Anybody know otherwise?
I just don't remember having the galvanizing come off the chain I purchased in the 70's, and we cruised the SoPac for over 5 years with it. This chain was purchased in August, 2009.
Since we anchor 11 months a year, I guess I'll have to replace it. Sad, expensive, day.

 

[Ross]

At the end of each season you can rinse the chain and dip it in linseed oil and hang it to dry and gain a year or two.

 

[Bob 04 H260]

I don't know if will help the rust issues, on our boat I put a few pieces of scrap Styrofoam in the bottom of the anchor locker. The locker has 2 drains, the bottom one sometimes is plugged so the chain could sit in salt water. This also allows the chain to get a bit more ventilation.

Bob

 

[zeehag]

i bought 194 ft ht chain before i left sd in 2011.... that chain isnt going to make 5 yrs in active full time cruising year round, as the bottoms i anchor in have many rocks. i will not use chain to rope rode as i watched way too many boats become lost to surfline issues when the rope chafes thru and no one is on board. this happens only when the owners have gone to reprovision. seems life i quirky that way.
this last season there were 4 boats lost to chafe of rode -- rope rode, about 5 ft proximal to boat from chain.
i am not looking forward to having to purchase more chain--but --is life and i value my boat, as it is my home, so i use all chain rode.
i do switch it end for end regularly---but anchorage such as the super rocky la cruz de huanacaxtle in banderas bay do not encourage longevity of rode, even all chain--mine lost galvo in la cruz, as there are very many rocks.

 

[Benny17441]

Real good info, but lets all remenber that a chain is only as strong as it weakest link so lets take some time to thoroughly inspect the whole length of chain for a rusted and flaky link or section of chain.