Anchor, Chain Locker, and Anchor Roller, Part 13, Chain Locker Panel, Part II

The chain locker panel, ready for installation

Having installed the anchor and the anchor rode, I could now install the chain locker panel. This installation involved more than just screwing the panel into place. The steps I took in the installation of this panel on Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25, are the subject of this posting.

I began by removing the chain and the nylon rode from the chain locker. While I was at it, I rechecked the bowline to make sure all was well.

I had spent a lot of time making sure the V-berth was nice and comfy. This would be the Admiral's bed chamber, and as everyone knows, if the Admiral's not happy, no one is. The chain locker, with its odor of wet rope and pluff mud, could not impose on her queenly comfort. Therefore, the panel needed to seal off this space as thoroughly as possible.

As I said in my earlier posting on the chain locker panel, I had purchased two different deck plates for the holes in this panel.

I applied butyl tape around the flanges of these deck plates.

This would eliminate the flow of air in both directions. I didn't want any air flowing into the V-berth from the chain locker. Likewise, I didn't want any air flowing out. You might recall from an earlier posting that I had constructed an air conditioner box for the companionway of this boat. I wanted to keep as much cool air in the boat as possible.

One of the benefits of having deck plates in the chain locker panel instead of just screens (which the panel originally had) is that it allows you to have ventilation - if you want it, when, for example, the weather is cool and mild and air conditioning is unnecessary.

I used stainless steel machine screws and self-locking nuts for this installation.

Now that this was out of the way, I could focus on the sealing of the panel itself.

Around its perimeter, I installed closed-cell weatherstripping foam.

I did the same thing to the cut-out in the fiberglass bulkhead.

These pieces of weatherstripping foam would provide two separate barriers against the ingress and egress of air.

I then installed the panel with oval-head wood screws on finish washers. These oval-head screws and finish washers matched those that Ericson had originally used throughout the boat.

The panel was nice and snug in its new home, or I should say its old home. It was well-epoxied, well-varnished, well-sealed, and it now provided both visible and physical access to the chain locker simply by my unscrewing of the deck plates. All of these things told me that this was time well spent.

This ends this posting on my installation of the chain locker panel on Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25.

Anchor, Chain Locker, and Anchor Roller, Part 12, Anchor and Rode, Installation

The installation of the nylon and chain rode

Having completed my installation of the chain locker platform I could now focus on the installation of the nylon and chain rode. This was the simplest and most pleasing part of this entire project. The steps I took to accomplish this on Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25, are the subject of this posting.

I had earlier purchased a 33 pound Lewmar claw anchor. I explained my rationale in an earlier posting for my purchase of this anchor designed for boats in the 36-40 foot range: http://www.ericson25.com/2016/03/anchor-chain-locker-and-anchor-roller_11.html
I also had earlier purchased 30 feet of chain for the rode.

This was Acco brand 5/16 inch, G4, High Test chain. I had purchased it from Defender, the well-known chandlery in Connecticut. According to my research, the suggested minimum by ABYC (American Boat and Yacht Council) for a 25 foot sailboat with a 9 foot beam in 30 knots of wind was as follows: 1/4 inch chain with 150 feet of 3/8 inch nylon rode. The ABYC suggested-minimum for a 30 foot sailboat with a 10 foot beam was 5/16 inch chain with 200 feet of 7/16 inch nylon rode. Just as I had done with the anchor, I up-sized for the sake of safety. In other words, I followed the ABYC suggestions for a 30 foot boat with a 10 foot beam, even though I had a 25 foot boat with an 8 foot beam.

This Acco brand 5/16 inch, G4 High Test chain that I purchased was made in the U.S.A., and it had a working load of 3900 pounds. I opted for 30 feet of this chain on the recommendation of Don Casey and Lew Hackler, Sensible Cruising: The Thoreau Approach, a Philosophic and Practical Approach to Cruising (1986). These gentlemen confirmed what my research had revealed - that no one would want less than 5/16 inch chain, even on a small pocket cruiser such as the Ericson 25. It's all about the catenary effect. These gentleman also recommended a minimum chain rode of 3 fathoms (18 feet), but urged their readers to consider 30 feet instead. Again, it's all about the catenary effect. The heavier the chain and the longer the chain the more likely the pull on the anchor is horizontal (which keeps it set in the seafloor) rather than vertical (which frees it).

The G4 chain had arrived at my house in a plastic bucket. Yes, that's how Defender ships chain by UPS, in case you're wondering. Surprisingly, the shipping was not that much more than it usually is from Defender. I guess that if it weren't, then no one would ever buy it online from Defender. I should mention that I bought this chain from Defender rather than from a local West Marine because Defender sold Acco brand G4 High Test. The highest grade that West Marine sold was Acco brand G3 Proof Coil. The G4, as I said, is rated to 3900 pounds. The G3, on the other hand, is 1900 pounds. There is not that big a difference in price between the two, and it actually cost me less to buy the G4 and have it shipped to me in South Carolina than it would have cost me to buy the G3 locally from West Marine.

In terms of the shackles, I again did my homework. According to my research on various online sailing forums, Crosby brand shackles were preferable to all others. Hamilton Marine in Maine was the only chandlery I could find that sold the High Test versions - recognizable by their galvanized pins. The lower test versions, I should note, have red pins. I purchased two, 3/8 inch, High Test shackles. Each shackle was rated at 2 tons, in other words, 4,000 pounds. This meant that the shackle closely corresponded to the 3,900 pound rating of the 5/16 inch G4, High Test chain. If I had not purchased this 3/8 inch High Test shackle, then the shackle would have been the weakest link in my entire anchoring system.

One of these shackles was for the joining of the chain to the anchor. The other was for the joining of the chain to the eye splice in the nylon rode. In terms of the chain itself, it's worth pointing out that if you click on the picture below, you can see that Acco has stamped "G4" into the side of each link.

As far as the nylon rode was concerned, I had earlier purchased a box full of it from West Marine during one of their one-day sales. That saved me about thirty dollars.

This wasn't the bottom of the barrel stuff. It was manufactured for West Marine by New England Ropes. It included a pre-spliced eye.

I opted for 1/2 inch x 200 feet of nylon rode for several reasons. First, it exceeded ABYC standards for 30 foot boats in 30 knot winds. I had a 25 foot boat. Secondly, it had a tensile strength, i.e., a breaking strength, of 7,500 pounds and a working strength of 2,800 pounds. Finally, I knew an Ericson 25 owner in Alaska who used 1/2 inch x 200 feet of nylon rode. He said that he preferred the 1/2 inch size rode because it was easier for him to handle when the time came for him to weigh anchor. I should note that this is the same E25 owner from Alaska whose anchor roller set-up I used as a model of sorts for my own: http://www.ericson25.com/2016/03/anchor-chain-locker-and-anchor-roller_8.html

I began my installation of these components by mounting the anchor on the anchor roller.

Then I applied marine grease to the pin of the shackle. This would help me in my installation of the pin, and it would help me down the road whenever I needed to remove it.

After I had installed the pin in the shackle, I secured the pin in place by installing a plastic wire tie. This would prevent the pin from gradually working itself free. I also locked the chain in place by means of the chain stop. This would prevent the anchor from slipping off the roller.

Back in the cockpit I removed the nylon rode from the box and carefully uncoiled it.

With the bitter end in hand, I walked forward to the anchor roller. It was early April in the Carolina Lowcountry, and for several weeks pollen had been blowing around all over the place. The deck and the companionway hatch were covered with it, despite the fact that the boat was well tented.

Down inside the chain locker, I tied off the bitter end to the stainless steel eye with a bowline. This end of the rode would not bear a load. The knot was simply a way of ensuring that I did not loose the rode whenever I was paying it out by hand.

Here's how it looked from the V-berth. All 200 feet of the nylon rode had to fit in the locker with enough room left over for the 30 feet of chain. I was confident that the nylon rode would fit, because the Ericson 25 owner in Alaska had told me that he could fit this same amount in his own chain locker.

After I had fed almost all of the 200 feet of nylon rode into the chain locker, I joined the eye splice to the chain with the second Crosby brand High Test shackle. Just as I had done with the other shackle, I greased the pin, and I secured it in place with a plastic wire tie.

After I had completed these tasks, I fed most of the 30 feet of chain into the locker.

Inside the boat, I had temporarily installed the chain locker panel to ensure that the nylon rode and the chain would not spill out of the locker into the V-berth. Fortunately, everything fit together well. Now I needed to install this panel permanently. That is the subject of my next posting.

This ends this posting on how I installed the anchor and the rode on Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25.

Anchor, Chain Locker, and Anchor Roller, Part 11, Chain Locker, Drain, Installation of Hose

The chain locker drain platform and the hose, ready for installation

Having constructed the drain platform for the chain locker and having installed the cleats that would support it, I now needed to install the platform itself. This task would involve the routing of a drain hose through several bulkheads so that any water from the chain locker would ultimately make its way to the main bilge in the galley area of the boat. The steps I took to complete this task on Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25, are the subject of this posting.

As I said in my previous posting, the red line in the diagram below represents the route that the water would need to follow as it made its way from the chain locker to the forward bilge through the bulkheads separating the three lockers underneath the V-berth. Recall that 2500 pounds of lead separated the forward bilge from the main bilge in the galley, and that there was a gap of one or two inches between the lead and the sole of the main salon.

The orange line in the next diagram represents the main bilge and the pumps and hoses that would remove the water from the boat. I would route the clear threaded hose from the chain locker to the forward bilge, over the 2500 pounds of lead to the main bilge and thus the bilge pumps. This is how I would pump any chain locker water out of the boat.

I had earlier completed a lot of work in the V-berth lockers, a considerable portion of which I have documented on this blog. I had installed cleats of Douglas fir for shelves. These shelves would allow me a flat surface on which to stow various items in this space without worrying about these items sitting in water. I had also painted these lockers with Pitthane, a two-part polyurethane paint. Additionally, I had installed a through-hull transducer for the GPS, and I had installed a grounding cable for the forward chainplate.

The bulkheads for these lockers had limber holes that enabled water to drain downward to the forward bilge. They also had holes that I had drilled for the routing of the grounding cable. Now I needed to go back and add some holes for the hose. I used a hole saw for this task. Below we see the bulkhead separating the forward locker from the mid-locker.

Afterward, I turned the drill around and cut a hole through the bulkhead separating the mid-locker from the aft-locker.

Here's a better view, looking aft.

Here's what it looked like in the aft-locker itself.

While I was at it, I decided to add an additional limber hole to this bulkhead between the mid-locker and the aft-locker. My thinking was that in the event that the boat was holed, the water that entered this compartment could make its way more easily to the bilge.

I also went back and added an additional limber hole to the bulkhead between the forward locker and the mid-locker.

Having completed the holes, it was now time for me to route the hose from the main bilge all the way up to the chain locker. To route the hose from the main bilge over the 2500 pounds of lead to the forward bilge I used a stick, to which I had taped the hose. This was a scrap piece of wood that I had ripped off of a board at some point in the past.

I had earlier used this technique in the routing of the grounding cables from the aft chainplates to the grounding bolt in the forward bilge. As I have said before, there was a one or two inch gap between the 2500 pounds of lead and the sole of the main salon.

Below we have a good view of the main bilge and the forward bilge (port side). In the area beneath the sand colored carpet is the 2500 pounds of lead. The centerboard trunk (underneath the mast compression post) separates this port side forward bilge from the starboard side forward bilge, which is inside the head (not pictured). Before I installed this hose, any water that drained downward from the chain locker through the bukheads underneath the V-berth went either into the port or the starboard side forward bilge. The forward end of the centerboard trunk created a fork in the road, so to speak.

I had to remove all of the grounding cables from the grounding bolt in order to route the hose through the port side forward bilge.

I routed the hose beside the black PVC conduit that contained the cable for the transducer.

In the aft-locker underneath the V-berth I routed the hose to the port side of the bronze transducer.

Then I routed the hose through the bulkhead that separated the forward locker from the mid-locker.

From the forward locker I routed the hose up into the chain locker. Fortunately, I had measured this run accurately. I had about six inches of hose to spare.

Now it was time for me to prepare the drain platform for installation. I began by drilling pilot holes through the platform into the mahogany cleats. I would not have been able to accomplish this task without my Milwaukee Tools right angle drill attachment. This tool was indispensable in the refitting of this boat. To see it elsewhere in action, click on Milwaukee Tools in the Labels sidebar,.

After I had drilled the holes, I temporarily installed the screws.

Then I broke out the butyl tape. This was the good stuff that Maine Sail sells on his Compass Marine website. By this point in the refitting of Oystercatcher I had used four rolls of this tape. Recently, I had ordered two more rolls. These new ones were now packed in boxes with his U Bed It logo for this tape. By the time all was said and done, I would use all of these two rolls. Thus, I used six total rolls in the refitting of this boat. When I started, I had estimated two or three rolls and had ordered four, just so I would have at least one extra for unexpected repairs. I should have known better. It always takes more time and more materials than you expect.

Before I installed the drain platform, I first needed to install the hardware. I began by chamfering each of the holes that I had drilled. This would allow the butyl tape to form a gasket of sorts underneath the hardware. I had learned this technique from Maine Sail's tutorial on deck hardware installation on his Compass Marine website.

Acetone got rid of sawdust and any other impurities that might have been on the surface of the wood.

I applied butyl tape to the underside of the screen and the underside of the flange of the plastic through-hull.

Then I installed the through-hull

On top of this I installed the screen. The butyl tape on the screen was there to protect the wood from water creeping into the screw holes and thus causing rot.

Now I needed to join the hose to the through-hull. This task was a necessary prelude to the installation of the drain platform. Otherwise, it would have been next to impossible for me to do this after the fact.

Before I installed the platform, I applied butyl tape around much of the perimeter.

I also applied butyl tape to the screws. This would keep water out of the wood.

Then, I at last screwed the drain platform into place.

I packed additional butyl tape into any crack that needed it. If I allowed water to seep through the cracks, then all this work on the drain platform would be a complete waste of time.

I also packed butyl tape along the forward edge of the platform, making sure that the hole through which the green grounding cable ran was sealed off.

The only thing left to do now was to cut off the excess hose and secure it in the main bilge. By the time I had taken all the slack out of the hose, I had about two feet to spare.

I used cable ties to secure the hose to one of the bilge hoses, making sure that the end of the hose was as low as possible. This brought this part of the project to completion. Now I could install the anchor and the anchor rode. That is the subject of my next posting.

This ends this posting on how I installed the drain platform and hose in the chain locker of Oystercatcher, my Ericson 25.