Anchor Rode Options

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John&Ria
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by John&Ria »

Mac,

I'm definitely no expert, however research and reading I've done over the years suggests that catamarans are designed for lighter weight and perform better when not loaded down with too much stuff (my experience has also been different than yours - I find that His Idea rides and performs better when I favour weight distribution towards the rear, e.g. I usually transfer fuel from the forward tank when the aft tank becomes partially empty). Additional chain certainly works against keeping things light.

How much chain does one need? It depends. In the shallower waters (with soft bottoms) we experienced while cruising the Loop and the Bahamas, we found that 50' of chain and 125' of rode was sufficient. That said, I completely agree that more chain makes sense in the the deeper, rockier anchorages and large tides of the Pacific Northwest. Up here, assuming one has a decent anchor and provides some flex via rode or a bridle, a maximum chain length of 200' seems like a reasonable balance between protection and weight.

Where you cruise and choose to drop the hook is also a factor. In most cases we anchor in well protected anchorages with depths of less than 50'. On our trip to Alaska the maximum depth we saw at high tide was about 75'. With a typical scope of 4/1 to 5/1 - often the most we can manage in tight spaces - 150' of chain is usually enough to keep the rode off the bottom. We also have a good anchor (a 35lb CQR) and use a bridle, which provides the flex when we only need to use the chain.

All together, this set-up has not failed us yet. That said, if the additional security of more chain is more important to you, I say go for it.

Yes, it would be good to get together. We keep the boat at Point Roberts, so we're not far from you. We plan to cruise down and stay at Fairhaven soon, hopefully sometime next year. Perhaps that would be a good opportunity.

Cheers,

John
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by AMCarter3 »

Thanks, John. I appreciate hearing s bit more about how you have your anchor rode set up. Please do let us know when you are coming down this way. We’d really enjoy connecting. I suggest you send me a private email thru this forum.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by AMCarter3 »

Two more general questions about anchors and rode... (I've heard from John on this and would appreciate hearing from others)...

1. What type of anchor do PDQ boat owners generally prefer? Are there any rules of thumb that apply specifically to a catamaran? (Particularly in the Pactific Northwest with its mix of rocky, hard mud bottoms. We've got what I assume is the original 35 lb. CQR type anchor. However, this style is not as common in our area for sail and power boats as Delta, Rocka and Bruce style anchors.

2. How much chain vs. line do you have in your anchor rode? We currently have 300' total -- 150' of 5/16" HT chain plus 150' of 3-strand 5/8" nylon line. However, most of the boats in my area tend to have 300-400' of ALL CHAIN.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by duetto »

hi mac,

first a comment on your rope. every so often we reverse the line so that the worn part ends up in the locker. we also trim the old splice and link as thinwater suggests. we switched the windlass a few years ago and DOWNSIZED the rope from 5/8 to 9/16". reco came from lewmar. their point was that the 9/16 would get deeper into jaws for a better grip. based on experience they are right.

as to anchors. we've used both spade and rocna. we cruise east coast, fl, and bahamas. both have worked well but i prefer rocna. it has a "thinner" profile which lets it work in a thin layer of sand/mud over rock.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by AMCarter3 »

Thanks, Duetto. Interesting to hear that Lewmar recommended 9/16 rope. How much rope vs chain do you have on your boat?

We are leaning toward replacing our CQR with a Rocna anchor. What size do you have? 33 lb or 44lb? The Rocna site recommends "one size larger" for multi-hull boats... "Our chart is intended for monohulls. In general, an anchor for a multihull should be up to 50% larger than that for a monohull of the same LOA. Commonly this means going to the next higher recommendation (one size up), depending on how close the vessel is to the upper limit of a particular size range."

And, how do you secure the Rocna in the anchor roller track? Did you have to modify it?
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by duetto »

we have 60' chain. rocna is 45 lb. we didn't make any changes to roller, but we did replace the roller because of wear.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by AMCarter3 »

John (Duetto),

Did you choose the 44 lb (20kg) Rocna based on Rocna's sizing guide recommendation to put the "next heavier" model on multi-hull boats? Or for some other reason?

I've bought the 33 lb Rocna yesterday at West Marine. It's the recommended size for 26-46' mono-hull boats. I got it just to see it and test in on our bow roller. The 44 lb model seemed HUGE for a PDQ 34. Based on your experience with it, do you feel the 44 lb model is appropriate for a PDQ 34'? Or would the 33 lb model be just fine (in your opinion). The 33 lb model certainly has more blade face area compared to the 35 lb CQR anchor we have now. And, I would expect that it would be more likely to set quickly and deeply based on all the reviews and videos on Rocna anchors that I've seen.

Also, did you add any kind of hardware to your bow roller for your Rocna... like some kind of constraint rod at the front above the roller? And, how do you secure the Rocna to your deck when underway? Could you send a picture of it sitting in your bow roller please? I wasn't sure if it would be stable given the bend in the shank arm.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by duetto »

so here's the story. our last boat was a gemini 105 (sail cat). we used an aluminium spade #10 or 20. when we bought our pdq i called spade and asked if they thought the aluminium spade would be ok. they said the size would be fine but they've had the shanks bend when used on cats so they said get the same # (i.e. shape size) but in iron, which was 40-ish. when we converted to the rocna i just picked the equivalent size which was 45 lb.

unfortunately we're 1500 miles from the boat for another couple of weeks. we didn't change anything on the roller or its bracket. anchor just sits there perfectly balanced. we have a line with clip which we attach to center cleat and then the other end to the anchor. one caveat, we have a 2003. i don't know if pdq changed the deck hardware on later models.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by AMCarter3 »

Got it. Our center cleat is right next to the windlass... my hesitation about using it for securing the anchor is that the line to cleat would become a "trip" factor since the cleat is about 5' from the end of the anchor. I also have to bear in mind that our boat is in a charter business... so, I always have consider whether modifications will work with charter guests. I'll figure out some way to secure it closer to the bow roller.

Also, I called Rocna about the size question. The rep said:

1) their size chart is "extremely" conservative;
2) the 33 lb Rocna should be very adequate and certainly better than the 35 lb CQR anchor we have now for the typical bottoms in our area (Pacific Northwest). He said IF our boat operated in areas with the potential for really high winds and had soft mud or sandy bottoms (Chesapeake Bay for example), he would recommend the larger 44 lb anchor.
3) He said the Rocna anchor works fine with the flat bow roller we have. He said to just lash the anchor to the roller channel if I felt the need for it.

So, I'm going to go with the 15 kg / 33 lb Rocna.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by thinwater »

I know that the PDQ 32 sailors that cruise have almost universally switched to 35-pounds Rocna/Mantis/Manson Supreme. They have less cabin but a tall mast, so windage is probably similar.

Do you use a bridle or just anchor from a centered roller? A bridle will really reduce yawing at anchor, which in turn greatly increases anchor security.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by AMCarter3 »

The more Research I’ve done on Rocha anchors, the better they sound.

We always apply a bridle to relieve any load on the windlass.
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Re: Anchor Rode Options

Post by deising »

This thread is a few months old, but just catching up on some things I missed.

We bought our boat with a 55 lb (no typo) Rocna already aboard. It is definitely overkill, but the extra dozen pounds is pretty insignificant compared to the other weight that gets stowed in the forward lockers.

I have always been an advocate of good performing and oversize anchors. Once well set, I feel quite secure.
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