A question about anchor winches

Professional Hobbyist · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 3:27 pm Post subject: A question about anchor winches

My 22 cruiser has a windlass mounted on the deck. There is a hole for the rode and line about 3" long and 1.5" wide. You can look straight down the hole into the chain locker when standing on the deck. Rain water enters the anchor locker through this hole. My concern is that in rough seas it could fill the cabin and sink the boat. The surface area of the entry point is easily 20 times the size of the chain locker drain.

Does this sound standard, is this a problem, and what do you do about it?

For storage I plan to have a boat cover made and for rain while cruising I'll use a sunbrella "shower cap" over the winch. I am most concerned about waves coming over the bow and how much water I will take on with each dip.

JamesTXSD · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 3:45 pm Post subject:

Your anchor locker should have a drain in it, allowing the water to run out. In the 25 there is an access panel at the forward part of the v-berth (assume it is similar for the 22) where you can open it up and look in.

I've not heard of anyone having the opening for the rode take in enough water to be a problem. What say you, C-Brats?

Best wishes,
Jim B.

drjohn71a · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 3:47 pm Post subject:

The anchor lockers usually have a drain tube or two to let the water out. If you make an anchor locker water and air tight, mold and odd growths are likely. It is good to let air in and out of the anchor locker. If you look at the bow fiberglass below the anchor locker you should see a small, stainless steel "clamshell" vent cover. This is covers the anchor locker drain tube hole to reduce sea water driven in.

It is also nice if the holes into and out of the anchor locker are sealed on the sides of the holes so no internal wood deck/hull parts are exposed to water.

If you are concerned about water getting in while stored for long periods outside, you could put some type of temporary cover over the hole while still letting air get in.

The CD 22's are noted for great bowkeeping activity in rough water and they would be the least likely to ship unseemly amounts of water thru the windlass hole. Also, the anchor lockers are usually sealed so that, even if they are full of water (I've never heard of this happening), no water should enter the cabin itself.

John

flapbreaker · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 3:49 pm Post subject:

On mine you can't see the anchor locker. I wouldn't be concerned about taking on water for saftey sake but I sure woulnd't want my vberth to get damp. Again, I'm only familiar with mine though.

drjohn71a · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 3:55 pm Post subject:

As Flapbreaker brings up, some models of CD 22's had inadequate drainage - the drain tubes were installed above the anchor locker floor. In these cases water was allowed to pool in the anchor locker for long periods and in some cases drained down into the bottom of the V-Berth area.

There are photos of fixes for this on this site, where ppl have filled in the bottom of the anchor locker so that all water would drain out and put drain tubes in at that level instead of just a hole.

John

colobear · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 4:24 pm Post subject:

It sounds like the anchor rode cover may be missing. There should be a stainless steel cover over that hole. It pivots up and can be locked to allow rode in and out. You should not have a raw hole on the deck. Take a look at the photos in the anchoring album in the tech library. Go to photos, then tech library then anchoring and you will find very clear pictures of the cover. If the cover is in fact installed and down, there should be minimal water intrusion and don't worry about it.

drjohn71a · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 5:32 pm Post subject:

I don't know what kind of windlass you have, C-Cakes, but most windlasses cover the hole to a degree with the windlass hardware. The type of cap you describe is common on anchor lockers where the anchor is lowered and raised by hand, but would not work well on windlass installations in that you'd have to have clearance for the cap and would have to go out onto the bow every time you raised or lowered an anchor.

John

Grumpy · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 5:53 pm Post subject:

If you look at picture #99 in the Kingfisher album you will see a typical Sprint 600 installation where the winch body provides it's own cover for the hole.
There are many types and many solutions.

Merv

colobear · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 6:42 pm Post subject:

C-Cakes does not have a windlass (Yet!!) and the anchor rode hole presntly used to feed rode to the locker will be to the starboard of the centerline where the windlass (Lewmar V700 Smile

) will eventually be mounted.

Professional Hobbyist · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 8:06 pm Post subject:

The boat is in the shop right now so I can't post a photo, but the Lewmar winch sits atop a 3" diameter hole. The hole has been sealed around the edges with white marine sealant. The winch sits directly over the hole. A cover plate (made into the winch body) partially covers the opening, but still has a 3" long x 1.5" wide opening for the chain and rope to run through. Standing directly over the winch you can look straight down into the chain locker which is open to the inside of the cabin.

The drain hole for the locker under the clam shell is only about 1/4" in diameter. It could never keep up with the hole in the deck. It is also a couple inches above the floor on the locker. It could not be drilled lower because of the hull shape. I think I will raise the locker floor to the drain level.

The only way to plug the hole would be to disconnect the chain from the anchor and stuff a foam block in the opening, but then I would not have quick access to the anchor.

I've talked to several folks who have had their C-Dorys in bad weather where they had green water half way up the windshield as they plunged into each wave. An hour or two of this and the cabin would be full of water on my boat.

I could build a solid bulkhead in the bow with a water tight hatch in it for service, inspection, and drying, but that seems like a lot of work on a brand new boat. I will also probably make the drain larger and add a second drain to the starboard side.

Still, someone with a similar winch installation might have some ideas.

Sea Wolf · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 8:13 pm Post subject:

professional hobbyest-

There's an awful lot of good advice above, applying to a variety of different windlass types and installations.

All windlasses I've ever seen that feed an anchor locker below will allow at least some water intrusion in a bow dunking or when a wet rode is brought aboard, hense the need for a good locker drain.

If you want the best advice possible, I suggest you take a digital photo of your set up and post it so more specific recommendations can be made.

Do you have a verticlal or a horizontal type windlass?

Which brand and model?

Who installed it?

Is your anchor locker sealed off from the v-berth or open to it? (My older '87 Cruiser's rear bulkhead of the anchor locker is open for about 7" at the top- this makes it easy to manage snarls in the locker, but less protection overall and no isolation of locker odors.)

Do you have a Sunbrella cover or shower cap like cover? A good looking inverted mixing bowl might make a nice cover if you can figure out how to hold it down.

Do you have the Owner's Manual for your windlass? If so, there will be a drawing of the cut-out template for installing the windlass. How does the recommended cut-out hole for the rode compare with the one cut during the installation? 3" long x 1.5 wide seems a bit large to me looking at a drawing of it. If it was made oversize, it would be possible to partially fill it in with epoxy filler like Marinetex. Add a lip to the edge if you like.

Joe. Teeth

TyBoo · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 8:17 pm Post subject:

Not to worry, me thinks. I have had Lewmar windlasses on both a CD 22 and a CD25 and although your deck cutout may be larger than needed, the only opening is still what is alowed by the windlass mount. I have had the bows of both boats flooded by waves on too many occasions and have never had a problem with too much water coming into the opening. An interesting plus is that no water gets back to the cockpit other than splash or spray when a wave crashes over the bow, either. You'll stay afloat.

Professional Hobbyist · Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 8:32 pm Post subject:

I have a Lewmar Pro-Series windlass. It is very similar to the Pro-Fish. I'm posting the Pro-Fish photo because it shows the deck opening better than the Pro-Series photo on the Lewmar website.

In bad weather it looks like it will ship a lot of water. It's a big nasty hole in the foredeck. Maybe I'll invent the cure. Maybe a Sunbrella "half bulkhead" snapped into the opening between the anchor locker and berth will keep splash and spray on the locker side of things.

drjohn71a · Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2007 10:00 am Post subject:

Hobbiest,

I have the Lewmar on my TomCat 255. We have been in storms of 35k flat and 55k gusting winds with wave over 20 feet continually raging over the entire boat. The anchor locker drain system kept up with that without any problem.

As I mentioned, C-Dory's design keeps a high bow into the waves - it takes one heck of a wave to get much over the bow. If waves come over the bow, for some reason, there is no noticable problem of shipping water aboard. I have had none and I have only heard of water problems where the drain tubes were installed above the anchor locker floor.

I suppose you could use one of those flexible plastic, elastic bowl covers or similar design of Sunbrella for long term storage.

John

Professional Hobbyist · Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2007 10:33 am Post subject:

I guess I worry too much. Thanks for your replies. I will be fixing the anchor locker floor height, drain size and number, and adding a soft Sunbrella bulkhead top. I want any water that comes onboard to stay on the wet side of the inside of the cabin. I'll post photos when I get the modifications made.