Moving from a Marina to a swinging mooring

I've had yachts moored in marinas for the last few years, and was
considering moving to a swinging mooring next year. I've regularly
picked up swinging moorings on the Orwell over lunchtime, but that is
the limit of my experience of them.

So, I have a number of questions :

1) Security - do you leave kit on the boat due to the difficulty of
tranfer to the tender, or do take it off the boat in case of theft.

2) I was going for a new hard tender, and use my existing Honda2
outboard for propulsion. Are there usually facilities to store the
tender/outboard at the marina that arranged the swinging mooring ?

3) I'm careful when I pick up a swinging mooring for an hour, and very,
very careful when at anchor overnight, setting the GPS to trip and
setting the alarm clock for tide turns. What do you recomend when
leaving your boat for a couple of weeks. Does the local harbourmaster
take a run by every day as a rule ?

4) I'm assuming the insurance will be greater outside of a marina, even
for just summer on a mooring, but will that be a little more or double
the existing price ?

5) a lot of the moored yachts on the Orwell and Stour have stuff to keep
seagulls away, and a few have those LED all-night lampss. Are these
necessary ?

BTW, I've used Shotley, Haven and Tide Mill marinas, and am considering
a swinging mooring with Suffolk yacht Harbour.

Jenny
~~~~~

On 11 Oct, 13:25, Jenny Bailey <jen...@jsquared.co.uk> wrote:

I've never owned a boat on the mooring but over the last couple of
years I've been sailing on a wider variety of boats some of which are
kept on moorings.

> 1) Security - do you leave kit on the boat due to the difficulty of
> tranfer to the tender, or do take it off the boat in case of theft.

IME everything left on the boat . If stuff is really tempting to light
fingered types it often ends up out of sight down below.

> 2) I was going for a new hard tender, and use my existing Honda2
> outboard for propulsion. Are there usually facilities to store the
> tender/outboard at the marina that arranged the swinging mooring ?

Usually.

> What do you recomend when
> leaving your boat for a couple of weeks.

IME nothing. The boats just get left, sometimes with a second line to
the mooring. I know one guy who had a mooring completely part and one
boat that got damaged on the mooring, apart from that the boats seem
safe enough.

>Does the local harbourmaster
> take a run by every day as a rule ?

I bet it varies but if there's a water taxi running they will keep an
eye on the boats.

> 5) a lot of the moored yachts on the Orwell and Stour have stuff to keep
> seagulls away, and a few have those LED all-night lampss. Are these
> necessary ?

Anti-seagull kit would seem to be essential. It doesn't work though. :-
( LED night lamps I haven't seen.

I was recently speaking to a bloke who made the transition from marina
to mooring this season and he has never looked back.

I think the short answer to all of your questions is 'it depends' but
that's not very helpful.

> So, I have a number of questions :
>
> 1) Security - do you leave kit on the boat due to the difficulty of
> tranfer to the tender, or do take it off the boat in case of theft.

I've always left everything onboard, year-round. But,
1) my boat is on a half-tide mooring that dries to very soft mud so
can't be accessed at all much of the time
2) she's surrounded by many more salubrious-looking boats


> 2) I was going for a new hard tender, and use my existing Honda2
> outboard for propulsion. Are there usually facilities to store the
> tender/outboard at the marina that arranged the swinging mooring ?
>

Often. At least the boat, but I'd been inclined to take the engine
away.


> 3) I'm careful when I pick up a swinging mooring for an hour, and very,
> very careful when at anchor overnight, setting the GPS to trip and
> setting the alarm clock for tide turns. What do you recomend when
> leaving your boat for a couple of weeks. Does the local harbourmaster
> take a run by every day as a rule ?

My boat is attached by a chain, plus two heavy warps. The mooring
itself is well maintained and in a sheltered creek so I sleep well.

>
> 4) I'm assuming the insurance will be greater outside of a marina, even
> for just summer on a mooring, but will that be a little more or double
> the existing price ?
>

I've never kept a boat in a marina so can't comment. You may find a
clause about the mooring being professionally laid and maintained.


> 5) a lot of the moored yachts on the Orwell and Stour have stuff to keep
> seagulls away, and a few have those LED all-night lampss. Are these
> necessary ?
>

Wouldn't have thought that would help much. I;ve tried a few things
with little success. Bit of a mess when the birds have been eating
sloes.

Plus side of a mooring (for me anyway) is that it's nice place to end
up at the end of a sail.

Allan

Jenny Bailey wrote:

> I've had yachts moored in marinas for the last few years, and was
> considering moving to a swinging mooring next year. I've regularly
> picked up swinging moorings on the Orwell over lunchtime, but that is
> the limit of my experience of them.

Go for it.

> So, I have a number of questions :
>
> 1) Security - do you leave kit on the boat due to the difficulty of
> tranfer to the tender, or do take it off the boat in case of theft.

Do *you* leave valuables on board in your marina? I think you get
break-ins both on moorings and in marinas, and I reckon thieves
would find marinas more convenient, so yes, I leave stuff on the
moored boat, but there isn't much stuff anyway. Taking installed
electronic equipment away each time would just be overkill.

They could always just steal the whole boat!

> 2) I was going for a new hard tender, and use my existing Honda2
> outboard for propulsion. Are there usually facilities to store the
> tender/outboard at the marina that arranged the swinging mooring ?

Yes, but I have had an inflatable stolen from the locked fenced
storage area. I do always take the tender's outboard home though,
not just for security but also so I can flush most of the salt
out of it by running it in a bin.

> 3) I'm careful when I pick up a swinging mooring for an hour, and very,
> very careful when at anchor overnight, setting the GPS to trip and
> setting the alarm clock for tide turns. What do you recomend when
> leaving your boat for a couple of weeks. Does the local harbourmaster
> take a run by every day as a rule ?

The specification of mooring is agreed when you hire it, and it will
be strong enough for your requirements. If you put a chain on it as
backup in case the rope parts, you can leave it for months unattended.
Unless it's an isolated site infrequently used, someone will usually
report any obvious problems they spot, hopefully before they become
acute. Same as in a marina where mooring warps and/or fender ropes
can fail.

> 4) I'm assuming the insurance will be greater outside of a marina, even
> for just summer on a mooring, but will that be a little more or double
> the existing price ?

I'm not sure it would be much greater at all. There are risks in a
marina which don't exist on a mooring, so it probably all balances out.

> 5) a lot of the moored yachts on the Orwell and Stour have stuff to keep
> seagulls away, and a few have those LED all-night lampss. Are these
> necessary ?

Seagull scarers can be a good idea, if they work. Plastic owls, CDs on
a string, but those garden-type LEDs things are not against gulls, but
are a kind of substitute anchor light.

On Oct 11, 4:37 pm, "Graham Frankland" <ganddfrankl...@tiscali.co.uk>
wrote:
> "Jenny Bailey" <jen...@jsquared.co.uk> wrote in message
>
> news:qIednUcGirCri5PanZ2dnUVZ8rOdnZ2d@bt.com...> I've had yachts moored in marinas for the last few years, and was
> > considering moving to a swinging mooring next year. I've regularly
> > picked up swinging moorings on the Orwell over lunchtime, but that is
> > the limit of my experience of them.
>

> > 2) I was going for a new hard tender, and use my existing Honda2
> > outboard for propulsion. Are there usually facilities to store the
> > tender/outboard at the marina that arranged the swinging mooring ?
>
> Hard tenders are OK but can be a pain banging on the side of the boat or
> transom at night when the wind's against tide.

I always bring mine alongside witha a couple of fenders.

>
> > 3) I'm careful when I pick up a swinging mooring for an hour, and very,
> > very careful when at anchor overnight, setting the GPS to trip and
> > setting the alarm clock for tide turns. What do you recomend when
> > leaving your boat for a couple of weeks. Does the local harbourmaster
> > take a run by every day as a rule ?

Unlikely. I run a safety line in addition to the main ones. As long as
you protect against chafe, and teh swivel etc under water are
maintained each year, then you won't have a problem. Life for a boat
on a mooring is generally much more gentle than in a marina. No
snubbing. Less chance getting hit by other boats, and less easy access
ofr thieves. IMHO.

> > 4) I'm assuming the insurance will be greater outside of a marina, even
> > for just summer on a mooring, but will that be a little more or double
> > the existing price ?

If you are considering SYH, you will have to come off the river for
the winter. Most insurers that Ihave dealt with have not made any
differentiation for swinging vs marina, except over the winter.

>
> Some insurers won't cover winter use on swing moorings, others do at no
> extra charge. You may have to shop around.
>
> > 5) a lot of the moored yachts on the Orwell and Stour have stuff to keep
> > seagulls away, and a few have those LED all-night lampss. Are these
> > necessary ?

I've never found the need to have any, although I did have all over
covers.

PyroJames