Leaving your boat during hurricane season in hurricane country

Just curious, what is the best practice for leaving your vessel during the hurricane season in hurricane areas? On the hard? Marinas with a "We'll take care of it if a hurricane hits" service?

I'm near the boat in coastal Georgia this year but I may be further away from home port next season so may be faced with leaving it.

I always put mine on the hill when a named storm was coming. In my case i paid Jarrett Bay "protection money" to ensure me a spot. They were extremely professional and diligent in properly blocking and looking after the boats. I'd advise you to get some recommendations from locals as to who is the best at this in a particular area. It may well be a boatyard with no associated marina, in which case, retain a professional captain to take the boat over there in your absence. Having it all pre-arranged ahead of time with yard and substitute captain = a lot of peace of mind.

Double or triple the lines, extra fenders, make sure your insurance is paid up, and go enjoy life

From the heart of Katrina country in Biloxi, Ms., we put our trawler on the yard, chain the stands together and relax, it's going to be okay, except if it's another Katrina coming! Most "normal" hurricanes don't wash boats off the yard

Turner said:

From the heart of Katrina country in Biloxi, Ms., we put our trawler on the yard, chain the stands together and relax, it's going to be okay, except if it's another Katrina coming! Most "normal" hurricanes don't wash boats off the yard

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Thats interesting, we had a few boats fall during Sandy when water washed out underneath the stands. Ut also has happened during various Noreasters.

If tbe yard is paved and has tiedowns and not likely to get 5 or 6 feet of water washing over, then being on the hard can make some sense. But blowing debris can be another issue.

I feel if I can move 100 miles out of its intended oath and or get 20 miles inland....its better than being hauled.

Hickers thread, and post #1 in particular, is worth a read.

http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s58/cyclone-preparations-marina-31898.html

The height of the expected storm surge is also something to consider when choosing a marina or a hard stand location.

Insequent thanks for that link.

Run ropes to the marina pillars to keep as much load off the fingers as possible

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That comment in that thread perplexes me for two reasons. First of all, pressure on the fingers is transferred to the pillars anyway, and secondly, in a floating dock world, you would have slack on those lines vs. the finger lines because of the storm surge.

What am I missing?

kev_rm said:

Insequent thanks for that link.



That comment in that thread perplexes me for two reasons. First of all, pressure on the fingers is transferred to the pillars anyway, and secondly, in a floating dock world, you would have slack on those lines vs. the finger lines because of the storm surge.

What am I missing?

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Actually a good point.

If you tie to the pillars or pilings, you have to tie very high, which is not good for various reasons.

The good reason though to use pilings, it spreads more load to more pilings, not just the ones holding the floats. If in your marina, the floats incorporate all the pilings within their structure, that benefit is lost.

Tying to pilings with backup lines is good in case the floaters breakup or in some cases float off the pilings in areas not built well for storm surges.

In places without many pilings, anchors can be used instead.

Bottom line, the more lines to different structures usually is a good idea....all of which are useless without good chafe protection or avoidance.

I'm not sure of all the thinking behind it, but one of the big issues is multiple lines to the cleats on the fingers, magnifying their loads. And the cleats typically aren't that large, and generally have only modestly sized securing bolts. Cleats ripping out of the fingers is the big risk. Fingers may also partly breakup, or tear loose at one end or the other.

Lines to pillars should be fairly long, partly for stretch. Unless tidal range + storm surge is extreme the angle of the lines to the boat wont change much and slack should be minimal throughout.

Good point about the cleats...one of the good things at my marina...instead of just through bolting, they are tied into the horizontal members by galvanized angles. You would rip apart the entire floater trying to pull a cleat out.

Yet many marinas who do take the time to through bolt, often just through bolt to the decking which comes up rather easily. Have chuckled at many a boat with a cleat and plank dangling from a dockline.

menzies said:

Double or triple the lines, extra fenders, make sure your insurance is paid up, and go enjoy life

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Bingo!

But seriously, the odds are very much in your favor, not against you. Any good marina worth their salt will run around fixing lines when needed.

I'm also 4 miles in with a lot of Mangrove and $2B worth of 15-story condos on 2 sides of our marina.

With my insurance, I never lose sleep.

Two primary things to consider: Fetch and surge.

If your dock has open exposure to a large body of water (say 1/4mi or more in any direction), the seas will build and tear things up. If in a canal or protected basin, should not be a problem.

Look at pilings, docks and tie points. Now imagine water ten feet higher. How will things be then. Best case is floaters with very tall piles. Every thing goes way up, then comes way down. No muss, no fuss. Fixed docks, piling ties, bulkhead ties can be a challenge. Floaters on 8' piles, no bueno.

Haulouts: Look at elevation. Six feet above SL, no bueno (Sandy). 15' above, good. Also look at drainage around storage area. In one local yard, the rain wash came down the hill and washed out around boat stands and few boats fell over. The boats on the higher side of the lane were fine. Some had the forethought to insist on that side as they saw the gullies on the other. Paved storage area should not be an issue, but up here in redneck land that is super rare. Often just dirt, expensive ones have some gravel.

kev_rm said:

Just curious, what is the best practice for leaving your vessel during the hurricane season in hurricane areas? On the hard? Marinas with a "We'll take care of it if a hurricane hits" service?

I'm near the boat in coastal Georgia this year but I may be further away from home port next season so may be faced with leaving it.

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One thing in addition to what the others have said, some of the decisions are influenced heavily by where the boat is. If you're on a concrete floating Bellingham dock with 12' pilings in an area where storm surge has never exceeded 6' and tide is only 1', then it's one thing. If you're on an old wooden dock with poor cleats and 12' pilings in an area where storm surge has twice topped 10' and tides are 8', then it's very different.