Mud!

[angus99]

Even with the Groco washdown pump I installed to clean the mud off our anchor chain as it approaches the roller, we still get mud on the deck. Some of it can be pretty difficult to remove and would stain any unprotected gelcoat. How do you deal with keeping anchoring mud out of the boat?

 

[Simi 60]

. How do you deal with keeping anchoring mud out of the boat?

Get it off before it comes on board.

Time and attention to detail.

 

[Bmarler]

It’s almost impossible to keep all of it off the deck. I have to keep pausing the chain to wash it.
I also wet the deck before I start. That helps the mud that does make it onboard easier to rinse off. One day I’m going to fab up some sort of nozzle arrangement built into the bow roller assembly to really blast it from all sides as it comes in.

 

[Mako]

I found that my previous washdown pump was okay for "normal" amounts of mud on the chain, but for heavy caking or Chesapeake Bay type stuff, I think you need fire hose capacity.

I agree with Simi that if your chain is still loaded up with mud, then don't bring it onboard - it's not welcome there!

 

[rslifkin]

If I start to get mud on the pulpit as the chain comes over the roller, it's time to stop the windlass, rinse down all of the chain above the water a bit more, then continue.

 

[psneeld]

Wetting the deck before the mud comes up helps too.

Another tip if time allows.... bring up mudded chain increments and allow to soak a bit before bringing aboard and rinsing.

 

[koliver]

It’s almost impossible to keep all of it off the deck. I have to keep pausing the chain to wash it.
I also wet the deck before I start. That helps the mud that does make it onboard easier to rinse off. One day I’m going to fab up some sort of nozzle arrangement built into the bow roller assembly to really blast it from all sides as it comes in.

I have a nozzle below the bow roller, so the chain gets a good blast before turning to horizontal. When the mud needs more than that, I use the freehand hose nozzle. Yes, the other needs to be turned off or both become weak and ineffective, but the controls are side by side, so that is easy to do.

 

[Flatswing]

Even with the Groco washdown pump I installed to clean the mud off our anchor chain as it approaches the roller, we still get mud on the deck. Some of it can be pretty difficult to remove and would stain any unprotected gelcoat. How do you deal with keeping anchoring mud out of the boat?

Don’t sweat it. Wash off as much as possible. Rinse the deck & go cruising. If you have time on your hands break out the FSR, or equivalent acid based FRP cleaner. - stains gone in seconds, keep cruising. When you are really bored, break out the dinghy and clean off the bow moustache, same problem, same solution.

 

[Jmarsh203]

If you have a generator a small electric pressure washer would get it all off quickly I use a 1800 psi Ryobi that’s very portable.. I already carry it to wash my boat. A two foot jumper from my water hose connection to the pressure washer greatly reduces the hassle of bringing the whole string out. Takes me maybe 30 seconds to hook up water and plug it in. Takes almost as long to mess with a 25 foot garden hose and cleans things much better.

 

[Comodave]

On our boat the way the exhaust is we get a lot of soot on the sides near the swim platform. It was fairly difficult to wash off. We tried Rejex wax and it is much easier to clean the soot off. You might wax the deck where you get the mud and it may help in cleaning it off. Of course it is preferred to get the mud off before the chain gets on board but that may not always happen.

 

[angus99]

If you have a generator a small electric pressure washer would get it all off quickly I use a 1800 psi Ryobi that’s very portable.. I already carry it to wash my boat. A two foot jumper from my water hose connection to the pressure washer greatly reduces the hassle of bringing the whole string out. Takes me maybe 30 seconds to hook up water and plug it in. Takes almost as long to mess with a 25 foot garden hose and cleans things much better.

Thanks, I’ve been considering a pressure washer. If you’re hooking this to your boat’s pressurized freshwater system, what size pump is feeding the Ryobi?

 

[angus99]

On our boat the way the exhaust is we get a lot of soot on the sides near the swim platform. It was fairly difficult to wash off. We tried Rejex wax and it is much easier to clean the soot off. You might wax the deck where you get the mud and it may help in cleaning it off. Of course it is preferred to get the mud off before the chain gets on board but that may not always happen.

Just started using Rejex but haven’t anchored since it was applied. Glad to hear it works! Thanks.

 

[kchace]

We pause the anchor retrieval as required to get the mud off. Mud on the deck is not nearly as bad as mud in the chain locker. Inevitably we don’t get every spec, but we try.

 

[wkearney99]

Even with the Groco washdown pump I installed to clean the mud off our anchor chain as it approaches the roller, we still get mud on the deck. Some of it can be pretty difficult to remove and would stain any unprotected gelcoat. How do you deal with keeping anchoring mud out of the boat?

The pin-hole nozzle tip on this one lets us blast the mud off the chain as it's coming out of the water. Stream stays tight enough to do the job. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07XQD55M9

Then we use it to 'sweep' the deck for any flecks that do get thrown off the chain once it's over the roller. The foredeck on our EB47 has no decent way to catch the mud, so I have a waste a bit more water getting it to race down along the gunwales to the drain point at the stern.

I've always wanted to rig up some sort of permanent raw water wash-down arrangement but I've yet to see any examples of something that'd work that wouldn't end up looking like some hillbilly contraption. At least not without having to totally replace the whole stainless pulpit that's on there now.

And I put some Dri-Dek tiles (https://www.dri-dek.com) in the anchor locker, under the chain, to allow for blasting water into the locker and not having the chain block the drain. They're tough enough to withstand the weight of the chain, but made from a rubber-ized material that's easy to cut to shape.

 

[Jmarsh203]

3 gpm jabsco par max has done well. And yes I use fresh water. Probably uses less than 4 gallons to clean the chain and that’s acceptable to me. I don’t have a salt water wash down and honestly not really thinking about one either. I can go 5 days to a week at anchor without running water maker while using water uninhibited. The ryobi battery powered hand held pressure washer that produces 600 psi and can use unpressurized water would probobly be the only thing I’d consider other than the setup I already have.

 

[Mako]

And I put some Dri-Dek tiles (https://www.dri-dek.com) in the anchor locker, under the chain, to allow for blasting water into the locker and not having the chain block the drain. They're tough enough to withstand the weight of the chain, but made from a rubber-ized material that's easy to cut to shape.

Good idea. On my steel boat I was getting corrosion in the chain locker, so I would spray some fresh water to rinse the saltwater off the piled up chain. It that didn’t prevent physical damage.

I’m thinking that it would be great to line the sides of the lockers as well with those drain tiles that you refer to.

 

[psneeld]

Good idea. On my steel boat I was getting corrosion in the chain locker, so I would spray some fresh water to rinse the saltwater off the piled up chain. It that didn’t prevent physical damage.

I’m thinking that it would be great to line the sides of the lockers as well with those drain tiles that you refer to.

On my RVs metal bins that stated rusting, I ground the rust, used rust converter and then Rustoleum truck bed liner. Worked pretty good so far.

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

We have a washdown valve at the bow and stern. We just add a collapsible hose with a jet sprayer on it. Sometimes we just slow down and rinse the mud off the chain and anchor. Rinse the deck last thing. Off to the next anchorage.

The worst ones are the mud along with 100lbs of kelp!!!

 

[angus99]

Very helpful, y’all. Thanks!

 

[Marco Flamingo]

The worst ones are the mud along with 100lbs of kelp!!!

My prior owner left a big bread knife on board. Sharp and serrated, it makes short work of kelp. If it had a 3 foot long handle it would be perfect. I should check to see if the tiller extension for my electric motor would work.

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

Now talk about the wash downs, the Nordhavens has a very impressive anchor washdown. Big big spray from the bow

 

[Mischief Managed]

Once I see mud on the chain, I stop the windlass, lower the chain back into the water until the mud is just under the surface, lift the chain up over the roller a few inches by hand and let it drop (sometimes three or four times). The shock of the chain stopping suddenly after the drop usually shakes most of the mud off the hanging part of the chain. If this does not work, I use the washdown. Once the anchor is off the bottom, I often motor out of the anchorage (always toward deeper water) slowly and let the water flowing over the chain and anchor clean it off; this has always worked great.

 

[fgarriso]

In my opinion the best way to do this is install an "oversized" washdown pump and run it continuously while lifting the chain and anchor.

 

[GMS]

While we love anchoring out, I hate the mess that often comes with retrieving the anchor. We have a wash down and I use it, but hard not to make a mess on the foredeck in a muddy anchorage. I have been working on a pulpit resign to surround the windlass with a lip and angle the surface so water runs off forward. It seems odd to me that more boats don’t isolate this area to prevent runoff onto the foredeck.

 

[Mako]

Good idea @GMS. I've seen photos of Diesel Ducks and FPBs which employ this type of mini-well around the windlass.

 

[Sleeping Bear]

I have a deck wash pump too, but even better is to take the boat hook and waggle (verb!??) the chain side to side in the water.

 

[Ric in Richmond]

If you have a generator a small electric pressure washer would get it all off quickly I use a 1800 psi Ryobi that’s very portable.. I already carry it to wash my boat. A two foot jumper from my water hose connection to the pressure washer greatly reduces the hassle of bringing the whole string out. Takes me maybe 30 seconds to hook up water and plug it in. Takes almost as long to mess with a 25 foot garden hose and cleans things much better.

Thats a good idea. I think washing machine hoses are the same thread.

 

[Trent]

It helps to loosen mud if you pull in the chain not in the mud, a good half hour or more before you are actually ready to hoist anchor and leave. The gentle back and forth of the boat will often loosen the mud so you are dealing with considerably less muddy chain. For really muddy chain, use a boat hook to shake the chain back and forth in the water to loosen some of the mud and take your time to hose chain down well before retrieving it. No need to rush.

 

[wkearney99]

Good idea. On my steel boat I was getting corrosion in the chain locker, so I would spray some fresh water to rinse the saltwater off the piled up chain. It that didn’t prevent physical damage.

I’m thinking that it would be great to line the sides of the lockers as well with those drain tiles that you refer to.

I used the tiles to primarily solve the problem of chain links blocking the drain holes. That and debris. The combination of links falling right in front of the holes and then having crud pile up around them made it a chore to clear the drains. With the links laid hard against the hole I couldn't do something quick like fire a hose in from the outside. Since the addition of tiles I've had zero problems with the drains getting blocked. Crud still manages to flake off the chain but no longer prevents the drains from working.

I only put the tiles on the bottom of the locker. I don't know how well they'd 'stand' if put up along sloping sides. The tiles do interlock and I suppose you could secure them to each other more securely with stainless wire at key points. That'd make the mesh of them less likely to become unlocked if you'd be trying to curve the pieces up along the sides of the locker.

For what you're thinking, maybe something like a larger rubber drainage mat, designed for industrial use? Wouldn't be as 'pretty' but might be simpler/cheaper than 12" tiles and easier to lay out with some upward slope on the sides?

 

[wkearney99]

It helps to loosen mud if you pull in the chain not in the mud, a good half hour or more before you are actually ready to hoist anchor and leave. The gentle back and forth of the boat will often loosen the mud so you are dealing with considerably less muddy chain. For really muddy chain, use a boat hook to shake the chain back and forth in the water to loosen some of the mud and take your time to hose chain down well before retrieving it. No need to rush.

That's good advice. We boat recreationally, often on weekends, rafted up with others and departure often ends up being in more of a 'rush' than allows for that. Wives/kids like to squeeze out as much fun from the daylight hours. So adding a half-hour to the departure 'adventure' seems problematic or just makes more work for me (and being the 'bad guy' for putting an end to the fun).

We also tend to anchor in relatively shallow places (the Chesapeake is like that) and I have serious reservations about moving the boat through the water dragging the chain to wash off the mud. It seems like asking for trouble, as the points I've seen mud left from a 5:1 scope seem longer than the depth. Last thing I'd need would be the anchor catching something causing the chain to get yanked hard against the roller/windlass.

Using the boat hook to shake the chain though... hadn't thought of that, good idea.