Maintaining Your Anchorage

Safe Houseboating Is A Team Sport
Safely anchoring is a team sport. It takes sturdy, well-placed anchors, continually tending your lines to maintain proper tension, repositioning your boat on the beach as necessary, idling into shore when the weather turns nasty, and, most importantly, good decision making. It’s a little bit of us, and a whole lot of you. 

As your partner in the voyage, we’re sharing these key Anchoring Considerations as well as the tasks you and your crew must perform to maintain a safe anchorage during your trip.  The information below is broken down into “Rising Lake” and “Falling Lake” sections. In general, “Rising Lake” conditions occur during the months of April - June. “Falling Lake” conditions occur thereafter. However, please be sure to familiarize yourself with the entire document so you’re properly prepared for whatever conditions may arise during your vacation.

RISING LAKE 

(typically May 15 - July 10)

ANCHOR LINES

Check Anchor Line Integrity

Anchor lines need to be in good working order if they are going to properly hold your boat during high wind events. You are responsible for ensuring the quality of your anchor lines. Be sure to replace your lines with new ones if they are old, frayed, are cut, or if they have any other issue that compromises their integrity and holding power.

Have Plenty Of Line
It’s always best to have more anchor line than you think you’ll need. Here’s a general guide.

Houseboats 75 to 85 ft. or smaller

• 175 to 200 ft. of rope for each stern anchor line100 ft. of rope for each bow anchor line
• (2 to 4) 50 ft. extension lines

Houseboats 86 to 100 ft. or larger

• Standard line lengths issued with your boat +
  • (4) 50 ft. stern anchor line extensions
  • (2) 50 ft. bow anchor line extensions 

SITE SELECTION   

Find An Appropriate Location
Beach Bags loves helping you find the best locations and will share our insights about which locations may work best and last the longest during your stay. You’ll want to camp in places allowing your anchors to be placed far enough above (not from) the water line based on how quickly the water is rising during your stay. For example, if the lake is rising 1 foot a day and your trip lasts for a week, you want to overnight in a location that accommodates at least 7 feet of lake rise. Beaches (sand or rock) with gentle rises are generally not suitable anchoring locations for multi-day stays when the lake is rising quickly. Beaches with steep rises or with high shelves on which to position anchors, will work best when the lake is rising quickly.  

DAILY MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES

WARNING: 
FLOATING BOWS AND LOOSE ANCHOR LINES ARE VERY DANGEROUS. THEY CAN QUICKLY ALLOW A HOUSEBOAT TO LOSE ITS MOORING DURING WIND EVENTS AND PINWHEEL DOWN A BEACH, CAUSING SIGNIFICANT PROPERTY DAMAGE AND PERSONAL INJURY OR DEATH.

1. Check Houseboat’s Bow Position Frequently Throughout Day 
Your houseboat’s bow position will change often as it is continually pushed up-beach by the rising lake. The position is undesirable and unsafe if the bow is:

• floating, rather than firmly positioned on the beach
• located so the anchors are no longer within their proper placement zones
  (45° - 90° for side anchors and 45° - 15° for bow anchors)
• maintaining fewer than the required number of contact points on the beach
  (center point contact on V bows, and at least 2 points of contact on pontoons and multi-point bows)

2. Reposition Houseboat’s Bow As Needed Throughout Day
To properly re-seat your houseboat’s bow:

• loosen your anchor lines,
• motor the houseboat onto beach to firmly position the bow on the beach, and
• re-tension your anchor lines (see below).

3. Maintain Anchor Lines As Needed Throughout Day
A rising lake causes anchor lines to loosen. Depending on the rate of rise, this can happen very quickly. Movement of the houseboat due to a combination of winds and slack anchor lines allows dynamic forces to be placed on anchors. Dynamic forces, when high enough, cause moorings to fail. Keeping anchor lines properly maintained consists of continually monitoring, adjusting, and preserving the following anchor line conditions.

• Proper Tension – Adjust your anchor lines just to the point where the slack has been removed and the line becomes straight (no more bowing in the line). With a rising lake you’ll generally be tightening anchor lines. IF USING A WINCH, DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN ANCHOR LINES. Overtightening can significantly preload the anchor line, thereby unnecessarily decreasing its capacity to absorb additional loads from winds. The best way to properly tension with a winch is to first slack the lines and to then re-tension them just to the point where the slack has been removed and the line becomes straight.
• Even Tension – Adjust each anchor line’s tension so the wind load can be equally distributed among all of the anchor lines located on the same side of the boat – all lines must be tensioned equally.  Slack lines don’t take an equal share of the wind load. As a result, they require the properly tensioned lines, and their corresponding anchors, to do more work. This decreases the overall holding power of the boat’s anchoring system. Leeward Anchor Lines – Do not re-tension leeward anchor lines during wind events. These lines will naturally slack when winds are blowing. It is however, important to ensure these lines are evenly tensioned. This ensures the wind load will be equally distributed among them should the winds shift - causing them to become windward anchor lines.

BEFORE AND DURING STORMS
Weathering storms means being alert and planning ahead. Follow these simple tips when the weather gets rough, or even when it just looks like it might.

• Return To Vessel
  Don’t hesitate to return to your houseboat at the site of bad weather brewing somewhere on the lake. Storms can pop-up very quickly and it’s always better to be safe than sorry.
• Properly Tension Anchor Lines
  It takes just a few minutes and will make all the difference in how your vessel weathers the storm.
• Attend To The Helm & Motor Into Shore
  Get to the helm, fire-up your engines, and motor into the beach while keeping the houseboat perpendicular to the shore. Keep doing so until the storm has passed. Be careful not to miss-steer and pull on your anchor lines. The goal is to maintain your position as it was originally set by the Beach Bags Anchoring Crew. 
  

FALLING LAKE

ANCHOR LINES

Check Anchor Line Integrity

Anchor lines need to be in good working order if they are going to properly hold your boat during high wind events. You are responsible for ensuring the quality of your anchor lines. Be sure to replace your lines with new ones if they are old, frayed, are cut, or if they have any other issue that compromises their integrity and holding power.

Have Plenty Of Line
It’s always best to have a more anchor line than you think you’ll need. Here’s a general guide.

Houseboats 75 to 85 ft. or smaller

• • • 175 to 200 ft. of rope for each stern anchor line
    • 80 to 100 ft. of rope for each bow anchor line (2 to 4)
    • 50 ft. extension lines (x2)

Houseboats 86 to 100 ft. or larger 

• • • Standard line lengths issued with your boat +
    • (4) 50 ft. stern anchor line extensions
    • (2) 50 ft. bow anchor line extensions

SITE SELECTION   

Find An Appropriate Location
Beach Bags loves helping you find the best locations and will share our insights about which locations may work best and last the longest during your stay. You’ll want to camp in places deep enough so underwater features will not damage your boat or inhibit your ability to safely leave your location.

DAILY MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES 

WARNING:
BEACHED HOUSEBOATS CREATE A DANGEROUS SITUATION THAT CAN CAUSE SIGNIFICANT PROPERTY DAMAGE AND PERSONAL INJURY OR DEATH. BEACH BAGS CHARGES IT’S PILOTING OFF-BEACH FEE + AN ADDITIONAL $300/HR. SURCHARGE FOR DISLODGING BEACHED HOUSEBOATS.

WARNING:
LOOSE ANCHOR LINES ARE VERY DANGEROUS. THEY CAN QUICKLY ALLOW A HOUSEBOAT TO LOSE ITS MOORING DURING WIND EVENTS AND PINWHEEL DOWN A BEACH, CAUSING SIGNIFICANT PROPERTY DAMAGE AND PERSONAL INJURY OR DEATH.

Check Houseboat’s Bow Position Frequently Throughout Day
Your houseboat’s bow position will change and become increasingly “beached” as the water level recedes. The position is undesirable and unsafe if the bow is:

• resting too much on the beach
• positioned so the anchors are no longer within their proper placement zones
  (45° - 90° for side anchors and 45° - 15° for bow anchors)
• maintaining fewer than the required number of contact points on the beach
  (center point contact on V bows, and at least 2 points of contact on pontoons and multi-point bows)

Reposition Houseboat’s Bow As Needed Throughout Day
To properly re-seat your houseboat’s bow:

• loosen your anchor lines,
• back your houseboat off and then motor your houseboat firmly onto the beach, and
• re-tension your anchor lines (see below).

Maintain Anchor Lines As Needed Throughout Day
A falling lake causes anchor lines to tighten. They can become over-tightened quickly depending upon the rate of water fall. Overtightening can significantly preload anchor lines, thereby decreasing their capacity to absorb additional loads from winds. They can also be a contributing factor in a boat becoming “beached”. Keeping anchor lines properly maintained consists of continually monitoring, adjusting, and preserving the following anchor line conditions.

• Proper Tension – Adjust your anchor lines just to the point where the slack has been removed and the line becomes straight (no more bowing in the line). With a falling lake you’ll generally be loosening the lines. IF USING A WINCH, DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN ANCHOR LINES. Overtightening can significantly preload the anchor line, thereby unnecessarily decreasing its capacity to absorb additional loads from winds. The best way to properly tension with a winch is to first slack the lines and to then re-tension them just to the point where the slack has been removed and the line becomes straight.

• Even Tension – Adjust each anchor line’s tension so the wind load can be equally distributed among all of the anchor lines located on the same side of the boat – all lines must be tensioned equally.  Slack lines don’t take an equal share of the wind load. As a result, they require the properly tensioned lines, and their corresponding anchors, to do more work. This decreases the overall holding power of the boat’s anchoring system.

• Leeward Anchor Lines – Do not re-tension leeward anchor lines during wind events. These lines will naturally slack when winds are blowing. It is, however, important to ensure these lines are evenly tensioned. This ensures the wind load will be equally distributed among them should the winds shift - causing them to become windward anchor lines.

BEFORE AND DURING STORMS

Weathering storms means being alert and planning ahead. Follow these simple tips when the weather gets rough, or even when it just looks like it might.

1. Return To Vessel
   Don’t hesitate to return to your houseboat at the site of bad weather brewing somewhere on the lake. Storms can pop-up very quickly and it’s always better to be safe than sorry. 
2. Properly Tension Anchor Lines
   It takes just a few minutes and will make all the difference in how your vessel weathers the storm.
3. Attend To The Helm & Motor Into Shore
   Get to the helm, fire-up your engines, and motor into the beach while keeping the houseboat perpendicular to the shore. Keep doing so until the storm has passed. Be careful not to miss-steer and pull on your anchor lines. The goal is to maintain your position as it was originally set by the Beach Bags Anchoring Crew.