Anchor Chain Preservation Method

[heintje23]

Does anybody have any experience with this method?

It is to keep the anchor chain from building into peaks in chain lockers and be more slippery when being retrieved for storage in the vessel and reduce or eliminate the spot rusting of galvanized chain. The Following is the Process and is quite simple.

Whether the chain is USED or NEW this treatment will yield a couple of years or moreof trouble free chain service and keep the vessel chain locker free from constant rust and unmanageable chain clumps.

1. get a container, a plastic bucket or drum will do, to off load the chain into on the dock.
2. Using the plastic bucket or drum, \ Submerge the chain in White Vinegar for about 8 hours.
3. Pour the Vinegar out and wash the chain with dish washing soap and water.
4. Put the chain back into the plastic bucket or drum and now submerge the chain in Kerosene, or WD 40, jet fuel or any light modified benzene/oil mixture. Leave chain in kerosene solution for 24 hours then remove chain from container wash off with soap and water and using the windlass retrieve chain to vessel after cleaning the chain locker.

[tamicatana]

It seems to me that the last wash of the chain would rinse off the light oil you're just applied.

my experience has been to keep the chain and locker clean and rinse the chain with fresh when I can. Works so far.

[savoir]

Agreed on the final wash. That will wash off most of the kerosene.

The vinegar rinse once a year is a good idea to get the salt off. After that, if the boat is in a yard, lay the chain on the ground either on a pallet of in some kind of crate. You want anything that will let the air move around the chain. That will make it much tougher for rust to start.

If your boat is in the water all year then hose out the anchor locker and chain with fresh water now and then.

[Cotemar]

Just wash chain and locker as often as possible to remove the salt.

[HopCar]

The idea of putting zinc coated metal into an acid bath, even as mild as vinegar, just doesn't sound right to me.

[Bash]

That's crazy. First an acid bath, then soak it in a barrel of WD-40? And then rinse off the WD-40? Then what? Pour out the WD-40 into the harbor?

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[sabray]

I think bash typed 1026 no's.. Ill add one more no. I do think that touching up crap acco g4 chain with cold galvanized spray might help. This should not be necessary but galvanized chain ain't what it used to be. Or the metal is crap. My Bruce anchor looks like a galvanized metal. My Manson looks like it will rust out in 6 years. Guess how old the Bruce is? 1026 is not the right answer. Maybe 1026 has some significance in all this. How anyone could type that many no's with out a spelling error is beyond me.
Off topic I'm betting bash was a bad boy and spent his formative years at a chalk board writing bash will not ?(??$$; any more it is a no no.bash will not ?(??$$; any more it is a no no.bash will not ?(??$$; any more it is a no no.bash will not ?(??$$; any more it is a no no.

[RaymondR]

Incredible, and each one is full stopper.

They just don't do chain galvanizing like they used to.

Agree with HopCar, even a mild acidic bath like vinegar is probably doing the zinc coating more harm than good. You might try Marine Penetrol or boiled linseed oil as a coating and it may do some good.

[Kenomac]

It seems to me that if you coat your chain with any sort of petroleum product that you're going to create a local oil slick every time you drop the anchor. Not very environmentally friendly.

And if you follow the OP's initial description of a plan... you're going to have to somehow get rid of that toxic slurry you created somehow.

Try to buy the best quality galvanized you can find or stainless if you can afford it... don't buy the cheap, tempting galvanized.

[colemj]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

It seems to me that if you coat your chain with any sort of petroleum product that you're going to create a local oil slick every time you drop the anchor.

Not to mention turning the foredeck into a skating rink.

Mark

[Tingum]

For 300' of 3/8" chain??

[Geoduck]

Originally Posted by heintje23

Does anybody have any experience with this method?

It is to keep the anchor chain from building into peaks in chain lockers and be more slippery when being retrieved for storage in the vessel and reduce or eliminate the spot rusting of galvanized chain. The Following is the Process and is quite simple.

Whether the chain is USED or NEW this treatment will yield a couple of years or moreof trouble free chain service and keep the vessel chain locker free from constant rust and unmanageable chain clumps.

1. get a container, a plastic bucket or drum will do, to off load the chain into on the dock.
2. Using the plastic bucket or drum, \ Submerge the chain in White Vinegar for about 8 hours.
3. Pour the Vinegar out and wash the chain with dish washing soap and water.
4. Put the chain back into the plastic bucket or drum and now submerge the chain in Kerosene, or WD 40, jet fuel or any light modified benzene/oil mixture. Leave chain in kerosene solution for 24 hours then remove chain from container wash off with soap and water and using the windlass retrieve chain to vessel after cleaning the chain locker.

The Coast Gaurd is gonna love you! Can you say, Oil Pollution?

[valhalla360]

Where do you buy a 20 gallon drum of WD40?

And how long do you have to spray before you empty it enough to have room for the chain?

[BoomBrake]

I have it on good authority WD40 is fish oil anyway... Like to see the Harbour Authority arguing that one! I spray as many metal, moving parts on board with he stuff as much as I can. Except winches and self furler that take special grease.

My anchor chain is very rusty, especially the chain length extremity bits sitting at the bottom of the locker. I only started giving the anchor chain and windlass a good spray, especially when pulling up... hoping to help get the salt water out of the chain and prevent further rusting.

Is there something that can be placed in the anchor locker itself, maybe at the bottom to prevent salt water pooling and rust? Like a drum of WD40? : )

[tamicatana]

Originally Posted by BoomBrake

Is there something that can be placed in the anchor locker itself, maybe at the bottom to prevent salt water pooling and rust?

Yep. A hole, so the water drains out.