Advice Post Running Aground?

[Lokiyawl]

The first thing I do if I run aground in a protected area like the ICW is to determine where the closest deep water is. A lead line or just a line with knots for reference and a weight will suffice. If deeper water is to Port or stb. And you are on a sailboat you can heel the boat fairly easily with a line to the top of the mast run to your dinghy. Pull of course in the direction you want to move the boat. I could put the rail down on my 40' Alden using this method and used it to enter a creek that had a foot and a half less water than my draf once ahead of an approaching hurricane. I did the heeling and the wife steered the Alden down the channel I had marked. Every situation is different, be creative. James

Originally Posted by CarolinaDelt

I have a 40' sailboat and recently ran aground on sand/silt/muck in the ICW. Both channel markers and charts indicated I was in plenty of water but that's another post ... anyways, after trying to motor off in reverse for 10 minutes and shifting weight, I wasn't going anywhere. Thus, SeaTow ;( I licked my wounds for a few moments and then carried on for a nice day sail.

However, when I returned to my dock and hooked up shore power, my air conditioning system continually overheated. I checked my filter and it was full of muck and silt. After cleaning the filter and priming the on/off valves a few times to ensure no air bubbles(read this from prior post), the AC worked just fine.

However, and ultimately my purpose for posting, now my water pressure doesn't work. Is this somehow related to another clog? It worked fine beforehand so I'm assuming there's an intake somewhere I need to check (akin to the AC). I recently filled the water tank so I know it's not empty; actually wondering if perhaps I overfilled it(I read that in another post too)? If I need to drain water, how? Thoughts?

ALSO, curious what else you'd recommend I check after running aground? I thought about looking at water intake valve/impeller ... I'm 2 months new into this boat so still learning where everything is located and all the systems. Thoughts?

Thanks,

[Old Swampy]

Russ brought up a good point. If conditions are favorable, a sail can heel the boat thereby reducing the necessary water depth to float a boat. Similarly, an anchor set on a rode perpendicular to the boat and connected to a masthead halyard can heel the boat. Its better to haul the rode to the masthead with a snatch block so the halyard is not ground up by the masthead fittings when asked to take a load perpendicular to the mast. Yes, you could use a spinnaker halyard to avoid this kind of wear.

[Group9]

Running aground and trying to power off (or even successfully powering off) can often stir up a lot of bottom sediment, which of course get pulled into any inlet that is sucking in water at the time. That's what the strainers are for. But, sometimes stuff gets through.