How Tight do you Tie Your Docklines?

[Benz]

If your lines are chafing on the dock cleats, try shackling a bit of chain around the cleat and tying the dockline to the shackle. You can even rig up splices and thimbles to attach to the shackle if you tie up there always. Often those galvanized cleats are rough and have bits of grit stuck in the zinc.
If your lines are chafing on the boat end, try passing an old bit of non-stretchy rope from the samson post or cleat through the hawse or chock, then making the dockline fast to that. That way the non-stretchy doesn't saw on the chock/hawse as it stretches and contracts.
Samson lines are pretty top-of-the-line, so I doubt the issue is there.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by Benz

If your lines are chafing on the dock cleats, try shackling a bit of chain around the cleat and tying the dockline to the shackle. You can even rig up splices and thimbles to attach to the shackle if you tie up there always. Often those galvanized cleats are rough and have bits of grit stuck in the zinc.
If your lines are chafing on the boat end, try passing an old bit of non-stretchy rope from the samson post or cleat through the hawse or chock, then making the dockline fast to that. That way the non-stretchy doesn't saw on the chock/hawse as it stretches and contracts.
Samson lines are pretty top-of-the-line, so I doubt the issue is there.

Exactly.

* Chafe gear.

* Are the runs over the chocks fair, meaning relatively straight?

It sounds to me that there are 2 problems, and neither is how tight the lines are or the type of line:

1. No chafe gear, something is angled wrong, or something is sharp.

2. Spring lines. Perhaps the boat is simply tied wrong causing exaggerated motion.

In a protected harbor lines should go 10 years. Look at other boats, experiment with the lines, and add some chafe gear.

[FlyMeAway]

No chafe at the boat end.

Agree that chafe gear would help, but don't think that's the problem. The only two things that changed were a) the line and b) how I was tying them. The lines I switched to are a bit larger (5/8 inch vs. 1/2 inch) than the lines I had before.

Also, my springlines have been tied a bit looser, nearly slack while at the dock.

When I say that the lines were "loose", I mean the boat was tied 2+ ft. away from the dock. Before I was tying it such that there is about a fender's width plus 2-3 inches at the widest point in the beam.

[barnakiel]

It all depends.

When against a fixed dock, we use very slack lines and long spring lines.

When tied to a floating dock, we use tighter, finer lines, preferably nylons.

I think every skipper has their bag of tricks.

b.

[ccgarnaal]

I don't have any chafing problems on the cleats however I had some at the leads. Like most people in our marina I put a piece of cut open garden hose over the rope where it goes trough the lead.

[settingsun]

If there's a lot of surge, we tie them as tight as possible and re-tie them as they loosen.

Painting the cleats with a very thick glossy paint helps a lot.

Slipping a 12-18" long section of firehose onto the dockline and placing it so it is wrapped tightly around the cleat (including the criss-cross half-hitch) also helps a lot.

[GrowleyMonster]

If your dock floats with your boat then just make everything off snug. Longer leads (spring lines for example) should be tighter than short leads. (a breast line, for example) Make sure you got good fenders or fenderboards.

If your lines are chafing then use chafing gear. A very good cost effective method of rigging chafing gear on a small boat mooring line is to cut a sufficient length of 1-1/2" fire hose, the regular rubber-inside canvas kind, and slip it on over your line before you splice the eye. You can have a piece protecting the eye itself as well as a couple of pieces that slide up and down the line and protect chafe prone areas in the body of the line. Spot your chafing gear and secure it with small stuff passed through the line or with good old duct tape. The fire hose is extremely resistant to chafe. Ships and tugs and other commercial vessels toss this stuff all the time so dumpster diving could get you some. Also try your local fire station, though many fire departments have gone to that plastic stuff and no longer use canvas. For bigger lines get 2-1/2" fire hose.

I wish I had a floating dock. You are fortunate.

[WMarineCanvas]

Another thing that could be useful to help reduce the chafe is to add a breast line(s). This relatively short line can really cut down on the stresses that act on the other lines at the cleats and the chocks.

Also, as everyone has mentioned there are the stand-by options as well:
-fire-hose makes great chafe gear for going over chocks or cleats!