T&T: B-V mooring

[LRZeitlin at aol.com]

Although not exactly germane to this discussion of mooring rights, the 
following permanent anchoring technique might prove useful in mooring areas with 
rough water.

Some time ago I received a technical note from Bellingham Marine 
(www.bellingham-marine.com) describing a wave attenuator for harbors and mooring areas 
that was claimed to be substantially less costly than fixed breakwaters or 
wave barriers. The attenuator consists of a chain of floating concrete docks 
ringing the mooring area and attached to fixed pilings so they can rise and 
fall with the waves but cannot move laterally. The energy necessary to lift 
these concrete docks is subtracted from the dynamic energy of the waves. By 
a suitable choice of weight and positioning, Bellingham claims that the 
mooring area inside the dock perimeter can be made as placid as a mill pond 
even if a 100 year storm rages outside. I exaggerate, of course, but the 
company offers considerable proof that wave energy is substantially reduced.

This technical note jogged my aging memory. I had seen something similar 
used locally many years ago. At last I remembered that this was an upscaling 
of the B-V mooring used by fishermen to anchor boats more than half a century 
ago in the storm prone Tappan Zee and Haverstraw Bay area of the Hudson 
River. The B-V mooring, named after the adjacent fishing towns of Buchanan and 
Verplanck, consisted of a raft of chained together truck tires chained to a 
heavy concrete anchor, with the boat to be protected tied behind. 

A typical configuration used ten large truck or tractor tires arranged like 
the pins in a bowling alley. The first, and usually the largest tire was 
fastened to the anchor by a heavy chain rode about twice the water depth. 
Chained to the first tire were two more tires in the second row, three more 
tires in the third row, and four tires in the final row. Additional rows could 
be added if desired. The protected boat was then moored behind the final row, 
the mooring line usually extending to the heavy anchor chain of the first 
tire.

The rising and falling of the tires effectively damped the waves, the calm 
area extending for several dozen yards behind the tire raft. The B-V mooring 
would swivel with the wind. Since the sharp, short waves in this area are 
wind driven, the boats had a much easier ride. 

The tire raft was disconnected and towed to shore during the winter. The 
chain was tied to a tapered spar buoy designed to slip free of ice packs. In 
the spring the chain was retrieved and refastened to the tire raft.

The commercial fishing industry in the Hudson has disappeared, I haven't 
seen this type of mooring for some time. I offer this suggestion for those of 
use who eschew marinas in favor of mooring trawlers out in the open.

Larry Z


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