Drogues
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Drogues & Sea Anchors
A sea anchor, used to stabilize a boat in heavy weather, anchors not to the sea floor but to the water itself, as a kind of brake. Sea anchors are known by a number of names, such as drift anchor, drift sock, para-anchor, and boat brakes. These all function the same way, by pulling large amounts of water along as the boat moves, and they are all used to counter the effects of high winds. Similar in design and use to the sea anchor is the relatively smaller drogue.
Anything that can act as a source of drag in the water can act as a sea anchor; a common improvised sea anchor is a long line (a docking warp or anchor rode) played out into the water; while this does not provide much drag, it can act as a drogue and aid in running downwind. A sail, weighed down with an anchor chain or other heavy object, will also work as an improvised sea anchor.
Early sea anchors were often improvised from spare parts aboard ship.
Modern commercial sea anchors are usually made of cloth, shaped like a parachute or cone, and rigged so that the larger end points in the direction of the boat's movement. When deployed, this type of sea anchor floats just under the surface, and the water moving past the sea anchor keeps it filled. Some varieties are cylindrical, with an adjustable opening in the rear that allows the amount of braking to be adjusted when deployed.
The size of the sea anchor determines how much water it can displace, and how much braking it can provide. It is also possible to use more than one sea anchor to increase the braking, and one type, the series drogue, consists of many small "anchors" spread out along a line to ease retrieval under heavy conditions.
Most larger sea anchors will provide a mechanism to collapse the anchor for retrieval. This is called a trip line, and attaches to the rear of the anchor, allowing it to be pulled in back first, shedding water rather than filling. This trip line can be rigged a number of ways, depending on the preference of the user.
Sea anchors can be used by vessels of any size. While the purpose of the anchor is to provide drag to slow the vessel, there are a number of ways this can be used:
- The first, and probably most well known use, of the sea anchor is to aid vessels in heaving to in heavy weather. A boat that is not kept bow- or stern-on to heavy seas can easily be rolled by the action of the waves. By attaching the sea anchor to a bridle running from bow to stern, the boat can be held at any angle relative to the wind. This is useful in sailboats in conditions too windy to use the sails to maintain a heading, and in motor vessels that are unable to make sufficient headway to maintain steerage.
- Sea anchors also reduce the speed at which a vessel will drift with the wind.
- A sea anchor can provide directional control of a sailboat in the case of a steering failure. By towing a sea anchor from a bridle off the stern, the direction of the boat can be controlled on a running course.
- A sea anchor can be used to control the speed of a sailboat, in cases where delicate handling is required in high winds.
- A sea anchor can be used behind a towed vessel to maintain tension on the towing line, and prevent the radical side-to-side motion exhibited by some vessels under tow.
- Sea anchors may also be used as anchors to allow warping of a vessel in deep water.
The length and type of the line, or rode, used to attach the sea anchor to the hull is also important. In addition to connecting the sea anchor to the hull, the rode also acts as a shock absorber. The stretching of the rode under load will smooth out the changes in loading caused by the changing force of the waves interacting with the hull of the vessel.
Because a high degree of stretch is desirable in this application, a material with a high elastic modulus is preferred, such as nylon. If short rode is used on large ocean waves, its length should be tuned to the wavelength of the waves; either under 1/3 of the wavelength, or an even multiple of the wavelength. A line significantly shorter than the wavelength means the anchor and hull will ride over the crests together, while a line equal to the wavelength will keep the hull and anchor from ending up out of phase, which can result in severe loading on the anchor. In stormy seas, it is impractical to tune the rode length to the waves, and the ability to absorb shock is even more important. Under these conditions, a rode as much as 10 to 15 times the length of the hull should be used to provide a high degree of shock absorption, and mitigate the issues of having the sea anchor out of phase.
Types
Jordan Series Drogue.
This Drogue type is developed mainly by Don Jordan, using results of various research. The research has been carried out by Don Jordan himself, the US Cost Guard and various universities. The design also incorporates lessons learned the hard way in the 1979 Fastnet Race disaster (See Fastnet Force Ten by John Rousmaniere) in which 15 lives were lost and 24 boats sunk or abandoned, and the 1998 Sydney - Hobart race in which 5 yachts were sunk, 6 sailors died and 55 crew were winched to safety by helicopters. (See "Fatal Storm" by Rob Mundle)
The Jordan series Drouge consists of many cones attached to a long nylon rope, with some chain on the end.
This type is considered the most advanced drouge design as of now, and still it can be manufactured by simple tools with readily available material.
You can find more information on the forum, including build instructions with video tutorial.
Other?
Other?
References
Publications, etc.
Forums
Links to discussion threads on the Cruiser Log Forum
- Jordan Series Drogue - Instructions a download plans to make your own.
Web Links
Links to relative websites.
Personal Experiences
Share your experiences.
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