Eric,
The problem is related to the placement of the windlass. Because Pearson mounted a well door on the foredeck, this leaves little room to mount a windlass without substantial modification. I cut the forward end of the hatch to allow the door to clear the motor.
http://www.richardcarter.net/My_Homepage_Files/Page16.html
Having the windlass mounted up forward like this leaves the forward deck uncluttered and retains the deck well for storage. It forces you to mount the windlass too far forward to make use good of the bow locker however. I glassed a PVC pipe in just below the windlass fairlead. This allows the chain to fall through the pipe directly into the bow locker beneath the anchor well. There isn’t much room below the pipe for the chain to fall because it hits the bow. After 20 or 30 feet have fallen into the lower locker, the chain builds a castle in there until it obstructs the pipe. A crewmember has to climb into forward locker and knock down the chain.
A better solution would be to remove the bow locker and glass the foredeck well hatch closed. This would allow the windlass to be moved aft on the foredeck where the chain can fall into a deeper part of the forward locker. It eliminates the anchor well entirely. Some might object to the loss of storage, but I find it of very limited value. My working anchor is stowed up on the roller where it can be used. The well is cluttered with chain, so storage for anything else like a second anchor is not practical. If the locker is glassed over, it also prevents water from finding its way in there and flooding the motor, solenoids, and deck switches. If this were done, I would discourage removal of the existing locker bottom bulkhead. This is structural. Cutting a hole in it as Tor has done would not compromise the hull however.
Glassing over the deck hatch will be a trick. You need a very solid foundation for the windlass.
Another possible solution would be to move the windlass farther aft on the foredeck behind the anchor well. This would allow the well to be used, but I fail to see how you could open it with one or two chains running over it. You’d have to run pipes through the V-berth cabin above the bunk. I’ve seen this done on other boats.
A third option would be to put a small vertical roller up forward to redirect the chain down the starboard side of the bow to the side of the anchor well. The chain could then fall into a deeper part of the forepeak. This might work with a vertical windlass.
One potential problem with stowing the chain in the foreward locker is that muck from the chain would collect in there and find its way into the bilge. You could glass in a lower bottom bulkhead to keep the slime from running down into the bilge, but you’d need some way to get the water and muck out. A lower well drain might work if you put a check-valve on it. Without a check-valve, water would be forced in there when running into a head-sea. I don’t know how reliable a check valve would be with muck running through it. There are a number of dinghy bailers that have check-valves that might work. As long as the locker were made water-tight, I suppose it would be OK. A water-tight bulkhead door could be fitted behind the existing access hatch to allow access to the chain locker for cleaning and maintenance. The door would need to be robust to insure that chain bouncing around in the forepeak doesn’t break through the access door. An aluminum panel screwed in every fe
w inch
es around its circumference would probably work.
—
Rich Carter
Original message
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