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Rope fenders or metal tube


colinashby

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OP, do you mean side fenders or bow and stern?

 

In both cases metal alone is not a good idea as they will not absorb any shock.

If bow and stern, rope fenders are there to both protect the boat and the infrastructure.

 

Also fenders need to be able to lift or have a weak link in the fixing to avoid getting hung up on lock gates.

 

Is this what you mean in the photo's?

Fender.JPG

Fixed fenders.jpg

Edited by Ray T
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Personally i wouldn't bother with fenders on a narrow boat except for mooring against solid edges, piling and the like. Can't use them in narrow locks and not necessary anyway and in wide locks the little pipe fenders don't really help much. Nothing against fenders as such, we use them but not a narrow boat so a bit different.

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If your boat is primarily a house, or a vehicle to get you to the canalside pub, then the rubber tubes might do, if its a boat intended to look pleasing on the canals then proper rope fenders are the way to go.

 

In fact even if it not a traditional boat those rubber fenders are antisocial and evil. When they come off they sink to the bottom but the rope floats just waiting to get caught round somebodies prop. Proper rope fenders float so you can recover them. Rope fenders will easily last ten years so the slight extra cost is easily justified.

 

Fenders are for mooring only, especially when alongside other boats. should never be down whilst cruising, and never never in a lock.

 

.............Dave

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Are we talking about side fenders or front and back fenders? Side fenders are pointless whilst cruising and can cause serious jamming when locking. However, they can be useful preventing the boat from banging againt the canal sides when moored. I have always understood that front and rear fenders are a requirement, and are there to minimise damage to other boats and canal infrastucture if there is an impact, and that the rear fender was also there to prevent the rudder from becoming jammed between closing lock gates when travelling upstream.

 

 

Edited by David Schweizer
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26 minutes ago, David Schweizer said:

I have always understood that front and rear fenders are a requirement, and are there to minimise damage to other boats and canal infrastucture if there is an impact,

 

You are correct , not just front and rear fenders but all fenders should be ready for immediate use - it is written in law :

 

Every vessel navigated on any canal shall have ready for immediate use proper fenders of suitable material and in good condition and the master of such vessel shall use such fenders whenever there is a risk of the vessel striking against any other vessel or against any wall, lockgate, bridge or other thing.

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Doesn't say you have to have them in position just that they should be ready for use. It is for this reason that I spent many years with my bow fender perched next to the T-stud as the steel bow rode the gates better than a fender ever could, and there was zero chance of it hanging up.

 

No that's not strictly true, the bow fender was in the locker at the bow ?

Edited by Loddon
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The problem I have found with those rubber pipe fenders is they squeak and groan a lot at night when moored against concrete or metal.

Especially when moored with tight ropes.  My next lot will be rope ones, which should be a lot quieter!

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9 hours ago, colinashby said:

We need to renew our fenders and were considering replacing them with a metal fender as you often see on hired boats. 

 

Any disadvantages/advantages ?

 

Please tell, where did you get the idea that they were metal tubes?

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I was meaning rear fenders and it is definitely something to consider if it can be included as part of the boat length, although where we are moored fenders are added to mooring charges. 

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19 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

You are correct , not just front and rear fenders but all fenders should be ready for immediate use - it is written in law :

 

Every vessel navigated on any canal shall have ready for immediate use proper fenders of suitable material and in good condition and the master of such vessel shall use such fenders whenever there is a risk of the vessel striking against any other vessel or against any wall, lockgate, bridge or other thing.

 

which "law" ?

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Doesn't answer the OP's query for bow and stern fenders, but on continental waterways fenders must float if they come astray.  Barges, incl. commercials, mostly use TipTop fenders - to give some idea of the style they come in 2 different lengths and look rather like  <TTTTTTT>,  usually attached by lines at each end. They work to protect as you slide alongside a lock wall, and also compress to cushion the hull when moored. They are pretty damn expensive, but are made of recycled rubber which floats, thus making them both legal and easy to recover if the line breaks and they drop into the water.

 

Tam 

 

dutch-barge-tiptop-fender-wrijfhout-zigzag-design-980-dv-p.jpg.dff8ac9ac05400ef9b9dad513f469bd2.jpg

 

 

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4 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

BRITISH WATERWAYS BOARD GENERAL CANAL BYE-LAWS 1965

Section 6 :" Vessels to have fenders ready for use"

 

Happy ?

 

yes, very.   I'm sure you will be the first to agree that anything that is quoted should be properly attributed.    if you don't then you may begin to assume the character of a norty canine who fills the "other space" with drivel.

 

 

ahh!!   a bye-law.  not usually referred to as "the law" .......................  hmmmm    ................................  that waters it down a bit, innit?

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25 minutes ago, Murflynn said:

a bye-law.  not usually referred to as "the law" .......................  hmmmm    ................................  that waters it down a bit, innit?

 

Are you suggesting that Bye-Laws are not laws and breaking of the bye-law is not subject to a fine ?

 

If it is conveneient are you going to ignore all the other bye-laws regarding lights, passing other boats, running your engine in gear whilst moored, etc etc etc ?

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1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Are you suggesting that Bye-Laws are not laws and breaking of the bye-law is not subject to a fine ?

 

If it is conveneient are you going to ignore all the other bye-laws regarding lights, passing other boats, running your engine in gear whilst moored, etc etc etc ?

 

no

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43 minutes ago, Tam &amp; Di said:

Strictly you are right, though I do tend to refer to bye-laws as 'rules' or 'regulations' as they don't have quite the authority of laws passed by Parliament after debate.

 

 

The power to create and enforce bye-laws is one which is granted as part of an Act of Parliament. So yes, they do have the same force of law as those passed by Parliament, albeit at one step removed.

Same is true of many sets of 'Regulations' which are introduced by the relevant Secretary of State (i.e. Minister) under Order-making powers established in an Act of Parliament.

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50 minutes ago, Tam & Di said:

Strictly you are right, though I do tend to refer to bye-laws as 'rules' or 'regulations' as they don't have quite the authority of laws passed by Parliament after debate.

 

Tam

 

Agreed they are not stautory laws passed by parliament, but they are still "laws".

 

Maybe they should be called 'bye-rules' ?

 

Bye-Laws are being used with great effect against boats mooring in Richmond

 

Confirmation of Mooring Byelaws

 

On Thursday 12 February 2015 the Council received confirmation from the Secretary of State that the Byelaw outlined below will come into force one calander month after the date of confirmation.

 

From 13 March 2015 a criminal offence will be committed if any vessel is moored for longer than permitted without the written consent of the Council. The details of the restrictions are detailed in the documents below.

 

The offences associated with this byelaw are criminal offences which are punishable upon summary conviction with a maximum fine of £500 per contravention. Both the owner and the master of a vessel may be prosecuted.

 

http://www.richmond.gov.uk/sealed_mooring_byelaws.pdf

 

You are allowed 1 hour in 24, and if if you exceed this, each hour is classed as another offence and subject to another £500 fine.

 

Bye-laws certainly do have teeth if the decison is made to enforce them (which C&RT seem reluctant to do)

Edited by Alan de Enfield
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3 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

 

Bye-laws certainly do have teeth if the decison is made to enforce them (which C&RT seem reluctant to do)

 

which is the point - if bye-laws are not accompanied by sufficient enforcement resources then they are meaningless; suggesting they are laws is just taking the Piddle. 

 

 

..........................   oh, and don't forget - "the law is an ass"   :rolleyes:

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On 01/06/2021 at 12:35, Alan de Enfield said:

 

You are correct , not just front and rear fenders but all fenders should be ready for immediate use - it is written in law :

 

Every vessel navigated on any canal shall have ready for immediate use proper fenders of suitable material and in good condition and the master of such vessel shall use such fenders whenever there is a risk of the vessel striking against any other vessel or against any wall, lockgate, bridge or other thing.

I'm confused now, doesn't this imply that it's not worth ever not deploying side fenders, contrary to the advice that everyone seems to be giving, as one goes under bridges or into locks most of the time?

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