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High Seas Home Depot

• Thread starter Muttondressedaslamb
• Start date May 12, 2020
• Forums for All Owners
• Ask All Sailors

Muttondressedaslamb

While the manufacturers and sellers of products labeled as marine grade would love you to think that they are the only way to go, most of us, whether due to cost or convenience, have gone the "Home Depot" route, and bought lubricants, varnishes, fasteners, cleaners, as well as mechanical or electrical components from nearby Hardware or Auto stores. I would love to see a section in Sailboatowners.com dedicated to comparing the price and effectiveness to those found at West Marine or online Marine suppliers. Any thoughts on the matter?  

Very hard to keep up-to-date. it would be useful for a very short length of time as a parts list. I think better would be to have discussions around what makes something "marine" grade, and how one can look for how to "marinize" non-marine grade items. Just my 2 cents worth. dj  

Sourcing quality products at a reasonable price often appears on SBO. Last Fall there was a discussion about it and the CEO of Defender.com weighed in on the conversation. More recently there was a discussion about heat shrink solder connections (a terrible product) online. Practical Sailor magazine often reviews both DIY solutions, HW store solutions, and marine solutions and they do a good job. One of their editors frequents SBO and offers greater insight. SBO forums are financially supported by the SBO store and they have been very tolerant of the above discussions and have not moved to quell them, even when posters point to competitors. They also try to price products competitively with the larger businesses. It might be a bit "in your face" to sanction the kind of board you are suggesting. I would not be willing to support such a permanent fixture on SBO. Although, I have and do suggest sources and products from suppliers other than SBO. You are correct, sometimes HW store alternatives are just fine. One product that comes to mind is the Loctite brand of sealants. P-S has reviewed them and in many cases they are a good alternative to name brand marine products. In other cases HW products in some specific applications are fine while in other cases, not so much. I think it is best to let folks post their specific questions about products and sources in any of the relevant existing forums.  

Take a magnet into hardware store if u plan on buying fasteners. Good grade stainless is not magnetic  

dLj said: Very hard to keep up-to-date. it would be useful for a very short length of time as a parts list. I think better would be to have discussions around what makes something "marine" grade, and how one can look for how to "marinize" non-marine grade items. Just my 2 cents worth. dj Click to expand

dlochner said: Sourcing quality products at a reasonable price often appears on SBO. Last Fall there was a discussion about it and the CEO of Defender.com weighed in on the conversation. More recently there was a discussion about heat shrink solder connections (a terrible product) online. Practical Sailor magazine often reviews both DIY solutions, HW store solutions, and marine solutions and they do a good job. One of their editors frequents SBO and offers greater insight. SBO forums are financially supported by the SBO store and they have been very tolerant of the above discussions and have not moved to quell them, even when posters point to competitors. They also try to price products competitively with the larger businesses. It might be a bit "in your face" to sanction the kind of board you are suggesting. I would not be willing to support such a permanent fixture on SBO. Although, I have and do suggest sources and products from suppliers other than SBO. You are correct, sometimes HW store alternatives are just fine. One product that comes to mind is the Loctite brand of sealants. P-S has reviewed them and in many cases they are a good alternative to name brand marine products. In other cases HW products in some specific applications are fine while in other cases, not so much. I think it is best to let folks post their specific questions about products and sources in any of the relevant existing forums. Click to expand

Whatfiero1 said: Take a magnet into hardware store if u plan on buying fasteners. Good grade stainless is not magnetic Click to expand

dLj said: This is a common misunderstanding. 303 stainless steel can be as non-magnetic as a 304 or 316, and both 304 and 316 can be highly magnetic if they have been cold worked which may be highly desirable for strength. With all due respect, I hear this frequently and it is not an adequate test. dj Click to expand

dlochner said: Cold working and becoming magnetized is why the local scrap yard won't give me the 316 price when I recycle old rigging. There is a little bit of magnetic attraction to the rigging when it is 20 years old. Click to expand

One of the places 'marine' quality shows up to me is in electrical products. For instance, tinned Ancor boat wire and cable, at whatever price, is well worth it over straight copper wire or welding cable, IMO. Mass marketing outlets can't supply electrical parts of any kind that will do the job for any length of time in the salt water environment. However, thanks to the internet, an industrious shopper today can find exactly the same quality parts and equipment in other industries that are much cheaper than 'marine' parts. One of the best sources with a huge market, unlike the tiny marine market, is the food service industry for everything from SS sheeting to saltwater proof pumps. And then up pops something like Easy Gardener Sun Screen fabric at Home Depot, which makes the best, longest lasting awnings on a boat I've ever seen. Absolutely incredible stuff! And the outdoor furniture cushions and pillows are coated with something that keeps them clean, dry and mold and mildew free for years! Nothing in the marine market comes close. Too bad they are generally so dam ugly! So, I certainly can't say everything from those stores has no place on a boat.  

capta said: One of the places 'marine' quality shows up to me is in electrical products. For instance, tinned Ancor boat wire and cable, at whatever price, is well worth it over straight copper wire or welding cable, Click to expand

Home Depot sells Gardner Bender tin plated copper wire fittings. I have used these for many years and subjected over 100 of them to 6 months in a salt spray cabinet (wet/dry/wet cycles 4 times a day) as part of a test protecol. They didn't have a mark on them. You can get heat shrink fittings or, as I prefer, slide the heat shrink tube on after crimping. Deck screws are generally 304 or 302 and won't hold up very well. Most of the other nuts and bolts seem to be 316, or rather, I can't recall serious corrosion problems. The purple 3M sandpaper is top notch in testing. I find the best paint brushes at a real paint store, but the cheapest disposable chip brushes come from Michael's. Cheap bungee cords are just that. Locktite PLS40 is a bargain polyurethane sealant that I have been using for 15 years. You just need to keep your eyes open.  

thinwater said: Deck screws are generally 304 or 302 and won't hold up very well. Click to expand

dLj said: Really important in wire is not the tinned wire, but the insulation used on the wire. The wire you mention (I haven't looked it up directly) I imagine has excellent insulation which is really the main concern with wire. Copper wire with the same insulation will also give excellent results in the marine environment. dj Click to expand

The connectors are a totally different subject. You need to be sure to use water proof heat shrink on the connections. If you don't do that, then I'll agree with you, the tinned wire may be better. But if you use water proof connectors, then it is not a problem. The real issue is the insulation of the wire. If you open up that insulation on the ends, as I believe you are suggesting, then you are opening up an avenue for corrosion to enter the wire. Keep all connections water proof and the wire with proper insulation, and you don't need tinned wire. dj  

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Wood Boat Docks (86 products)

Multinautic 5 ft x 10 ft QPF-495 Low profile Aluminum Floating Dock with Kiln-dried Western Cedar Decking

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Patriot Docks 24 ft. Low Profile Floating Dock with Cedar Decking

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Patriot Docks 16 ft. Straight Roll-in Dock with Cedar Decking

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Multinautic 5 ft x 10 ft QPF-495 Aluminum Stationary Dock Kit with Kiln-dried Western Cedar Decking

Patriot Docks 32 ft. Low Profile Floating Dock with Cedar Decking

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Multinautic 4-Section P-Shape QP-320 24 ft. Long Aluminium Truss Frame Stationary Dock Kit with Cedar Decking

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Patriot Docks 4 ft. x 8 ft. Shore Ramp Kit with Cedar Decking

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Multinautic Five 5 ft x 10 ft QPF-495 Low Profile Aluminum Floating Dock Section Kit with Kiln-dried Cedar Decking

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Boat Depot LLC, located in beautiful Key Largo, Florida, sells trailerable fishing boats and performance boats at rock bottom prices. We're easy to find. Our boat yard is located at a major stop light directly across the road from Key Largo Publix Shopping Plaza. Stop on in and look at our boats for sale. You'll be glad you did.

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Homemade Hardtop

• By Tor Pinney
• Updated: October 23, 2015

In warm climates, where so many of us keep boats or aspire to cruise, fabric bimini tops and spray dodgers suffer the wrath of year-round sun and exposure to the elements. First they start leaking, and have to be waterproofed periodically. Then the thread breaks down, requiring more and more re-stitching. Finally, at least on Silverheels , my ketch-rigged Pearson 424 built in 1978, the whole shooting match needs to be replaced every five to seven years. It’s a bothersome, costly, recurring maintenance item.

Not surprisingly, permanent fiberglass and composite hard dodgers and biminis have gained wide popularity among sailors seeking longevity and low maintenance from their cockpit protection. However, unless your craftsmanship is well above average, designing and fabricating such structures is best left to professionals, and that can get expensive.

All that said, I’m possessed of modest carpentry skills and an equally modest cruising budget, and yet I’ve come up with what I believe is an excellent compromise for the casual do-it-yourselfer. When Silverheels’ spray dodger top and bimini needed replacing, I made my own with fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) panels from Home Depot. Yes, Home  Depot.

Durable, flexible FRP panels come in 4-by-8-foot sheets and, last time I looked, cost less than $40 apiece. Commonly used for paneling bathroom walls in homes, they feature a raised, textured, high-gloss white finish on one side, and are flat and dull on the other. The best thing about FRP is that it can be cut, drilled and shaped using ordinary carpentry tools.

I wanted something substantial on my bluewater cruiser, so I opted to laminate a pair of panels, back to back, for my dodger and bimini tops. I scuffed the flat sides and glued them together, leaving the handsome texture facing out on both the top and bottom. One-gallon cans of the FRP adhesive made by Liquid Nails sell for around $25. Pick up a grooved trowel to spread the stuff properly. The only other material expenses of note are the stainless-steel fasteners to mount the pieces. You could also add a foam core for an even stiffer, stronger structure. The other option is to keep it really light and simple by using single sheets and skipping the laminating process altogether.

I actually made my dodger hardtop years before the bimini, when I was first refitting my good old ketch. It turned out well and has lasted perfectly with zero maintenance, so recently I decided to do something similar to replace my aging Sunbrella bimini top. In both cases I used the existing stainless-steel tube framework, simply replacing the Sunbrella covers with FRP.

The dodger top was relatively quick and easy to ­fabricate. I made a template with door skin (thin, flexible wood veneer), cut the first pieces from an FRP panel with a jigsaw, and then cut mirror-image pieces to glue on top. Clamping the bottom pieces onto the dodger frame, I then spread on the adhesive and clamped on the top laminate. These FRP panels are quite flexible, and easily made the pronounced bend at the outboard ends. I also laminated a ⅜-inch plywood core in the center section of the hardtop for mounting a hinged boom crutch.

While the adhesive was setting up, I screwed the laminated pieces directly onto the frames with stainless-steel, self-tapping sheet screws. After smoothing off the edges with a wood rasp, I primed and painted the top to tone down the high gloss of the panels’ stark white finish, and to add a little extra protection against the elements. Finally, I installed an awning track beneath the forward edge and had its counterpart boltrope sewn onto a Strataglass windshield so it would slide into place. Presto! I had a permanent, maintenance-free, rainproof dodger top.

Because Silverheels is an aft-cockpit ketch, her bimini top was more complex to design and fabricate. To sail the boat properly, I need ready access to the mizzen boom and sail from the cockpit. This requires some kind of opening through the bimini top. I had accomplished this in my original Sunbrella bimini with zippered “hatch flaps,” and I incorporated them into the after-section of my new hardtop as well. But to cover the two forward access cutouts, I made a pair of low-profile sliding hatches. Of course, most cruising sailboats, not having a mizzen, won’t need access hatches, thus making their hardtop bimini much simpler, quicker and easier to fabricate.

It made sense to laminate, cut and shape the bimini panels on a temporary dockside workbench instead of in place on their frames (as I had done with the dodger), and this time I fastened them to the frames with U-bolts rather than self-tapping screws. Because my boat’s cockpit is wider than a single 8-foot panel would cover, I had to use port and starboard sections, seamed in the middle, which necessitated a stainless-steel “backbone” for the center joint. There are also two smaller panels aft, shortened to leave room for Silverheels ‘ mizzenmast’s running backstays.

Laminating the panels on the broad, flat pier was quick and easy. However, fitting the bimini entailed several dry runs, each time refining the fit and features on the frames and then removing the pieces to the workbench for execution, where I also painted them and installed the “sail view” windows just prior to the final installation. Once it was all bolted down, a bead of bedding compound sealed the center seams. An awning track along the forward edge holds a zipper for a Sunbrella filler piece that connects the dodger top to the bimini top in wet weather. Still to come are a gutter for rain catchment along the bimini top’s outboard edges, and perhaps port and starboard solar panels on top. For boats that keep the spray dodger and bimini top up all the time, replacing the fabric with inexpensive, easy-to-work FRP panels is an alternative worth considering. It’s a simple, straightforward project that provides lasting benefits.

A longtime contributor to CW whose first article appeared in 1979, Tor Pinney is a writer, photographer, marine consultant and veteran cruising sailor with 150,000 nautical miles under sail. He’s also the author of the acclaimed reference book Ready for Sea! How to Outfit the Modern Cruising Sailboat. For more on Tor’s ventures, visit his website (www.tor.cc).

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27 Homemade Boat Plans You Can DIY Easily

Building a boat might sound like a big project – and depending on the kind of boat you want, it can be. However, with the right plan, it’s far from impossible, offering you the prospect of owning a boat without spending huge amounts of money on it.

For anyone who thinks that sounds like a fun challenge, we’ve had a look online to see what other people have been trying – and as a result, here are our favorite 27 DIY boat plans you might like to have a go at copying at home.

Table of Contents

1. How to Build a Boat – Popularmechanics.com

2. how to build a sneak boat – kara hummer plans, 3. know how: build your own boat – sail magazine, 4. build a 7.5ft boat with 2 sheets of plywood, 5. build your own 12′ x 4′ simple aluminum boat – boat design net, 6. diy foldable boat for only 30$ fits in car backseat, 7. build a wooden boat – mother earth news, 8. portable boat plans, 9. weekender sailboat build, 10. swamp boats, 11. welcome to my dreamboat project, 12. homemade pontoon boat: 8 steps (with pictures) – instructables, 13. $100 homemade kayak, 14. how to build a recumbent pontoon pedal boat – mother earth news, 15. how to make boat using pvc pipe and 42cc 2-stroke engine, 16. pontoon boat picnic table: 8 steps (with pictures) – instructables, 17. wooden boat building step 1: lofting boat plans, 18. homebuilt pontoon boat/double-hull kayak, 19. homemade cooler fishing boat with foldable pontoons, 21. diy boat plan: a rowboat can support a trolling motor, 22. building a wooden boat: 12 steps (with pictures) – instructables, 23. one sheet sampan, 24. building a cheap sail catamaran, 25. couple builds wooden yacht in backyard – 5-year amazing time lapse, 26. plywood lath coracle, 27. diy simple wooden toy boat: woodworking for kids, lots of great plans for all kinds of boats.

If you’re toying with the idea of building your own boat , this post will be a fascinating read. In it, this DIYer explains how he dusted off some decades-old plans for building a boat to try his hand at his ancestral trade. It takes you through the process in great detail, giving you plenty of info about each step, so once you’ve finished reading, you’ll have a much better idea about whether this is a project you want to tackle.

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For anyone who enjoys duck hunting and who wants to try building their own sneak boat, this is a video for you. In it, this YouTuber explains how he tackled a similar project, giving you all the tips and advice you’ll need to make a success of your project when it’s your turn to try.

This post is not exactly a plan as such, but it’s full of the kind of useful information that any first-time boatbuilder should know. The writer starts off by listing all the reasons why you really shouldn’t build your own boat – and if after reading that, you’re still determined to go ahead with it, his experience and advice will help make sure you make the best job of it.

Depending on what you hope to achieve – as well as your previous DIY and boat-building experience – your chances of success when trying to build your own boat can vary enormously. However, if what you hope to make is a modest boat of the kind you can take into a lake for a day of fishing, that’s the kind of thing most people can hope to achieve. And if that sounds like you, this video tutorial will show you how to make a serviceable 7.5ft craft from two sheets of plywood.

The aluminum boat this post teaches you to make is suitable for rowing or being propelled by a small motor . It’s ideal for sheltered inland waterways for activities like fishing, and if that sounds like the kind of thing you want to make, this post includes pdf plans that tell you exactly how to do it.

Making a DIY boat doesn’t need to cost a fortune, and if you’re on a limited budget, this is the plan for you. In it, you’ll learn how to make a small foldable boat that you’ll be able to fit in the back seat of your car – without spending more than about $30. Sound like something you’d like to try? Then give the video a watch!

In this post, you’ll find detailed instructions for making a simple yet elegant wooden boat that would be perfect for fishing trips out onto a lake or many other similar activities. We like the way this plan includes a simple step-by-step guide along with plenty of diagrams to show you exactly what you need to do, allowing you to make something just like it at home.

This is a great resource for anyone who is thinking of building themselves a simple pleasure craft since it contains not just one but several relatively easy boat-building plans. You can browse the plan and choose from a swan boat, a sheet ply skiff, a composite cruiser and several others. And then when you know which one you want to build, this site has all the details you’ll need to make a success of it.

For those looking for a more ambitious project, this video should be worth a look. In it, you get to see the development as this YouTuber’s sailboat took shape between September 2001 and summer 2002. It’s not exactly the kind of plan you’ll be able to follow exactly, but his impressive work should be a source of inspiration. Then it’s just down to you to find out how to build something similar yourself.

As you can see from the photos in this post, boats like this have been around for many years – and boats like this are found around the world anywhere that shallow waters or swamps exist. They’re simple to make too, and this plan gives you all the info you need to make one, including sourcing the wood from growing trees and putting the whole thing together. A fun project and one we’re sure plenty of people will enjoy attempting.

If you’re looking for a long watch – and a possible source of inspiration – this video is the first part of a multi-episode series about how this YouTuber went about building his dream boat . For those who are interested, it’s sure to give you some ideas about what’s possible – as well as plenty of ideas for how to tackle it.

We love the way the boat in this tutorial looks. It’s so basic and unpretentious, but it also looks like a whole lot of fun. Want to know how to make one yourself? Then check out this post for more details.

Buying a ready-made kayak can set you back a whole lot of money, but with a few basic DIY skills and a little bit of determination, you can build one yourself for much less. This video teaches you how to make one for only $100, offering a saving that sounds too good to refuse.

If you’ve ever wanted to own your own pedal boat , this is the plan for you because it teaches you how to build one yourself! It discusses important issues like flotation and gives you all the information you need to complete the project. And if you think you’d like to have a go, why not see if you can build something similar?

Here’s an original idea we loved! In this video, this YouTuber shows us how he built a functioning boat – out of PVC pipe! It’s certainly unconventional, but it looks like it works perfectly. So if anyone is looking for a fun and off-the-wall to try project, this could be just the thing!

The boat in this plan is one of our favorites because, while technically it’s a DIY pontoon boat , in practice, it’s more like a floating picnic table. With a boat like this, you can power out to the middle of the lake before cutting the engine and enjoying a nice lunch in perfect tranquility. This is something we’re thinking of trying ourselves!

This video is the first instalment in a series of tutorials detailing how this YouTuber built a boat from scratch. This part deals with the start of the project and lofting the boat plans , but if you like the way he works, you can also check out the other videos he’s uploaded and see how the final thing turns out.

For anyone who wants to make a functional boat without spending a fortune, this plan is perfect. The boat it teaches you to make is very “DIY” since it’s made of nothing more than PVC piping and some other similarly inexpensive materials. However, it looks like it floats, so if that’s all you need – and you aren’t too worried about looking flash – this is a plan that could be fun to copy.

If you like fishing and you’re looking for ideas for an individual fishing boat, you’re going to love this video. In it, we get to see this YouTuber’s eccentric creation that, to us, looks a bit like a floating armchair perched on top of three coolers. But that sounds like all you need for a great fishing trip, right? And we’re sure lots of people will enjoy trying to make something similar.

The sub-heading to this plan is “as simple as it can get”, and that’s a pretty accurate way of describing this boat, both in terms of design and construction. The details state it has a displacement of 230lbs, so it can comfortably accommodate one person, allowing you to get out on the water without spending much money at all.

This short tutorial gives you a simple suggestion for building a motorboat that is both easy and inexpensive to make. In the video, you can see that the boat struggles a little with two people in it, but it still works. This could be a great project to attempt for anyone who wants to have a go at building their first boat, and if that includes you, it’s recommended watching.

This is the third plan we’ve included from the Instructables website, but this is by far the most professional of the three. The boat this tutorial teaches you to build looks as though it could have been made by a professional. The plan is easy to follow though, so if this is the kind of boat you want , this is a post that should be well worth a look.

As this post explains, a sampan is a type of boat from Southeast Asia, and the word “sampan” comes from the Chinese meaning “three planks”. They are a popular boat in the region because they are easy to construct and extremely reliable, and if you’d like to try building one yourself, this plan will teach you how to do it.

This is a plan for anyone who’s up for a challenge because in it, you’ll learn how to make a DIY sail catamaran. The video is only about five minutes long, but as long you have some reasonable DIY skills and a bit of common sense, it shouldn’t be too hard to replicate, so why not see if you’re up to the task?

While not many people will have the time, skills or determination to finish a project like the one in this video, we still thought it merits a place on our list because of how impressive what they did is. Over five years, this couple built their own boat from scratch, and this video documents their progress. Check it out – it will blow your mind!

Among the very first boats ever invented, the coracle is a simple design that’s easy to make and fun to play about in. And if you think you might like to have a go, this is the plan that will teach you how to do it!

Perhaps building a real full-sized boat might be a bit much for you – but if you have kids, maybe making a miniature toy one with them could still be fun. It could also be a way to fire their creativity and imagination, and who knows? When they grow up, maybe they’ll build a real one for you in return!

As you can see, whatever kind of boat you hope to build, there are all kinds of plans that will show you how to do it.

We’ve enjoyed collecting these plans for you, so we hope you’ve enjoyed reading and watching them too. And above all, we hope we’ve helped you find the plan you were looking for to build a DIY boat of your own.

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The Boat Galley

making boat life better

Best Clothespins for Boats

Published on June 25, 2014 ; last updated on January 21, 2023 by Carolyn Shearlock

The lowly clothespin has a few problems when you take it on a boat.

Number two, most don’t grip the clothing particularly tightly and can pop off. At the best, clothing falls on deck and has to be rehung; worse is falling into salt water and needing to be re-washed (using more precious water); and worst is going overboard, sinking and not being found.

On a sailboat, the lifelines are the first place that clothes get hung and the jib sheets are typically second. But jib sheets are larger than normal clothesline, and most pins don’t hold at all well.

And number three, the wood gets dirty over time and also stains your nice clean items.

None of the following solutions is perfect, I’ll admit. The first one eliminates most of the problems, but isn’t cheap; the others each still have some problems.

Stainless clothespins. These 100% stainless clothespins won’t rust or stain clothes, and they can be washed easily to get the dirt off them. They also grip much more tightly than the “normal” clothespin. The drawback is that they cost about $1 per clothespin . . . but that’s less than the cost of losing a good piece of clothing or towel overboard. Available in sets of 20 from:

• Amazon — a better deal if you have Amazon Prime (click to get a free  30-day trial ) or are buying something else to qualify for free shipping
• Lee Valley Tools — lower unit price but high shipping

Plastic clothespin with galvanized spring. These aren’t 100% rust-proof, but do rust a lot less than the wooden ones with the regular spring. They also have more grip and with the larger hole size, do well on jib sheets. Finally, dirt can be easily washed off.

While I lust for the stainless clothespins, these are what I use due to the fact that I get three times as many for about the same price. You can also get plastic clothespins that look very similar to the wooden ones, but they don’t have the rust-resistant galvanized springs and are just as prone to popping off due to their design as the wooden ones. The style shown here do cost a bit more but are much better. I bought mine at Amazon. ( Update : These are different from mine but they’re highly rated and available now).

All-wood clothespins.  While these avoid the rust-staining problem, they tend to pull at clothing (especially t-shirts and other knit items) in funny ways. They also get dirty and it’s next to impossible to really get them clean. I’ve also had lots of problems with them popping off and they don’t fit well on anything thick.

That said, they are inexpensive and several readers have written to recommend them.

Low tech and limited. A very low tech solution is to pass whatever line you’re using through a sleeve, leg, or belt loop of your “good” clothing and then securely tie off both ends. This works well, but you can’t use the lifelines or jib sheets this way (or at least it’s not easy to) and what do you do with rags, towels, sheets and other flat items? You still need some clothespins that work for them.

• Doing Laundry By Hand
• Super-Secure Clothesline Without Clothespins
• In the Laundry Room

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Reader Interactions

Chris&Janet says

June 25, 2014 at 8:02 am

We have found that PVC-Coated 2″ Steel Wire Clips such as those offered by Amazon work fine, and corrosion can be eliminated. Just put a dab of liquid rope whipping on the open tips of the plastic sleeving. We have clips that are over nine years old that still do the job sans rust.

Set of PVC Coated Clips

On really windy days we pull out our plastic carpentry clamps and use those.

Like these: 4 inch Micro Spring Clamps

Sarah Silverstein says

June 25, 2014 at 1:45 pm

I also have found the PVC-coated steel wire clips from Amazon to be the sturdiest hold and longest lasting of anything else I’ve tried. These clips have become a valued necessity on board. When visitors are coming, these are the first things to be ordered and put in the Amazon.com cart!!

Sarah SV Field Trip

June 25, 2014 at 8:15 am

Here in the Philippines we use a plastic clothespin (doesn’t rust) which uses a steel spring (which will rust but not that much) shaped like a ‘C’. It has a large ‘c’ in each side which perfectly fits over handrails and similar large diameter supports. For smaller line, the ends clamp shut fairly tightly onto the clothes. We use them a lot – a favorite place to hang stuff is on the targa supports which are prime places to bump one’s head. The hanging clothes reminds everyone to duck.

Felecia Masoudi says

June 25, 2014 at 9:21 am

We use Mainstays 12-pack Hanger Clips, White. They work and there is no metal at all in them. Added bonus they are super cheap.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Mainstays-12-pack-Hanger-Clips-White/19716407

Sarah Walker says

June 25, 2014 at 3:19 pm

Eco force are brilliant. Hurricane force supposedly.

Carolyn Weckesser says

June 25, 2014 at 3:27 pm

We use inexpensive plastic clothes pins that have no metal parts. But what makes the difference is where we put the pins – we do not pin to the lines, but fold the clothes/towels over the lines and pin them on the sides, parallel to the line. This creates a “tube” and any significant wind just makes the clothes “spin dry”. There is little to no pressure on the pins, you can use any size line! And best of all, using this technique we have never lost an item of clothes or a pin overboard.

Verena says

June 26, 2014 at 12:49 am

You have to try these: Hanger Grip Clips from Amazon . One can hold up a wet towel in a blow! They don’t rust and after two years on our rail are still holding up well!

June 26, 2014 at 12:11 am

we ‘recycled’ the black spring clamps from the big box hardware store as monster clothespins. We clip our towels right to the stern rail, no problem 🙂

David Johnson says

September 29, 2017 at 11:03 am

Another vote for small 1″ plastic-body spring clamps. These will hold towels in a stiff breeze. We have tried everything under the sun and only spring clamps really work well. The only problem is that the spring will rust, but the design of the clamp usually keeps the rust away from the clothes. You can find these at most hardware stores, or you can buy bags of these from Amazon. There are also thousands of other uses for these and the larger sizes of spring clamp.

paula smith says

June 26, 2014 at 7:57 am

we use coleman plastic covered camping clothespins and they are very strong, never rust or lose grip. have had same ones for years. available in any camping dept at discount stores (got ours at target) and i’m sure amazon has although haven’t checked.

Jackie says

June 26, 2014 at 3:59 pm

What I’ve noticed that many of the locals use here in Guatemala is a twisted clothes line. It’s 2 lines twisted together and they just open a spot where they twist and put a “corner” or other bit of fabric into the twist. It’s not ideal because you end up with a wrinkled spot where it’s been put “into” the line, but there’s absolutely nothing to rust and it seems it would hold securely. I don’t know where you can buy them, but they must be available…and a DYI option would be to make one yourself. Maybe even use bungy cords.

Carolyn Shearlock says

June 27, 2014 at 6:27 am

I’ve used ones like this that are available as “travel” clothes lines. In addition to the wrinkled corners, my problem was that unless you had the line VERY tight (and that makes it hard to tuck bits of fabric in the twists), things fell off if the wind gusted, particularly heavier items.

You can buy them on Amazon: Travel Clothesline

Simonne says

June 30, 2014 at 9:52 am

I sometimes use a very, very oldfashioned way to hang the laundry, without using any pins. Ik wish I could explain this in English, but I wouldn’t know how to… I give you this URL, and you can see for yourselves how (in the 1900s) the laundry was hung. The laundry is perfectly safe in all winds under 12 Beaufort! Have fun looking at this very old Dutch way of hanging the laundry. And no, women in the Netherlands are not all wearing those clothes, only in a couple of very old villages, by the older women. :-)) Sorry, it is in Dutch, but you’ll get the idea. And: it really works! Try it out!

https://sites.google.com/site/wasvrouwanno1900/home/urk-wedstijd-wasophangen

D Johnson says

June 28, 2016 at 7:37 am

We use spring clamps available from most hardware stores. I find uses for multiple sizes around the boat, but the smallest sizes work well for boat laundry. Short of a storm, clothes will not blow away. Home Depot sells bags of assorted sizes of plastic spring clamps.

Lamarr Harding says

July 14, 2016 at 8:32 pm

I hang my button shirts on plastic hangers. My pants through belt loops with snap hooks (such as you would use on a dog leash). My towels on the towel hooks where they usually hang. Sox and undies inside over hanging hand hold rods. (I’m old have 1/2 inch grab bars to ballance myself)

Ted Reshetiloff says

September 29, 2017 at 11:01 am

Claudia check out the stainless ones. We’ve found the plastic ones with springs don’t hold up to the UV in the Caribbean. Curious about the ss option tho thanks!

Kristy Dunning says

September 29, 2017 at 2:27 pm

I love those stainless clips. They are wonderful – really work!

Annika Elias says

September 29, 2017 at 2:46 pm

Also check out FixClip. You can use them on both lifelines and larger pulpit tubes. http://Www.fixclip.se

Hans Zephyr says

September 29, 2017 at 3:01 pm

Whatever you buy, NOT plastic. Somehow it will end in the ocean. Use stainless or wood

Tod Mills says

September 29, 2017 at 5:40 pm

Has anyone tried cutting short lengths of PVC pipe, then cutting through one wall lengthwise to form a C whose ends touch? I use those for clamps often, but never tried them as a clothespin. Pipe diameter to suit (you need to be able to get fingers in to spread it open).

Joni Goodman says

September 29, 2017 at 4:12 pm

These are my favorites: Household Essentials 12 Count Soft-Touch Plastic Clothespins http://amzn.to/2BR9qFH

Pontus göth says

July 22, 2018 at 8:39 pm

FIXCLIP is all you need!

FIXCLIP is a brand new and innovative lockable clip made for challenging and windy conditions, on a boat, at home, or at work. With FIXCLIP’s unique features we can now offer a clip that holds its grip even under the toughest conditions.

NEW TECHNOLOGY

FIXCLIP’s patented dual knee-lock and self-locking friction arms provide unique grip-holding properties. FIXCLIP has no metal springs and therefore no problems with rust.

NEW OPPORTUNITIES

FIXCLIP keeps a firm grip on towels, clothes, tarpaulins, etc., even in strong winds. This offers new possibilities, for example airing/drying clothes and towels during a boat ride or on a balcony, without worrying blowing away.

ONE SIZE FITS ALL

The flexible grip range of 5-32 mm (0.2”- 1.3″) enables a broad use of FIXCLIP – one size fits all.

WINNER OF THE PLASTIC INNOVATION AWARDS 2015 Buy on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2NEAcGO

Cap'n Dave says

July 12, 2019 at 7:56 am

Lots of negative reviews on this one, folks. Check them out before you make your decision.

February 20, 2019 at 8:17 am

Just discovered these on another boat. unfortunately they can only be purchased in Europe… https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001E6J5G4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A1OG5O1311K26Z&psc=1

Henrik Hafstrøm says

February 28, 2019 at 12:08 am

These Omega pegs in stainless steel are the best. Thay will keep the clothes on the wire rail guard almost no matter how strong the wind is. There made in Italy from AISI 304 stainless steel (also the sping), so the do not rust. https://popotamus.net/shop/frontpage.html

Morgan Youngblood says

April 20, 2019 at 10:23 am

We have been using those stainless clothespins from Amazon and they have held really well so far and are holding up. Bonus that they come in lots of different colors 🙂

Pontus Göth says

December 11, 2019 at 11:22 am

FIXCLIP has won first price of plastic innovation awards 2015 and it not for nothing. The one star reviews are from people that doesn’t understand thet you need to lock the tow knee arms because it has no metal springs. If you lock them it will perform as the strongest and most versatile clip on the market, Look att the 5 star reviews thay ar the true reviews from people that use them right.

If you still not convinced se this review from the blogg seabits: https://seabits.com/fixclip-last-clips-will-ever-need/

FXCLIP MINI will be soon released. its a smaller version for lifelines and clothes lines and is super strong. It holds up to 20 kg /44 lbs pulling force. At a price point of 6-7 USD for a 16-pack.

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Home Depot now has its own ship. That’s an ominous sign

As congestion chokes ocean carrier service, some shippers are taking matters into their own hands..

One of America’s largest retailers, Home Depot (NYSE: HD ), has just reserved a ship for its sole use. The move underscores just how tight trans-Pacific capacity has become and how worried retailers are about getting goods on shelves at any cost.

In an article published Sunday , CNBC interviewed Home Depot President Ted Decker, who said that the ship will exclusively carry Home Depot cargo, will begin service in July, and was employed because consumer demand caught Home Depot by surprise.

A Home Depot spokesperson confirmed the CNBC report but declined to offer additional details to American Shipper, such as the ship’s name, the duration of its use and whether Home Depot is working with a freight forwarder intermediary.

A company the size of Home Depot has high-volume long-term contracts with ocean carriers at lower rates than smaller shippers. However, carriers have been unable to fully meet contract commitments due to extreme congestion, and simultaneously, retail inventory-to-sales ratios remain historically low . Home Depot’s decision confirms that costly workarounds are now on the table.

“This strikes me as an extreme scenario,” said Simon Sundboell, founder of maritime intelligence platform eeSea. “I cannot imagine it is a larger ship, because there aren’t any available, so you’re not looking to compete on slot costs. You’re just looking very, very short term at getting the boxes you need into your warehouses.”

According to Stefan Verberckmoes, shipping analyst and Europe editor at Alphaliner, “If the shipper has urgent cargo and the carrier doesn’t have a ship, that’s when the shipper looks for ad-hoc solutions. I think these are all emergency ad-hoc sailings to get urgent cargo delivered,” he said of the Home Depot news and recent ship charters by European freight forwarders.

“Right now, it’s really about, ‘OK, we need these goods urgently. Let’s try to fix [charter] something ourselves now because we can’t rely on the big carriers,’” he told American Shipper, adding, “To me, it’s a temporary thing for the Christmas season.”

Going around the liners

The idea of going around ocean carriers and employing a ship for the benefit of specific importers is not new. Amazon (NYSE: AMZN ) is a licensed non-vessel-operating common carrier (NVOCC). American Shipper has been told by a source that Amazon filled the majority of slots on several extra loaders during last holiday season. An extra loader is a container ship that is not a part of a regular service.

A source in the container-ship-lessor space confirmed that more inquiries are now coming from freight forwarders. Already, multiple ships have been chartered this year by freight forwarders in the Asia-Europe trade.

“During the last couple of months, we have seen freight forwarders like Panalpina and DSV fixing small multipurpose ships that are built to carry heavy lift but they can take maybe 800-900 TEU [twenty-foot equivalent units] of containers,” noted Verberckmoes. “There was also a freight forwarder in the UK that chartered three ships from the Far East to Liverpool. And we have China United Lines, which began with sailings backed by an organization of supermarkets in Europe that had a problem getting containers, and that service is now fortnightly.”

Just temporary, not long term

Recent events do not imply that importers will seek to cut out the liner middlemen as a long-term strategy.

“If a forwarder is chartering a multipurpose ship, the slot costs of this transport may be affordable when you look at how high spot rates are at the moment, but in the longer term, the spot rates will come down and running an 800-TEU ship yourself when you have professional shipowners running 20,000-TEU ships doesn’t make sense,” said Verberckmoes.

A shipper would also almost certainly need a freight-forwarding partner to circumvent ocean carriers. “It is normally going through a forwarder or an NVOCC,” said Verberckmoes. “You can charter a ship as a shipper, but you need to have a contract with a terminal. It’s not so easy to organize yourself. If you had some shippers organizing their own service — and I don’t think that’s likely — you’d have all the small [chartered] ships coming into ports between the big ships, and that would become a mess.”

According to Sundboell, “If you’re a Home Depot, you’ve never done this [operate a shipping service]. You would clearly have to have a partner such as a freight forwarder.”

And while the Home Depot news highlights the severity of the current market tightness, such non-liner cargo moves remain minimal. “If you compare all these with the mega-alliances, the overall capacity is peanuts,” said Verberckmoes.

Scheduled versus unscheduled

The bigger picture involves the mix between liner services on scheduled rotations and cargo moves that are effectively unscheduled. The latter includes ship charters by freight forwarders as well as extra loaders used by liners. Given more unscheduled voyages and the fact that virtually all scheduled services are well behind schedule, ports and shippers face unprecedented uncertainty on import timing in 2021.

If liners have extra tonnage but it doesn’t match the TEU size of ships in a scheduled “string” (service), it will often be used as an extra loader. According to Verberckmoes, “If carriers have a ship available of the right size, they will put it in a normal schedule, but what we see is that mostly these extra loaders are much smaller.

“If you can find a 4,000-TEU Panamax to send from the Far East to Europe or Los Angeles, you will not have it doing the full rotation,” said Verberckmoes. “It will serve as a ‘cleanup’ vessel to clean up the rollovers.” (A rollover occurs when a shipper’s cargo is not loaded on its scheduled departure.)

Sundboell explained, “We used to call them ‘vacuum cleaners.’ They used to be used to clean up empty containers and take them back to Asia. Now, obviously, it goes both ways.” Another reason a ship would be used as an extra loader and not just added to a string, Sundboell said, is “if you add a ship to a string, there’s an expectation that it will do all the port calls.” In contrast, an extra loader’s port calls “are planned voyage by voyage, almost like a tramp vessel.”

Tramp versus liner service

“Tramp” shipping refers to nonscheduled service, which is the norm in tanker and dry bulk shipping. One of the consequences of the COVID-era capacity crunch is that container shipping is starting to feel more tramp-like. While the specifics on the Home Depot deal have not been revealed, it is clearly more akin to a short-term tramp commodity shipping charter than to traditional container liner shipping.

“It has a kind of tramp feeling,” acknowledged Verberckmoes of the market situation in general. “But extra loaders and ad-hoc shipments by shippers or forwarders are marginal. It’s still 99% liner services.”

He added, “We also see the same kind of tramp feeling in the feeder services [a feeder is a ship that loads cargo transshipped at a hub and delivers it to a regional port]. Feeders now have to be highly flexible, but it’s still liner shipping.”

According to Sundboell, “From the customer point of view, if you have a weekly departure and it is delayed by 21 days, how can you call that liner shipping?

“But it is still fundamentally liner shipping,” Sundboell affirmed. “The terminals, the feeder connections, the rail, the trucking — it all hinges on the fact that you theoretically have a window. Everything is now heavily delayed, but my take is that carriers are attempting to get back to a liner-shipping scenario, where things work closer to clockwork. As a carrier — especially a carrier like Maersk that’s selling vertical integration — if you don’t meet your windows, it all has a domino effect and there’s a significant cost.”

Click for more articles by Greg Miller  

Related articles:

• Container rates rocket even higher — and there’s no end in sight
• Time to start prepping for Christmas shipping capacity crunch
• Top 10 liners control 85% of the market — and they’re not done yet
• Inside container shipping’s COVID-era money-printing machine
• Container ship scores ‘off the charts,’ ‘fantasy’ charter rate: $135,000/day
• Why stratospheric container rates could rocket even higher
• Flexport: Trans-Pacific deteriorating, brace for shipping ‘tsunami’

Greg Miller