How to Keep Your Lines Clean and Running Free When Sailing

Lines control just about everything on a boat, whether it's a dinghy or big boat. Keep lines in good shape, and stay on top of them while under way and you will have smooth sailing and be able to perform quick maneuvers.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Mild Soap
• Buckets
• Halyards
• Seaman's Knives
• jib, main, spinnaker sheets

1. Run the full length of all lines through your hands checking for knots, twists and hockles.
2. Rig slowly, and make sure your lines are not run through the wrong block and/or under or inside of lines of which they should be on top or outside.
3. Walk the deck of your boat after rigging, and check for spots where lines are likely to hang up, such as hatches, cleats, stanchions, shrouds, windows and companionways. Tape over areas where it seems sensible to do so.
4. Instruct your crew on where to sit, stand and be on the lookout for line hang-ups.
5. Clean up the lines on deck and in the cockpit after every tack, jibe, sail change, and spinnaker sets and takedowns. This way, the next maneuver will go smoothly.
6. Rinse your lines with fresh water after use, coil them neatly and hang them in a dry place away from direct sunlight.

Tips & Warnings

• Appoint one crew member to be in charge of cleaning up the lines while sailing, but make sure everyone knows what to look for and where to look if you have a hang-up.
• Teach your entire crew how to rig each line so that they understand its function and can fix it while under way should something go wrong.
• Soak salty lines in a bucket of fresh water with a small amount of mild soap to prevent them from getting stiff and rough on your hands.
• Lines that are not rigged properly, get hung up or are in bad condition can cause hardware to break and, in turn, can cause injury or death - especially on larger boats with heavy loads.