It happens to every sailor eventually: motoring through an area of lobster traps or crab pots, or even through open water, a line or piece of net catches in your prop and the engine abruptly stalls and won't restart. More than just an annoyance, a fouled prop can suddenly create a dangerous situation. You may be in a crowded channel or in danger of drifting onto rocks. The water may be freezing cold. And if it's never happened to you before, and you don't recognize the problem and know what to do immediately, you may be befuddled long enough for the boat to get into real trouble.
Possible Scenarios
- You are motoring along and without warning the engine simply stops. You restart but it just makes a funny sound and dies again when you put it in gear. The boat is drifting free on a current or blown toward shore.
- You are motoring when the engine and boat both come to a grinding halt. Without warning, you are "anchored" by the stern, the wind or waves tugging at the boat and putting great pressure on your prop shaft (or spade rudder).
- You are motoring and the engine suddenly falters and the RPMs drop way down. Throttling up makes no difference, and you're barely making headway.
- You've been sailing but are now approaching the harbor, your mooring or dock, or a channel homeward. You drop the sails and start the engine, but it dies right after putting it in gear. You're adrift between a rock and a hard place.
Have the Right Gear Ready
Freeing your boat from a nasty and potentially dangerous situation will require both the right equipment and effective actions, and you should plan ahead for both. It's not good enough to be able to figure out what to do if you lose precious time looking for equipment.
In some cases you can free the prop without having to cut loose the tangled line or net (as described in the strategies below) - but don’t depend on that. In most cases you'll need to be prepared with the right gear to get free:
- Every boat should have a sharp knife aboard, for many reasons. A serrated blade cuts much faster through a line under tension. A wrist lanyard on the knife is helpful if you might have to dive beneath the boat - it's easy to drop a knife in that circumstance!
- A specialized long blade on an extension handle, like the Hooknife made expressly for this purpose, makes the job easier and can save you from having to go in the water.
- Every sailboat should carry a boat hook, or preferably two, since it can easily be pulled or jerked out of your hand when a wave moves the boat. The longer the better, in case you have to reach deep below the surface to snag a line.
- Swim goggles or a dive mask are essential in case you have to go below the boat to cut the prop free. You don't want muddled vision while manipulating a sharp blade while trying to hold on against buoyancy and currents.
- If you sail in a cold water area, keep a wetsuit on board. With a severely fouled prop, it can take repeated dives to cut off a line - and if you're shaking with cold you might not be able to do it all.
- If you sail after dark, you should also have a waterproof flashlight, preferably a headlamp. Because of your buoyancy, you'll need one hand to hold on to the prop, shaft, or strut while using the knife with your other hand.
Read on for what to do when it happens to you.
