Storm Prep
Storm Prep starts before the storm.
Most boat owners only think about two things in their dock setup: the rope and the fender. There are nine.
Below is what NORTHGEAR has learned about the connection between your boat and the dock — and the nine specific ways it fails.
If you've ever walked the dock at 2 a.m. before a storm, this is for you.
The Connection Chain.
When a boat is tied to a dock, there isn't just rope between them. There's an engineered chain of nine components, any one of which can fail under load.
Most boat owners only know two of these. NORTHGEAR is built for all nine.
1. The cleat or hardware on the boat, anchored to the deck, is often the first weak point.
2. The knot, splice, or thimble — where the line attaches.
3. The dock line itself — the rope under load. Material, diameter, and length all matter.
4. The chock or fairlead — where the line exits the boat. A chafe point.
5. Chafe protection — where the line wears against any hard surface.
6. The mooring snubber absorbs sudden tension from waves and gusts.
7. The fender — protects the hull from impact.
8. The fender cover — protects gelcoat from the fender itself.
9. The cleat or piling on the dock — where the line attaches to the dock.
Brass-coloured links 5 through 8 are NORTHGEAR's territory. We engineer the components most boat owners never think about — until something fails.
The Nine Failure Modes.
Every NORTHGEAR product solves one of these nine specific failure modes. This is the technical territory the brand owns.
1. Chafe-through.
The line saws back and forth through a chock or against a hard surface until it abrades and breaks. The most common cause of dock failures, full stop.
Solved by: Chafe Guards.
2. Shock load.
A sudden gust or wave loads the line beyond its working strength. The line snaps. The cleat rips out of the deck. Fittings fail.
Solved by: Mooring Snubbers + correctly-sized lines.
3. UV degradation.
Sun bakes a line for two seasons. It looks fine. It breaks at 30% of its rated load.
Solved by: UV-stable Dock Lines + replacement schedules.
4. Hull damage from fenders.
Bare fenders mark the gelcoat. Cheap covers wear through. The fender's own valve scratches the hull.
Solved by: Fender Covers, gelcoat-safe.
5. Hardware corrosion.
Saltwater eats cheap hardware in a single season. Non-316 stainless rusts. Cleats fail.
Solved by: 316 stainless fittings.
6. Improper line size or length.
Too thick — won't run through the chock. Too thin — breaks. Too short — no spring.
Solved by: Proper sizing guides + matched line packages.
7. Mooring failures.
The mooring pendant chafes through. The pickup line snaps. The thimble slips.
Solved by: Integrated mooring pendant systems.
8. Storm-specific failure.
Wind shifts 180° during a storm. Lines were never sized for the new direction. The whole system fails simultaneously.
Solved by: The Storm Kit + storm prep planning.
9. Operator error.
Wrong knot. Line under the wrong cleat horn. Chafe guard installed backwards. The product was fine; the install was wrong.
Solved by: Education, clear packaging, and the Storm Prep Checklist.
What we make.
Chafe Guards — engineered to hold position when 50-knot winds drag your line through the chock.
Premium Dock Lines — marine-grade double-braided nylon. UV-stable. Doesn't dry-rot in two seasons.
Mooring Snubbers — heavy-duty rubber shock absorbers that protect your cleats and your hull.
Fender Covers — gelcoat-safe protection for the contact point between hull and fender.
Every one of these is built around the same engineering principle: keep your boat exactly where you left it, regardless of what the weather does between visits.
The Storm Prep Checklist.
NORTHGEAR uses a 12-point checklist to storm-prep our own slips. From line sizing to chafe protection, snubber placement, and fender setup.
It's free. It's not on the page. And it's available to anyone who wants it.
Email hello@northgearstore.com with the subject line "Send me the checklist", and we'll send it back within 24 hours.
No spam. No newsletter trap. Just the checklist.
The promise.
Every NORTHGEAR product is backed by our Lifetime Limited Guarantee — engineered to hold, backed by us, for the life of the product.
We don't write that lightly. The guarantee exists because we stand behind every link in the chain we sell. If something we built fails because we built it wrong, that's on us, not on you.
Protect the line. Protect the boat.
Johnny Founder, NORTHGEAR