cleaning anchor rode....

[CliffA]

this may have been discussed before but i thought i would post how i cleaned my anchor rode this W/E...i have about 150' of 3/8" twisted anchor rode connected to about 10' of galvanized chain and an 8 lbs hooker anchor....the rode had become filthy over the years...i doubt it has ever been cleaned since 1998 when it was originally put into the boat....i have had the boat about 3 years....i placed the rode into a 5 gallon bucket with laundry detergent, fabric softner and a touch of bleach...i let it soak for about 2 -3 hours...then i stretched it out on my driveway with the anchor holding one end and the bucket of water holding the other end...i used my pressure washer and cleaned a small section of the rode at a time rolling it with my foot on the driveway to be sure i cleaned all sides of the rode...the results were pretty impressive...the rode is a nice bright white again....i imagine cleaning the anchor rode on a fairly regular basis is a good idea to remove the sand and dirt that can act like abrasives over time and cause wear on the rode...the only problem is now i have streaks down my driveway where the pressure washer cleaned it along with the rode...now i have to pressure wash the rest of the driveway....oh well...