Fixing a chain to a wood stud

[Rick Hughes]

To comply with insurance requirements need to chain my trailer to an immovable object.

Easiest way would see to be to use some 10mm thick link chain around trailer cross beam, and then fix it back on itself with a suitable padlock.

I did look at security anchors for setting into floor but they are pricey.

Thought are instead to fix either one end of chain to wood stud (wood frame construction ) or fix a saddle, hoop, eye or similar to studs that would allow to pass chain through (could then padlock both ends together (2nd method would see preferable)

Anybody know of any suitable item that I can screw/bolt to the studs to provide this loop.

I know you could say if I fixed a 'saddle' with a couple of large coach screws ,,, they could be 'undone' ... but probably Ok for security, as it needs tools to undo ... and you could bolt crop through chain anyway.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Stop right there.

all the cycle maniacs that infest the Cambridge groups agree that there is nothing easier to cut than the *average* chain, or padlock, and bike thieves and bolt cutters are inseparable.

So be clear as to whether you are actually trying to prevent theft, or merely comply with stupid insurance regulations.

thats because they are purpose made.

chip out a big hole in the floor. Get some serious steel bar, and bend a U shape with 'serifs' and cement the lot in place.

If you want real security, make up some masonry somewhere and embed a massive steel ring in it.

Any wood structure is way weaker than the chain, and will be a natural point of attack.

precisely. There are chains that you cant crop through..high carbon steel? for example. Likewise padlocks that are not mild steel.

[Dave Liquorice]

Hear, hear, if some one wants something bad enough you may as well let tham have it otherwise the colateral damage is far more than the object they want. See JCB's and ATMs...

OK stop some who just happens to be passing by walking off with it but some one "going equipped" with bolt cutters doesn't fall into that category.

We don't know what ground this trailer is stored over. Is it over a floor slab in a garage, a bit of tarmac on the drive or just a bit of rough ground. Over rough ground I'd look at those spiral screw in ground anchor things but I can imagine those being difficult to get into most ground due to stones or simple lack of soil depth.

[Andy Dingley]

Insert loop of chain, with a foot or two of rebar threaded through it at the bottom. Support it dangling down the hole with a stick through the chain above.

Fill hole with concrete.

Voila. Fixed chain loop embedded in concrete.

Other method - foot or two of railway line, cut off at the end with a fishplate bolt hole. Set in concrete, with the bolt hole accessible.

One common way of removing security chain-downs like this is to smash the padlock with a large sledgehammer. So make sure that it can be locked up so that the padlock isn't on the ground and can't be manipulated to be on it.

[Andy Dingley]

A decent chain will stop bolt cutters. A bigger threat is a cordless angle grinder. Petrol disc saws are practically unstoppable, but are however noisy.

[Rick Hughes]

To comply with stupid insurance regulations.

This is not a Motorbike. It is a boat (on trailer) trailer has a Towhitch lock and a wheel clamp ..... Insurance states it must also be chained to immovable object. Now I know that a timber frame construction could be smashed away with a sledge, or chain cut with bolt croppers, but I have to do this.

[Rick Hughes]

This is a purpose built boat shed .... like a large Oak barn, reinforced concrete raft foundation 450mm thick .... with 6" x 6" support posts for roof bolted into steel retainers cast into concrete ... which is what I propose to fix chain to ........... worst case is I'll just wrap chain around post and padlock it. It meets requirements of 'immovable'

As mentioned I did look at the drill and fix in chain anchors for bikes ... but they don't come in stainless, and can't see them lasting long once water gets at them.

[Rick Hughes]

in my nice new power floated reinforced concrete slab .... not an option I want to do.

As it has 3 layer of mesh and 2 of rebar, would be a pain to dig out.

If I could get a stainless or galv eye bolt I would resin fix one of them in .... easy enough & neat. Can you get stainless or galv eyebolts on a length of rod ? ..... only seen 'screw-on' eyes or rawlbolts.

[Rick Hughes]

Had a thought - but open to ideas .... could take a standard 16mm galv lifting eye ....

it onto a piece of 175mm rebar to give me around 200mm 'stud' and resin fix that into a 16mm hole.

Easy to drill and fix ... and resin fix is better than expansion bolt.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Right.

now we can switch to 'what will convince loss adjuster you tried' from what will stop thief'

[fred]

In article , Rick Hughes writes

Female thread might be better:

it can go on a length of threaded rod and welded up if you like. I'd be nervous of giving someone a lever to rotate a resin bonded anchor with, I could see it shearing out of the resin or shearing the threaded rod.

If you still want to go through the wood then a shear nut would be good for the back:

chosen at random, I've seen similar at Screwfix etc.

Final thought, if you go through the wood with a clearance hole for the studding you could make it freely rotating to avoid torque attack. Washered under the eye & back nut, shear nut as a lock nut with both nuts protected from attack by counterboring them into the back surface. You could cover the rear with a metal plate to make the workings less obvious too.

[The Natural Philosopher]

stainless is not strong, merely stainless.

And the boa is normally under cover surely?

Sounds like a bit of serious anchor chain round the post and a bloody big padlock is all you need.

[Andy Dingley]

Then if you're drilling, the best option is a couple of 12-14mm holes downwards in a vee, and set a steel hairpin into them. For a neat job, you can do this below a shallow hole a couple of inch diameter that you've core-drilled at the top.

There are also M16 scaffolding eyes that a pretty strong and come with shield bolt or expanding sleeve fittings. They're usually intended to be unscrewable though, so either use two (chain between prevents rotation) or weld something on. On the whole though, I prefer a big hole and cement mortar rather than faffing about with mechanical plugs.

[Spamlet]

Next door but one to me bought a swamp buggy/beach buggy/bike or whatever they are called these days. He anchored it on both sides with chains through holes in masonry with reinforcing rods in.

In broad daylight some 'workmen' arrived, cut and hammered their way through the concrete and reinforcing rods; loaded it on a trailer, and left. With so much house and garden renovation and extension going on, nobody knew they were thieves.

The only safe thing is something nobody wants.

S

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember The Natural Philosopher saying something like:

Almax is the only one that survives attack with extreme boltcutter prejudice. Obviously an AG will eventually get through it.