Questions, answered.

On a traditional mushroom anchor, the stem is a vertical post. As tides, currents and wind swing a moored boat through 360°, the chain rotates around the stem. Once it catches, every cycle pulls it tighter.

The effective scope shrinks and peak loads rise. Mooring balls can pull under at high tide, chain or shackles can fail under load, and boats can break free. That is the call a harbormaster gets. Read the full explanation.

Three symmetrically positioned bars rise from the bowl to a single point above the stem, forming a cone. The chain has nothing to catch on, so it slides off as the boat swings, which significantly reduces the risk of chain wrap.

It is a simple geometric change to the mushroom anchor: the flaw is removed, and the rest of the design stays as it was. See how it works.

The bowl is the same concave mushroom bowl. It still beds into the mud and gains suction over time.

In the Casco Bay field test, both anchors sat on the same muddy seabed for 28 days and were then pulled by a lobster boat on a 75-ft chain at 3:1 scope, with tension read on a 4,000 lb digital indicator. The traditional anchor, partially buried, broke out at 1,575 lb. MoorSafe, fully buried, broke out at 1,295 lb. That is comparable breakout, and MoorSafe was fully buried, so its holding keeps improving as sediment consolidates. Read the field test write-up.

In tensile testing at Yale Cordage in Saco, Maine, a 300 lb MoorSafe prototype held to 40,657 lb, against 38,560 lb for a 300 lb traditional mushroom. That is roughly 5% higher.

The traditional anchor failed by fracturing at the stem. The MoorSafe prototype failed when its joints dislocated. The test ran on a 100-ft horizontal bed rated to 1.3 million lb. Read the tensile test write-up.

MoorSafe has a cast-iron base with welded steel bars, finished in high-visibility safety orange.

MoorSafe is a mushroom anchor for soft-bottom harbors, the same use as the anchor it improves on. It was field-tested on a muddy seabed in Casco Bay. If you are unsure about your bottom or exposure, ask us and we will help you decide.

The 400 lb is recommended for boats of about 30 to 40 ft, or for heavier displacement and moderate exposure. Sizing depends on displacement, scope and exposure, so we confirm it with you before you order. Not sure? Tell us about your mooring and we will help you decide.

The 400 lb is our current size. If you are looking for a larger anchor, send us a request and tell us about your mooring, including boat length, harbor and exposure.

Pricing is by quote. Tell us about your mooring and we will send you a price. It excludes chain, hardware and installation, and shipping is quoted by destination.

Shipping is quoted by destination. Send us a quote request and we will confirm the shipping cost with you before anything ships.

Send us a quote request with your boat length and harbor. We confirm the right size, price and shipping with you, then arrange the order. Questions are welcome in the same message.

Yes. Harbormasters and mooring services can ask about fleet pricing and association presentations on the For Pros page.

No. Use the same chain, shackles, swivel and pennant you use today. Attach at the top eye.

MoorSafe installs exactly like the anchor it replaces: lower it with a mooring barge or service boat, at the same scope and with the same practice as a mushroom. Any mooring service provider will be familiar with the process, and we can recommend providers in your area. Ask us for a recommendation.

No. Inspect on your normal schedule. Holding grows as the bowl embeds, and you inspect it on the same schedule as any mooring.

MoorSafe is designed, manufactured and tested in Maine, USA.

A U.S. design patent is pending.

MoorSafe was founded by Scott Karkos, who has thirty years of industrial sourcing experience, and Captain Gregory Smith (1988–2025), a Maine Maritime Academy graduate with two decades of mooring service work. The three-bar cone was Captain Smith’s idea. Read the story.