Club Static Ropes

The club has two varieties of static ropes differentiated by their length. The full length static ropes are about 50m in length and used as the primary climbing rope in our top sets at Kangaroo Point. Occasionally these are also used as top ropes or abseiling lines on field trips. The shorter variety are about half the length of the top ropes and usually made from ropes which have been retired from top rope service. All the clubs static ropes have a thickness of 11mm. These ropes are used to create the top set anchor for top roping at Kangaroo Point.

Borrowing Rules

Primarily these ropes are used by everyone on the Monday and Wednesday nights climbing, however if members would like to top rope outside these times, then they are welcome to borrow the required components, so long as they prove they are competent at setting top ropes and agree to follow club rules whilst using them.

Ropes may also be borrowed for setting static lines for abseiling or photography on trips, again proficiency will be assessed and the final decision will be with the quartermaster.

Identification

Identification of the static ropes is still in progress, however the current scheme is as follows:

The club static rope are labelled with brother P-touch TZ tape (fabric backed, iron-on) with "QUT RA01", "QUT RA02" for 'Rope Anchor' and "QUT RS01", "QUT RS02" for the full length statics. This is then covered with heat shrink and a heat gun used the shrink the heat shrink (and hopefully melt the adhesive on the label). They're labelled at both ends to give some redundancy.

Where the heat shrink has worn or fallen off, the TZ tape is coated in a layer of seam seal.

The List

Full Length

Top Anchors

Retired

Maintenance

Inspection

It is important that ropes are checked regularly for excessive wear or soft spots. Climbers rolling ropes at the end of a night at Kangaroo Point should pay attention to fuzzy spots and check the rope after large falls or conditions which demand the rope run over rough surfaces.

The club also performs regular checks of all ropes at the Gear sort nights.

Washing

Over time ropes tend to gather dirt and grime in their sheath, this dirt can get into the core and causes friction in the threads, if left unmanaged it can lead to weak spots in the rope. The quartermasters aim to wash all the ropes and top sets at least once a semester.

To wash your rope:

1. Coil the rope from both ends, giving it a brush with your hands to remove any grass or dirt.
2. Daisy Chain the rope and tie the end off to prevent it from pulling through
3. Soak the rope in a tub of clean water overnight - Be careful to avoid the rope coming in contact with any solvents or non-natural cleaning fluids.
4. The rope may need soaking further - replace the water if needed.
5. Wash the rope in a front loader washing machine using only "Pure Soap Flakes"
6. Dirty Ropes may need washing more than once.
7. Hang the rope in a dry ventilated area.

Retiring

Manufacturers typically do not specify a strict lifespan for ropes beyond the 10 year since manufacture policy. Tendon do suggest that a rope seeing regular weekend use (year round) will last around 1-2 years.

The club will retire ropes based on wear, age, and if soft spots require the rope to be cut to a length less than 50m.

Once a Top rope has reached the end of its usable life, it is cut in half and used as anchor ropes.

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