Rope still safe?

[davantalus]

Due to an unfortunate set of circumstances, my 70 foot length of ~13mm static rope was used to pull my buddy's Acura MDX out of a small lake in the road.

What do you guys think, rappel it or retire it?

[Evan G]

Retire it and make it a utility rope, mainly because of the forces that where put on the rope are far beyond normal caving or rappelling usage. The strength of the rope lies in the core of rope and a visual inspection of the rope will not always tell you if the core has been damaged.

[Carl Amundson]

I'd retire it.
Along with the unknown amount of strain you put on the rope, you can never tell what oils or petroleum products it may have come in contact with.

[Cody JW]

I save my old retired ropes for that purpose,and for sacrificial handlines as well.

[davantalus]

I save my old retired ropes for that purpose

Haha! So you're saying I'm doing it backwards, Cody?

I'll probably give it to my buddy, coiled in red ribbon. He can use it to play tug of war the next time he drives into a lake.

Thanks for the responses gents. Guess that makes a quorum, the nay's have it.

[Scott McCrea]

Just curious why you are using 16mm (5/8") rope? Is that standard for your area? That's a HUGE rope for around here.

[Amazingracer]

Sorry to thread hijack, but Im faced with a similar question actually.
Last week I got my Xterra stuck on a rock, and it wouldnt budge. We deployed a haul system using one of my ropes, but it never really moved my X because of the position on the rock. Do I need to retire this rope even if it was not used in towing, but just a haul system? We pulled all the stretch out of the rope and the rope good and taught but never were really able to move the car. Thoughts?

[davantalus]

Just curious why you are using 16mm (5/8") rope? Is that standard for your area? That's a HUGE rope for around here.

No this isn't standard for our area at all, list of the forces at play:
1) I'm new to SRT. It is, was, my only rope.
2) Christmas present. *CoughBrightOrangeNoQuestionsAskedCough*
3) During the tow I was thankful, for the first time, that it doesn't fit in my Petzel Stop. :)
4) It was just long enough that tow-er didn't have to enter the lake himself.

Edit: You're right, it can't have been 16mm. I'm wrong. Petzl lists max girth for the Ascender as 8-13 millimeters. So I guess we're talking ~13mm?

[Cavernuke]

Shock loading is the biggest danger. When using a rope to pull using a vehicle, you can unknowingly apply huge shock loads that can compromise the rope. I wouldn't feel good dangling 200 feet in the air on that rope. On the other hand, using a rope as part of a manual haul system, you will be loading the rope without shocks, and you should be OK.

Always ask yourself which costs more, 70 feet of Pit Rope or the first five minutes in the emergency room. Hint: you could rig Ellison's Cave for the $$ of the latter.

[knudeNoggin]

Due to an unfortunate set of circumstances, my 70 foot length of ~13mm static rope was used to pull my buddy's Acura MDX out of a small lake in the road.

What do you guys think, rappel it or retire it?

How did you use the rope, exactly? I.e., how was it configured,
was it knotted, and so on. How does it look, afterwards, and how
does it feel? Is it the same length (and not now an 80' length of
11.5mm diameter?) I imagine that the pulling was done with care,
slow-delivery, in concern for the rope and vehicles.

The How-much-is-your-life-worth-? doubters could put that question
to anything: at some point, one needs to be able to evaluate the
circumstance beyond conjecture. The breaking strength of that
rope might be nearly adequate to hoist the vehicle, and
merely pulling it --"mere", at least, in some cases-- will take far
less load. Nylon fibres can endure about 70% of their maximum
load w/o sustained damage, I've been told. And if you doubled
the rope (perhaps making a big loop/sling), you are halving the
force per strand. If the rope looks fine and knots weren't welded,
you're probably fine. (As for petroleum products, well, petrol
per se isn't an issue, though for some time it was a rumored issue
--rumors out race research/facts, often-- ; additives in petrol
might be.)

*kN*

[chh]

Davantalus, I use 13mm quite a bit at work, but the braids and material are probably different. That being said, that is one burly rope. Knudenoggin is right. That rope probably is ok to lift your car out of the lake provided smooth operation. I would examine it very thoroughly and would consider using it. 70 feet is a good length for nuissance drops and such. But then again, hauling around 13mm is a bit of a nuissance itself....
Also petrolium products are ok. My ropes come in contact with mix gas and bar and chain oil in small quantities. They don't damage the rope. But I do wash them if there is a noticable spill or something like that. We also retire ropes much more frequently, but this is more becasue they see heavy use everyday, not just occasional use.

Amazingracer, provided your haul didn't run over any sharp edges, which a visual inspection should easily reveal, I wouldn't hesitate to use your rope again. It fine.