UKC

Heading off to El chorro in the next few weeks .

Last year when me and my wife climbed out in Thailand there were a few times that we anchored her down to a tree root or rock with some spare quickdraws (it's all we had) to belay me whilst at the bottom of small/awkward climbs .

Id like to use something better for her, presumably I could cut 3m off of a spare rope we use indoors and use that to the her to something solid . Or is there a better way or product to use?

Slings or static line work for that.  Or indeed a bit of spare dynamic rope if you've got some.

Long slings maybe. Or am I missing something obvious?

The rope! 

Like Neil I thought slings instead of QDs, whilst she belayed Jim with the rope. Although as you suggest, he could have used a bit of the rope to anchor her to the ground. 

Or maybe try one of these :

https://www.ukclimbing.com/gear/climbing/belays/edelrid_ohm-9503

I ve never used one , being a fatty , but the above review seems positive and a mate whose a gear monkey used one at the wall recently with his kids and said it worked.

from the end of the review :

"If you regularly climb with someone of very different weight to yourself then investing in the Ohm - and it is an investment at £110 - would be worthwhile. This simple but ingenious device makes a significant safety improvement for lighter belayers holding falls."

OK cool. Wasn't sure if you could use slings, I'm new to outside climbing and was aware of a danger if using non dynamic stuff for anchors.  

Thanks 

We did a variation of quucdraes and end of the rope on sime ledges that allowed it. 

I've just bought a 50m rope to use indoors, with the half intention of chopping 3-5m off to use as an anchor in belay situations. 

The issue with static stuff and anchors is basically that you should not be able to take a fall on something that doesn't have a sufficient dynamic element.  As you're talking about strapping someone to the floor this doesn't apply - the rope is already fully in the system.

If you're talking sport climbing (bolted rather than trad) I second the Edelrid Ohm - wonderful bit of kit that means I can climb with someone half my weight in safety (all my usual climbing partners are way lighter than me) without faffing about strapping them down.

Simple solution - attach the lighter belayer to a heavy rucksack (sling to belay loop) it acts like a sandbag at a climbing wall. You can always shove a few rocks into an empty rucksack.

Thanks for the explanation, makes more sense now  

That Ohm looks like a great bit of kit, I saw one at our local wall last week and wandered what it was  

There isn't a massive weight difference between us, about 8kg I think 

Good idea! Thanks 

I'm not clear on why you think you need to chop the rope?

If she ties into one end of the rope, she can use that to tether herself by clove-hitching it to something suitable, whether that's a ground anchor or a sandbag or  rucksack.

Easy to adjust, dynamic, doesn't require any extra kit, and because it requires her to tie in you "close the system" which can help prevent some common f*ck-ups (like being lowered off the end of a too-short rope).

Spot on

Not meaning to be cheeky but this is fairly basic stuff, might be worth investing in a day with an MIA to get slick and prepared for some of the more complex and esoteric things that can go wrong. 

Guidelines for weight differences say belayer at least 75% climbers weight  if difference is only 8kg then not an issue unless you're very light. The Ohm is a brilliant bit of kit, but not recommended where there is not a significant weight difference.

A good MIA would go through all of this with you. Help you improve your all round technique and stance management, probably meaning you'd get a lot more out of your holiday. 

For an 8kg difference, I really wouldn't worry about it.

There is about 60kg difference between me and the two people I climb with most often (genuinely, I am about the weight of both of them put together).  The Ohm handles that admirably (and in doing so boosts my confidence when leading no end).

If there's only 8kg difference, you probably don't need any form of anchoring.  The friction in the gear will handle that.  For example, on indoor top-rope I find the balancing point (the point you need some anchoring) is the belayer being about 2/3 of the climber's weight (again from experimenting - there's someone I climb with a bit less often who is about 80kg and he usually doesn't strap himself down for top-rope).  You can probably *just about* get away with that on lead, but if you're well below that level of difference you will be fine.