A draw was a fair result but the point apiece probably does little to help either side move away from the relegation trapdoor.
Nick Hegarty's first half strike for Grimsby Town was cancelled out by Ryan Lowe to ensure that Chester City remain a point above their relegation rivals.
Grimsby went close on ten minutes when Hegarty broke clear, but saw his shot deflected agonisingly wide with Chester keeper John Danby well beaten.
Hegarty made amends on 21 minutes with the opening goal for Grimsby. He latched on to Joe Widdowson's floated pass, which held up in the wind, leaving keeper John Danby in no-man's land and drove his shot low into the corner from 12 yards.
Chester's Kevin Ellison had two good chances in the first half but failed to hit the target with his close-range efforts.
Chester thought they had scored a minute before the interval when Grimsby keeper Wayne Henderson took the ball over his own line, but referee Phil Crossley ruled it out.
They couldn't blame the referee for Kevin Roberts' big miss early in the second half when the defender was unmarked in the opposition box but blazed over from six yards.
Chester grabbed the equaliser on 56 minutes through Lowe who showed great composure in the box, cutting inside Tom Newey's desperate lunge and calmly clipping the ball into the corner past the despairing Henderson from eight yards out.
The remainder of the game was a scrappy affair with chances at a premium, with both teams having to settle for a point which leaves them in real danger of going down.