louca Inglese

Thanks for that, i think i`m getting it......but excuse me for being a numpty i`m still learning........Sooooo do you mean (if we use percentages) 80 per cent of your diesel goes to running your heating etc and 20 per cent goes into actually propelling your boat, so you get 80 per cent of your diesel at domestic rate and 20 per cent at propulsion rate, or am i such an idiot and have it arse about face. It sounds right to me because you are still using heating etc even if your not going anywhere...right? Oh and i understand the seperate tank scenario, again thanks.

Nice of you all to take an interest but unfortunately no one has answered any of my questions regarding filling up with diezel! Maybe i have gone slightly off topic but this info will help in my decision making and i apologise to the OP if i have hijacked his thread.

I am following this thread with interest as i have not purchased a narrow boat yet and am still weighing up my options as to what heating system i should go for. Some research has taken me <HERE> which shows me that diesel comes as propulsion,domestic and composite. OK after looking at it i have worked out that if i filled my tank with diesel for just propulsion i will pay "X" amount and if i filled a tank (separate to propulsion) i will pay "X" amount (usually cheaper?) for domestic use........correct so far? But if i fill my one and only tank with diesel but i also have a diesel stove i get some sort of discount............is that what this sentence refers to, By having any form of diesel heating on your boat you will qualify for the 60/40 tax reduction when purchasing diesel if you only have the one tank to supply the stove and the engine. Copied from <HERE> hope they don`t mind. How does all this work in practice and how do i know what i am paying for.......do i have to explain to the guy at the pump i just want domestic or propulsion or what? I notice from the list some places do 60/40 split only so i wouldn`t go there if for instance i only wanted domestic.........am i right?......this is doing my head in.

OK....Google response to.... BSS = British Ski and Snowboard NBW = Normal Birth Weight NABSE = Nationwide Alliance of Boat Surveyors and Examiners......Yay! BCN = Barcelona El Prat airport..........says it all really. Ok to be fair, with a bit of scrolling i did manage to find the answers on Google but i think it would be a good idea to be able to find the answers within the forum itself.

Acronyms specific to boating......FAQ although not specific to boating is a prime example, everyone knows what FAQ stands for don`t they? On a recent thread i came across BSS,NBW,NABSE,BCN....just on one thread! I am a (newbie) Jargon for newcomer to the world of boating and would like a place on this forum that explains these acronyms and other terms used by the boating fraternity.

Maybe too far but Honeystreet sawmills have been supplying to the canal for years.....<HERE>........and right on the side of the canal.

Thanks all for your comments, the consensus seems to be that it`s doable........BUT. Interesting nobody has said it`s definitely not doable. So as long as i buy a small boat,paint it myself, maintain my own engine, cut my own logs for the fire, keep cruising down to a minimum, don`t pay mooring charges, don`t smoke, don`t drink, don`t watch SKY tv we should be ok............i say we because i thought maybe without the missus and the dog it would be cheaper but even that doesn`t hold up as singleton liveaboards pay as much as a couple according to some! Sorry for the sarcasm but it doesn`t paint a pretty picture and now we are wondering if we should go for it or not. I really appreciate your honest if sometimes brutal truth as to the facts of living on a narrowboat and will do a load more research before we are ready to commit to a life on the water..........muito obrigado. (many thanks)

Don`t know how current this is, but basing my calculations on <THIS> article in Canal Junction i think it`s more than doable. I might add that at the moment we are living in Portugal in our own house and the cost of living here is way less than some of the quotes given but it has always been our intention to return to the UK to see our days out and feel the time for that is drawing near.............IF and it`s a big IF at the moment we can sell our house here.

Fair point,and i hope it doesn`t happen for some time yet but if it does then we do have the means to rent on land if needed.

Winter moorings could i suppose be anywhere, but our preference would be either somewhere near Banbury or on the K&A near Pewsey..........we have friends/rellies in these places, and we used to live near Marlborough Wilts. Treats!......... Had to look that one up.........well a pint or three now and again is fine by me, but the wife likes the odd posh meal and the dog is happy as she is or so she tells me. I`m sure you live just how you want to and the cost of living aboard is very subjective. We are positive we can live a decent life on somewhere around £600 a month with savings to fall back on if needed for emergencies.

Is that your total expenditure?...........sounds good to me. Well i`m a lucky one, so is the wife.............£500 sounds reasonable.

No point in faffing about, If i`m going to live on a narrowboat i need to know if i can afford it........so....there will be me, the wife and the mutt all living on an income from a works pension amounting to £750.00 per month, and no debt. The boat will be purchased outright from the sale of our house and hopefully there will be a nice little bit leftover. I am 61 and the wife is 60.........don`t really know how old the dog is but about 18 months We need to live on this amount for 4 years, that is until we receive our state pensions. Taking all things into account like the cost of running the boat and general living costs..........is it feasible to live on a narrowboat for this amount? We want to be able to continuous cruise to start with and stop off for the occasional pub lunch and moor up for the winter somewhere. In anticipation Bob and Jane.

Alastair you read my mind. Our preferred layout would indeed include a rear kitchen, apart from that i am open minded as to where the bedroom and lounge area should be. Are particular layouts synonymous with particular types of boat or boat builders/fitters?

This arrangement looks good for bad weather and your dog is bigger than mine, He/she looks to have ample room without getting under your feet.

Sorted......thanks.

Well i certainly have lots to think about and i have only asked about Traditional or Cruiser! I have a question for Mods/Admin...............is there a search function on this forum?............to save repetitive questions i could search to find if a subject has been covered before. Also is there a notification option?........where i am notified by email if someone has replied to a thread/post i am following. Sorry if i have posted in the wrong section.

Yes i suppose narrowboat as one word is a corruption/contraction of the descriptive words narrow and boat.......thanks for that. Oh now you have got me all of a dither........first a trad then a cruiser.........i do like the thought of doing engine maintenance in the dry though....thanks. Does sound like the best of both worlds and i will check out semi trad stern boats when it comes to viewing.......thanks.

This had crossed my mind. Online pictures suggest the engine room of a Trad is big enough to take off and stow wet weather gear/boots etc and enable easy maintenance of the engine, whereas the cruiser style of which i am familiar only has a small area in which to hang coats etc and the engine is maybe a bit more difficult to work on being under the floor........am i correct in these assumptions?

Well this is one of my main concerns with a trad and i think i am leaning towards a cruiser stern if only for this reason. We really did appreciate the outside space on the boats we hired but thought this somewhat unusable space would be .....errrm.........unusable, in a liveaboard scenario. I suppose i can`t have everything i want and as with most things a compromise will have to made somewhere.

Sounds like you have a perfect solution.

Thanks, I have bookmarked and will have a good look later.

Thanks all for your input. My only experiences with narrowboating are with holiday hire boats some ten or more years ago and they almost exclusively came with a large rear deck area of which we made great use during our holidays. However as i will be purchasing a boat to enable me the wife and our little dog to live comfortably afloat then i suppose a large open rear deck is not going to be on my list of priorities because apart from sitting out on fine days what use can i make of the space? Are trad style boats anti social when cruising?........I have seen on many occasions husband/partner at the back steering and wife/partner at the front with the only communication between the two a set of two way radios! I am sure there are times when my missus would appreciate this scenario but on the whole i do prefer to talk to her face to face.

Hi all. As the title suggests these are my very first basic and somewhat naive questions but i need answers. Am i correct to say the two most common types of narrowboat are Traditional style and cruiser stern style? This question is based on my observations when viewing the boats for sale adds. To enable me to understand the differences i need to know what the pros and cons of both types are. Initial thoughts are :- Trad style has a small (very small) area in which to steer the boat. Cruiser style has more room for the above but has less "useable" covered space on a similar sized boat. Well that`s all for now......I look forward to hearing your views. Oh one other thing,........ narrowboat I believe is the correct name for this type of boat although spellcheckers always hate it even UK spell checkers......why is that?

HI all........I will make this brief as i am sure i will get on your nerves with all the questions i will be asking as my wife and i plan our move back to the UK in the not too distant future. We are Bob and Jane,... Having taken early retirement in 2008 and after years of travelling around Europe in various motor homes we have put down tenuous roots here in central Portugal. It is our intention to return to the UK and end our days living on a canal boat and touring the canals of our home country with our little dog Fizz. I should say we are no strangers to the ways of the cut having spent many happy holidays on hire boats but that was many years ago and i have no doubt things have changed in many ways. I said i would keep it brief and really that`s it for now......I look forward to much banter about our chosen lifestyle. Regards. Bob,Jane and Fizz.