jugular

Sorry for disappearing for a bit, got a little caught up in life. Thanks for mentioning that, unfortunately, and I should have made this more clear in my OP, I am really not at the buying stage yet. One of things I have been doing is trying to put a few financial matters in place (paying off debt, joining a credit union etc) so that I will hopefully be in a position to buy next year. Having petrol certainly sounds like a pain in the bum. While I wouldn't be in a position to pay more for a diesel engine I would certainly drop my narrowbeam requirement if it meant I could get a diesel boat. I will be cruising around London though, and I'm a cyclist with a pannier rack and I plan on getting a scooter. I'd want to be moving on every one or two weeks, I'd want to go a bit further than a few miles though and I can imagine I would want to be able to run my engine for power. So it wouldn't be impossible but definitely annoying. Those boats Cal posted looked beautiful! I really appreciate that people put the time into answering all these questions. I also found this website pretty useful: http://www.thefitoutpontoon.co.uk/ My plan now is to make a few more connections with the London Boating Community and actually get on a boat and wrap my head around all the in and outs and odds and ends. Oh and find money. lol. J

Really appreciate all the replies to this. Feel much more like I have an idea of what I'm looking for now. Okay, so an inboard motor it is... on the issue of fuel, I've read on here before that the preference is for diesel for availability and economy... but a lot of the boats I've been looking at which are otherwise perfect have petrol engines. How much of a pain in the arse is a petrol engine to a continuous cruiser?

So it looks like the main job at hand upon buying a grp cruiser would be to install a heating system making it tolerable in winter? Either a sold fuel stove or diesel, either one would require the installation of a chimney?

ah! Thanks.

Great! I stayed on one of those selby barge(?) permanent moorings on the Thames for a couple of weeks in the winter. It was only insulated by the gardens on the roof and ply panels on the interior. It was bloody freezing. But you get used to it and I reckon this will be warmer. Hey sorry I did google but to no avail... what is an "S/F fire" ?

Thanks for the replies. I feel like it seems that there are enough narrow beam cruisers out there with showers that I shouldn't have to choose between the two. The boat I keep seeing that seems perfect for me is the Nauticus 27. It looks pretty, has a narrow beam, usually has a shower and lots of space, and the prices I see are between £5000 and £9900. Oh and it's pretty. They're usually quite old though, from the 70s. I read somewhere on this forum that you shouldn't let the age put you off as the hulls were built particularly sturdy. Would it be a massive risk to buy such an old boat? The engines are usually inboard, does that present a money-pit? Would it be freezing cold in the winter? Is it possible to get a double-skinned boat at the size and price I'd be looking for? Or should I accept the cold and stick carpet on the walls? In terms of price and "niceness", the only thing I'm looking for really is reliability, and having everything in the cabin basically there. I know that whatever boat I buy will be a project in some way, for example I'll have to fit solar panels... so I don't want to give myself too much work upon buying the boat. Scruffyness is no bother to me, and I'm only 5'4" and my friends and lovers are mostly, conveniently, short. The cheaper it is also lessens the financial risk of course, as I'll be tied to the debt for a shorter length of time, so I'm just trying to work out where the balance lies between not taking on too much debt and not buying something that will sink in 2 years.

Hi, So I'm considering buying a cheap grp cruiser to liveaboard. I have a lot of questions and a lot of research to do but I will start with just one: I have a preference for a narrowbeam cruiser so that I'm free to travel across the country in my boat, I especially like the idea of going up to Birmingham for curry. I don't drive so it would be a big asset to me to have a boat that is also one of my main modes of transport. Anyway, as I peruse ebay all misty-eyed, it's becoming apparent to me that the boats that look feasable as a liveaboard (they have showers) are also wide beams. Should I give up on this idea of getting a narrow beam cruiser if I want to practically live on it? Or should I get used to washing in a sink? Or are there in fact plenty of examples of narrow beam cruisers with showers? ___________ Context: I am a poor boy with fairly humble needs for living, so I'm looking for a boat I can get for <£10, 000 under 30'. I intend to (genuinely) continuously cruise around the London loop.

I don't know how this will apply to the tumble dryer you're talking about but as a complete boat novice I'm excited to find a topic I know something about. I work in a launderette, we use large commercial JLA tumble dryers. Never heard of White Knight apart from as a commercial laundering company. They're fast and effective, most loads dry in 30-45 mins, they use mains gas, and I reckon quite a lot of it, as the flames are massive. They also run on mains electricity to make the drive belt go round. So, they may not be that economical in terms of electricity. That's about all I can tell you.