Bargebuilder

Psychologically, I would keep an offer over £40k, but not by much; perhaps £41,500? Expect it to be rejected, then say your best and final offer and make that perhaps £43k. I'm sure that some on here would be a lot tougher, but that seems fair considering what else is out there. You could open at £38k, but that might just annoy the seller!

I'm not completely surprised, that did seem very cheap for a barge with a good survey, a rebuilt engine and overplating that was epoxy coated after completion; cosy too! Most of the suspicion amongst the posters was because it was cheap, feeling sure that there was an issue about which we weren't aware. They know, after all this time on the market that they won't get the asking price, so make them an offer. Just look at what other barges are available for under £45k before you reject this one outright.

Well, the QE2 squatted by possibly 8 feet when it grounded; that should be enough!

Worth remembering that the OP was talking about a barge, not a wide beam. Many original Dutch barges were designed for inland seas and coastal passages and most new-builds will have enough freeboard to do coastal passages too. Some of the better new-builds are designed to reach RCD cat B. ?

You read the last sentence?

By coincidence, I have done exactly that, but the sail away was new, so I can speak from experience. Cost: I did mine 15 or so years ago, so costs will have gone up, but I spent £30 to complete the fit-out. Having said that, mine was very high end with all solid oak joinery and solid granite worktops, the best sanitation equipment, ignition protected bow thruster, glass flake epoxy hull coating etc, so many savings could be made if required. The vast majority of what you will need is very standard and is therefore cheap: plumbing components, 230v wiring, gas pipe and fittings, kitchen and bathroom equipment, sheet materials, fixings etc. all stuff you are used to and at predictable prices. 12v DC installations are quite different from 230v AC in the way they are installed and the way they work separately and interact must be researched and understood so the steel doesn't dissolve or become live and kill someone! The Boat Safety Scheme issue a booklet (or did), that tells you what you need to do to pass their examination. It's all very doable, but boats always take longer to do than nice square houses; a lot longer! I'd say it would be quicker and the end result better, if you start with a new(ISH) shell, rather than buy an elderly, dated boat and retrofit insulation, bulkheads, furniture etc. A nicely fitted out 15m x 4m replica Dutch barge well presented should be worth the best part of £150k, so your work and investment could be well rewarded. I spent £30k of course!

Have you thought about a sail away where someone has lost interest? Tatty, but well within your skill set to make just as you want it. It 'should' have plenty of steel left in the hull, which as my fellow posters have already said, is the most important thing. https://www.apolloduck.co.uk/boat/tayberg-50-db-for-sale/760250

Or a variable pitched propeller.

An excellent summary, but unfortunately, Mr. Angry who shouts 'slow down' as you pass, doesn't base his rantings on science.

Then mattuk1980 must have a more hydrodynamic bottom than yours!!

Is that with a GPS? I suspect that many people are only guessing at their speed based on a 'fast walking pace'.

Is that more than 5 boat lengths? Half a boat lengths is more usual for many I fear.

That is exactly why the price is very attractive, but question marks are just that, not certainties. Do the additional checks, get the advice of an expert or two, and from what can be gleaned from the survey, you could be the brave one who gets a bargain.

That doesn't sound as simple as a shaft drive, where there is almost zero maintenance and very little to go wrong.

I have no first hand experience of out drives, but the people who I know who have them all say that they cause more trouble and are more expensive to maintain than the engine itself; is that not right?

Some of these modern coatings are superb, having been designed for ocean going ships tanks etc. I'm all for spending a bit more and never having to do the job again.

If the vessel was used or kept in coastal or estuarine waters, it wouldn't be surprising for an epoxy coated hull to be topped with antifouling paint to inhibit marine growth.

I prepared my built-in tanks with a wire cup brush and then used this two pack coating. https://www.chemcoint.com/industries/marine/vessel-area/potable-water-tank-coatings/#solvent-free-wet-and-rust-tolerant-system The finish is shiny and hard like enamel (but not that hard of course) and has lasted already for 15 years with no degradation. I'm confident it will be good for at least another 15 years. It is fully certified as safe for potable water. For most people, it's a job that will only ever need to be done once.

Of course, it's also possible that the problem is limited in extent and severity and that the surveyor is being responsible by highlighting a potential issue and suggesting further investigation. Lots of people may have been put off, hence the price, possibly half of what it might be if no problems had been discovered. Perhaps the seller would permit a surveyor to investigate further if it meant a sale.

Doubling and overplating is essentially the same thing, welding a new plate over a thinning one. The term overplating is often used to describe a larger job, sometimes the entire hull. This should never happen, unless a weld fails, but unlikely. If water gets between the two, it's usually from a wet bilge from the inside, through a perforated original hull. Is it possible that the trapped water to which the surveyor refers is that which is trapped in the bilge in the engine room and not between the overplating and the hull? This could be much easier to correct.

This needs investigating, where this trapped water is and if it is an extensive problem. Usually, thin steel is over-plated way before it perforates. If that was the case, then there won't be water between the two skins. Make sure the entire bilge is checked to see if is dry. If it is wet, corrosion may continue from the inside out. Dutch barges may be heavily greased inside to prevent bilge rusting. If a problem at all, it may be very localised. An individual doubling plate can be drained by drilling a hole from the outside and then filling the hole with weld afterwards. You would then need to find where the water got in, presumably from the inside. The original hull, behind the doubling plate, could be opened up and the void sealed.

Not quite: the epoxy, if properly applied, will adhere firmly and you can assume that the steel underneath will be sound. The scrape is to remove any surface covering to the epoxy, such as marine growth and mud.

I personally wouldn't, I'd just examine the hull visually. If after a scrape, the epoxy is still intact, it is highly unlikely that any further major corrosion has occurred. By no means: there are many types of blacking and epoxy is about the best. If it has been epoxy coated, that is an excellent indication that whoever had the work done, was determined to do the job properly. If the engine is good, it's looking like a worthy contender for your cash.

If the hull has been over-plated and then epoxy coated and is showing 4mm, I'd say that was very good for a £25k barge. It's just the engine then to be examined.

I'm guessing that, for less than £25,000, one might struggle to find a well insulated barge.