KenK

You did not post the asking price for the boat you are considering so giving an opinion on value is difficult. No idea how many boats you have looked at or indeed your budget so try this unless you have already, go to Apollo Duck and enter Liverpool Boats in the search box, have a look at what is on offer and at what price, that should give you some idea if the boat you are considering is reasonable value for money. I have said this a few times recently, a boat just like anything else is worth what you are prepared to pay for it, so decide your budget, stick to it, make sure your head rules your heart and do the research. It is so easy to be convinced that life afloat is the solution to all ill's, it is not, if it works for you then it can be wonderful, equally you could spend a lot of money and a few months later decide you hate the lifestyle. I know there have been a number of TV programmes with "celebs" telling their audience how wonderful it is but that's in the summer, on a hire boat and they are being paid, try it in mid winter when stepping on the towpath leaves you ankle deep in mud, or so cold you are iced in and the toilet is full. Finally be aware the purchase price is only the start, BOAT as everyone who owns one will testify means "Bung on another Thousand" or a "boat is a hole in the water into which you throw money" either is true. I hope it works for you and good luck.

Your problems only really start if you decide to purchase the boat and then the survey finds something wrong which is fairly minor. It all depends on how carefully you inspect the boat, take your time, run the engine from COLD and check for smoke. Look at the condition of the engine space, check for rust and water, there should be none. If you are not happy walk away. Check any and all systems. If they own the boat they have to be open about any faults, same as buying a car from a garage, private sale buyer beware.

I'd agree are they acting as a broker for the owner or do they own the boat?

That's nonsense, you can't value a boat based solely on age. A well made boat kept in good condition will be worth far more than a newer boat which has been neglected. Boats like anything are worth what the buyer is prepared to pay and he will not know what that is until he has inspected the boat and possibly had a survey.

Looks like a nice boat and sensibly priced. Dinette turns into another bed so dual use and personally I prefer eating off a table rather than my lap. Looks like someone cared about it and kept it in good condition. No engine pics so check that out carefully. You could be on to a winner but look with your head not your heart. Good Luck.

If you have the time leave the Oxford at Dukes Cut and use the Thames to Oxford, there is plenty of good mooring on the river in Oxford and there is no current to speak about. Access to Oxford from the river is just as easy as from the end of the canal and the run down the river is far nicer than the last few miles of the Oxford. Going back you could use Isis lock and travel back up the Oxford but I wouldn't bother it is without doubt the worst section of the canal.

Rick, as you are looking on the K&A try the Frouds Bridge website, unless you already have, they have three for sale at the moment and I know from experience that they will be priced sensibly. I sold my 2006 60ft Semi-Trad Narrowboat from there in Sept. 2019.

Buying a boat is not about the asking price it is what you are prepared to pay for it. A boat as with everything else in life is worth what the buyer is prepared to pay and not a penny more. So set your budget, don't forget to allow for a survey, licence, insurance and a mooring, roughly £5000. Next decide what type of boat you need / want, length, style etc. decide on how you and your wife will use the boat. Once all that is sorted in your head you can start looking, the old adage "you don't choose the boat it chooses you" has always proved true for me.

I have an ongoing topic relating to the same problem on the maintenance part of the forum. In general the answer seems to be these UFO vents are old fashioned and yes they leak. Internally there is a plastic fitting which is supposed to prevent the ingress of water into the boat, like everything made of plastic over time it fails hence the leak. The solution is obvious remove them and fit something which works, on narrowboats that is normally mushroom vents, simple robust and generally leak free or replace them and wait for the next leak. Next problem removing the old vents and fitting the new ones, they might come off without problems but more likely the fixings were stainless steel and the hull is mild steel so the fixings are jammed solid, how do I know this? So unless the original fixings are easily removed chop the heads off remove the UFO vents, clean up the rust as far as possible, use Vactan to kill the remainder, repaint, fit the new mushrooms. Welcome to the fun world of boating. Good Luck

You did not mention in your post whether you have ever hired a boat, if not can I suggest you do before contemplating spending lots of money. It really is "Marmite" you either love it or hate it, there is no in between and it is an expensive hobby. A realistic figure to run a narrowboat for a year after you purchase it would be between £4000-£5000. Do the research before spending the money.

The Dutch barge which we now share with two other couples after selling our narrowboat has two "UFO" air vents one for the shower and the other for the toilet in the rear cabin, both are leaking and probably have been for some time. Our narrowboat had mushroom vents so I have no idea what fails on these vents and causes leaks. I suspect they are more complex than standard as when the lights are turned on in either space a fan also turns on, there is no obvious exit for the air other than around the light fitting which are located directly below the vents. I can't travel to the boat which is in the Netherlands until the end of August but when I do go I'd like to be able to resolve the problem, unfortunately the boat was fitted out by Mitchell Narrowboats and they no longer exist so I can't get any information from them. I also can't find a photograph or diagram showing how these units are assembled. So does anyone know what fails or have an assembly diagram and are repair kits available? Thanks in advance Ken

The rules vary depending on the length of your boat but manning rules only kick in for larger vessels. The river is only really busy between Limehouse and the London Eye, mostly the passengers ferries and the high speed ribs. The first time I did it we left Limehouse at 3.00 pm on a Saturday and that was interesting but to be fair not unsafe. PLA publish information for leisure boaters on their website. I've done the trip several times in both directions never had a problem but obviously you need to consider all the risks especially the weather. Good luck with your trip whichever way you decide to go.

Rather than using the canals to transit London why not enter the river at Limehouse and travel to Brentford that way, far quicker and in my opinion a much nicer run. You need to check the tide times so you can leave Limehouse at a sensible time of day.

Not sure where and which boats you have been looking at but most barges have more than one cabin, our 17 mtr. Luxemotor has two and certainly enough room in the saloon for a sofa bed if we needed one. Loads of information and boats for sale on the DBA website and also on the RYA website. You will find far more boats for sale in the Netherlands, all types and prices. Please be aware that you will need an ICC (International Certificate of Competence) and a VHF licence, assuming the boat has a VHF set, which to be realistic is necessary in Europe. The rules are also different for boats over 20 metres in length. Prior to buying our boat we hired a Locaboat Penichette for a couple of weeks on the Canal du Midi, it was OK for two for a couple of weeks holiday in summer but it would have required a total refit to turn it into a live aboard.

Hi Denise, Just noticed your location, my wife and I also live in Andover so if you need a hand moving the boat please let me know. Send me a PM Ken

Obviously having purchased a boat you are keen to get on the water however I'd suggest carrying out the work required on land before you launch the boat. It is a lot easier to work on a boat when it is out of the water than when it is floating. I do not know how much you need to do but for example if you need to carry out any woodwork spirit levels do not work on floating boats. We moored our narrowboat in the lower basin of the museum when we were waiting to cross the Mersey into Liverpool and you can access via the gate near the entrance with a BWB key after hours not sure about the lower basin gates we could not access except during the day.

A couple of options on here https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/media/original/24057-slipways-on-middle-branch.pdf

Now I'm confused, if you are looking for your first boat how have you been CCing for a year? In addition if you have been living aboard for a year you must have a good idea what works for you.

In the photograph of the kitchen there does seem to be a folding work surface on the wall next to the fridge and also one above the cupboard on the opposite side of the boat near the kitchen. Obviously depends on your use of the boat as to how much use the kitchen will get but it is a 45 foot boat so space is limited, compromise is always going to be necessary. I also can't understand why some people do not prepare their boats for sale, I spent weeks cleaning the boat inside and out and doing every one of those little jobs that I'd put off before I put our boat on the market. Looking for the replacement on one boat the owner had not even removed their clothing and possessions from the cupboards. I asked on one of your previous posts but again do you have a mooring on the K&A because if not I'd sort that out before buying the boat.

You'll need to check with the various marinas, to check what rules they have in place at the moment, these are all on or near the K&A. Bristol harbour marina, Couple at Bradford on Avon, Foxhangers at the bottom of the Caen Hill flight, Devises you already know, Newbury has three Greenham Island, Greenham Lock and Ham Mill marinas, Aldermaston has Frouds Bridge and Aldermaston marina, Thames and Kennet marina, on the Thames at Reading Most if not all have websites. No idea how many boats you have already looked at but look at as many as you can even if they are out of your price range, you will get a better idea of what is worth the money and what should be avoided. Good luck and don't forget the mooring, CCing on the K&A is more trouble than it is worth.

Any owner who allows the type of damage to which you refer happen is careless at best it takes time for wood to distort and rot to happen as others have said avoid there will be other problems. As an alternative given that you need to purchase locally have a look at a boat on brokerage at Frouds Bridge https://www.froudsbridgemarina.co.uk/brokerage/ . Looks to be a fair boat for the money and you'll probably be able to negotiate a discount. If you are intending to live aboard on the K&A I hope you have already found a mooring.

Baseplate will normally be 10 mm, sides up to the gunnel 6 mm, sides above the gunnel either 5 or 4 mm, roof 4 mm, at least on a fairly modern build. Older boats could be thinner to start with. Google Towpath Talk free online canal mag with lots of ads and information.

The OP said neither of them knew much about boats or presumably boating. The UK has no rules about who can pilot a boat, Europe requires an ICC (International Certificate of Competence). Therefore unless they do the training and pass a helmsman's course and the CEVNI test they will need to ensure that wherever they purchase the boat they can have it shipped from there or pay to have it moved to somewhere it can be craned out. There are lots of modern UK replica barges for sale in Europe these were built to UK standards so hull thickness is or should not be a problem, Alastair is absolutely correct about older Dutch built barges.

If your partner is in the market for a Dutch Barge be aware that is a generic name for a wide variety of types of boats. Have a look on the Barge Association website there are always a number of barges for sale and some of them have blogs which have a great deal of information. The DBA website contains lots of information which is available to read for non members and the DBA published a book which is designed to cover all aspects of buying and owning a dutch barge and is available from the website.

Fettlers Wharf Marina on the Rufford Branch of the Leeds Liverpool Canal sell houseboats similar to those in your post. There were a couple moored there back in 2017 when we pulled in for fuel. They have a website, click on boats for sale, one on there at the moment for similar money to your third example. Do however think carefully about the mooring issue other than the Thames this is the only place I have ever seen one of these in this country. Our Luxemotor is currently moored in Ghent and like the Netherlands houseboats are common there. I doubt if you will find any useful information on the DBA website generally all our boats tend to move.