NiceNarrowboat

Having the vast expanse that is England as a garden. And not having to mow a jot of it.

On my first boat, I used Blue. Then, on the recommendation of a fellow boatowner, I stopped using it altoghether. The stink stunk less. Since having my new boat, I've never used anything except Ecover on the pan - and don't have a smell. So in my opinion, get it pumped out regularly enough to not use anything... Cost = nothing!

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Having mine done at Shobnall now, so the juries out. The jury well and truly came home regarding the most convenient one for us who moor in Mercia after we noticed last August a lot of the blacking had come off having only been done February 2010!! We're the second on our pontoon to have had this problem hence going further afield.

Hi there Tried to PM you but couldn't as you're too new. However, this forum is a great place to advertise...can you send me some more details of the property as I'm looking for land canalside. My email address is my forum name @hotmail.co.uk Much appreciated. Penny.

Calling Pillingslock, calling Pillingslock. Found your culprit. I'll be in touch for my reward.

Folks, this is simply not debateable. A hose is inserted into the innards of a canal (carrying vessel) Ordinarily, there is a charge for such of around 10-15 pounds. He sleeps with the boss so gets it free (moorer's perk) Thus, he is pumped out. Now if he were to dispense of said other. He would be a Thetford.

Absolutely agreed. I went across The Wash last August on a Jetski and not in a million years would I take any narrowboat (let alone my pride and joy) on that trip. I'd already battled 2.5 metres waves out of Sea Palling; and in the middle of the wash they were a good 1.5 metres mostly - yet it was a still, calm, sunny, balmy day. In my view, a narrowboat would need full water and weather protection at the bow to prevent submerging, but of greater importance: a narrowboat does not have the draft to cope with the tail end of the North Sea. I'm the first in line when it comes to defying the naysayers in this world. If you prove me wrong, I'll be the first to congratulate you but I just wouldn't take this challenge on. And if you're planning to do this in August, I'll give a nudge when I'm attempting (for the second time) to be the first woman to jetski around the UK!

Okay, I'll confess. I have a corner jacuzzi bath with chromotherapy light! I also have a waterfall shower over it which is rarely used - although fab. All terribly extravagant, but having a bath is utterly bliss after a long days' cruising, and the built in seat is perfect to stand a glass of wine. Funnily enough, I use a shower when living on land, but I think it's because when on land you're busy working so don't have hours to soak, whereas on the boat means you can be as leisurely as you like. Mind you there's something about cubicles that makes me claustrophobic (I'm not usually though). The bathroom on my boat is my favourite 'room'. We can fill the bath up four or five times over between water points so it's not so bad and I wouldn't have it any other way just because it's lush.

Actually, you are quite correct: some do build to full compliance and have their work regularly checked. All should. So something for new boatowners to factor in their decision-making. "WHY don't customers go back to the builder at that stage, if it's a non-compliancy issue from the start?" I think there's two issues at play. The first is the RCD and the BSS have a small number of conflicts set up within them. A boat is built to an RCD, but maintained by the BSS - so you have to go with the first even though it won't be acceptable to the latter. Also, rules change from time to time: so four years post-build something that might have been previously acceptable no longer is. But when the Boatbuilder cannot claim either of these issues as pertinent that is where the real trouble begins. For many I've spoken to on this issue, the reality has been paying to get it fixed versus having to take a boatbuilder to court to enforce their consumer rights (in cases of dispute). Unless the boatbuilder is a member of a Boatbuilding Association, which can assist with arbitration, there is no other organisation to enforce your legal rights, aside from the courts. Ultimately, resolving one's BSS issues is much cheaper, much less stressful and not nearly as time-consuming. Remember that if the boatbuilder has gone out of business (even if they've restarted under another name) then the law states that you cannot make any further claims against the company, unless you can prove the directors have been negligent (again a very expensive process). This applies to Ltd companies, not sole-traders. So it's a case of making the best of a bad bunch of options.

In short - yes, get a survey. If nothing else, it's reassuring. I'm afraid, I don't like the idea of self-certification: some boatbuilders go bust/out of business and/or cut corners to avoid the aforementioned. My 'dodgy boat' was self-certified as 'fit for purpose' by the builder's brother two months after we removed it from his yard, and through an independent survey (at the time of removal) we found that a lot of what was stated as fit for purpose wasn't. It was good having the two documents at the time of going to court...because there was nothing but denial until that point. If there were to be any negligence on their part, it's picked up early rather than too late. Too late is not about the money, it's about personal safety. In our case, when we presented our boat to our new boatbuilders they knew what needed to be done, and we're very helpful in trying to get problems rectified. We retained a surveyor throughout the boatbuild as well. Having an independent survey may cost now but should you need to resort to legal action, remember: the vast majority don't because of the expense. A survey costs circa 500 pounds. My lawyer was 240 pounds an hour. Getting things remedied immediately can be far cheaper! Even if there's a warranty, having an independent survey saves pounds later should there be any dispute.

You know the adage 'you find out who your friends are during times of strife'? Well the same goes for lifestyle changes! Whenever you make a decision for you, which your friends don't necessarily understand, you'll find out soon enough whether they were mere acquaintances or true friends. That's my philosophical £0.02's worth.

Hello there, I can only draw on my own experience to help you consider your situation - although I hired first for a holiday, within half an hour I turned to my partner and said 'I'm buying one of these'. Although utterly clueless as to what owning one really meant I do know lots who have bought without hiring and haven't looked back - so it really depends! I did, in fact, go on to hire a second time 'just to be sure to be sure'. I spent hundreds of hours looking for a boat that wasn't too old, yet affordable and reasonably comfortable and not too large (over 50ft). Once we found 'the one', we didn't get a survey! We spent a year re-building different rooms in evenings and weekends, e.g. converting a crossover bed to a fixed, building in a dinnette and permanent sofa, refitting the kitchen etc - we had the time, and were also living on the boat so wanted to get it right for us. It sounds like you could do this too? Two years later (in 2005) we sold her for 10K more than we'd paid and accidentally made a decent enough profit on it! Given the current economic situation in the UK, whether that is feasible now - I don't know. Knowing what I know now (a little bit above clueless), I would heartily recommend having a survey - I can assure you we just got lucky first time round. And, as I know well, getting a new boat doesn't meant you save yourself from serious problems with the builder. If you do go for a slightly older boat, it's likely you will sell it for more or less than what you paid for it - but you've 'saved the cost of a holiday' (or more) in the interim. Secondly, the size of the boat comes down to what you want on it. For example a walkthrough bathroom takes less space than an enclosed one, ditto a crossover/fixed bed. Having somewhere to eat from v. a small collapsable coffee table/laps. These issues are personal, so personal in fact some members of CWF will fall out over them! Perhaps your best way of determining length is looking at your minimum needs and calculating from there, e.g. do I want to make a bed up everyday = crossover bed/ or sofa bed in the saloon converting to a bed a night. This way you can work out the length you could live with? As for shopping - go when it's not raining, or if you're in a marina get your local to deliver! Best wishes.

I built my boat as a future liveaboard so getting a washing machine was a no-brainer. It's situated in the bedroom (cunningly hidden as a vanity unit) so well out of ear shot from the saloon, and not even an eyesore. Even though I spend much less time on the boat than I'd like, I still use it every holiday - doing the sheets/towels, but the biggest plus is having to pack less clothes each time I go to the boat, knowing that I can wash and wear. As I live overseas, it creates a LOT more baggage space for essentials: Pesto, Quorn Sausages and Veggie Gravy in abundance! On my first boat, I didn't have a washing machine - and washing became a chore to do rather than the bung it in, carry on cruising setup I have now.