Dilemma about surveyed boat

[frankling]

Hello All

 

I wonder if anyone out there can offer some advice. My life has turned a bit upside down, and in the chaos, I decided to sell my house and go for a liveaboard. I've been reading about boats and looking at boats since about May, and a couple of weeks ago thought I'd found the one for me. I got massively overenthusiastic, had a survey done, and now am paralysed by indecision.

 

I'm too much of a newbie at all this, and think I may have rushed into making an offer and am making an expensive mistake. If anyone can offer advice to stop me from potentially making the mistake bigger and even more expensive, that would be fantastic!

 

The website didn't have all that much information about the boat, so I did ask supplemental questions. However, I never asked anything about the most crucial bit, the hull. I thought that most canal boats were 10/6/4 or 8/6/4, with Springers being thinner. Since this boat isn't a Springer, it never even dawned on me that the steel might be not be a standard thickness. However, when it was pulled out of the water and the surveyor went to look at it, he determined that the base plate was originally 6.6mm, the swim 6.5mm and the side plating 5.0mm. The boat now is 5.9-6.0mm swim, 4.9-5.0mm side plating.

 

Absolutely kicking myself, because the boat had had a survey in 2017, but I never asked to look at it, since it was three years old and I was planning to get my own survey done anyway, but of course the 2017 survey would have mentioned the thin steel, and then I think I would have got cold feet and walked away. The boat was built in 1998, is 45 feet, and is selling for £35,000, which I'm now thinking sounds a lot for a cheaply-built 22-year-old boat? What would you advise - is it more sensible to leave this boat alone and wait for something to come along with a higher-quality hull? Or are those steel thicknesses fine and dandy as long as I keep looking after it?

 

I feel really lost with this. My parents lived on a narrowboat for 15 or 20 years, but I paid no attention to anything apart from the stove and the kettle on their boat at the time, and they are now too old and too far away from their boat-ownership days to help. I'm also not a very practical person - no knowledge of engines etc - and don't really know anyone who is practical who can look at boats with me. £35,000 is the top end of the budget, and it is such a huge sum to me that I am in a complete dilemma on this one. I have to admit that my love-at-first-sight feeling was a gut feeling induced by the interior - it just felt like home when I stepped aboard - and not by anything remotely practical. 

 

All advice, comments, cries of "My god, you imbecile, what were you thinking" etc welcome. Thank you in advance for any help, and sorry for the wall o' text.

 

(P.S. I'm not sure if it's bad form to post a direct link to the boat in question so you can take a look at it?)

Edit: link to boat added: https://narrowboats.apolloduck.com/boat/narrow-boats-cruiser-stern/649928

 

 

 

Edited October 24, 2020 by frankling

[Nut]

welcome to the forms first of all and don't panic helpful peeps are on their way with more questions

[dor]

Post a link to the boat for a start.  This will help people judge the price.

[David Mack]

6mm baseplate was standard in the 70s and into the 80s. By 1998 most builders were probably using thicker, but this won't be the only boat of that age with 6mm.The measurements you quote are not bad for a boat of that age.

But £35k does sound as if it might be on the high side. Post a link to the ad so we can give a more informed view.

Edited October 24, 2020 by David Mack

[frankling]

Thank you! The boat is this one: https://narrowboats.apolloduck.com/boat/narrow-boats-cruiser-stern/649928

[Laurie Booth]

4 minutes ago, frankling said:

Thank you! The boat is this one: https://narrowboats.apolloduck.com/boat/narrow-boats-cruiser-stern/649928

Looks lovely to me.

[Athy]

It's marked as "Sale agreed" so you may be too late, unless that's you of course.

It looks pleasant enough but a little overpriced. Some people may have heard of the builder; I haven't. But the steel thickness is not something to panic about. Others will know better than me, but I believe that many working boats, which after all went about their business carrying 20 tons of coal or gravel, were built with plating less than 10mm thick.

[BWM]

Steel thicknesses are reasonable and lighter built boats tend to be more stable, its quite likely that the cabin is 4mm with a 3mm top.

  The old cargo carrying narrow boats were built with a 6mm base plate and sides.

 Price does seem to be on the high side though. 

[David Mack]

1 minute ago, Athy said:

Others will know better than me, but I believe that many working boats, which after all went about their business carrying 20 tons of coal or gravel, were built with plating less than 10mm thick.

I think you can safely say (almost) all iron and steel working narrow boats were built with thinner plating. The Big Woolwich boats for example had 5/16 in (8mm) plating.

[TheBiscuits]

Mine's quite a bit older than that, and was built in quarter inch (6mm) steel.

 

Realistically, there's no concerns on that hull.  It's obviously been maintained and regularly blacked.

 

There are many newer boats with far worse corrosion issues.

 

The boat has a modern engine and a sound hull, and you like the fitout, so enjoy it.

 

 

 

 

[Bee]

Stop kicking yourself! If you have made a mistake its not a very big one and most of us have made far worse decisions sometime or other. The steel thicknesses look very good to me, Make sure that you crane or haul it out every 3 years or so and get it pressure washed and painted - and underneath as well - and they will stay that way. Looks OK inside too, move straight in and start living on it. Price is not unreasonable, might have negotiated a bit off maybe, or maybe not. Anyway, you couldn't buy much of a home for less except a beaten up motorhome, rotten caravan or a tent. If I was looking for a boat like that I would have shortlisted that one.

[frankling]

Is there a way to reply to individual posts on the forum, or is it just 'Reply to topic'?

 

If the latter:

 

Laurie Booth - It had such a nice feel on board! But the survey had me panicking that £35,000 is such a lot to spend if the structure is a wash... 

 

Athy - 'Sale agreed' would be me - I put in an offer for the asking price, since boats are selling so stupid fast and I was so starry-eyed when I went aboard this one, and then it's sold subject to survey (and the survey is what I'm sweating bullets over now).

 

BWM - OK, that doesn't sound so bad about the steel, then. Do you think it will be an issue if/when I come to resell the boat?

[Ray T]

15 minutes ago, frankling said:

Is there a way to reply to individual posts on the forum, or is it just 'Reply to topic'?

 

If the latter:

 

Laurie Booth - It had such a nice feel on board! But the survey had me panicking that £35,000 is such a lot to spend if the structure is a wash... 

 

Athy - 'Sale agreed' would be me - I put in an offer for the asking price, since boats are selling so stupid fast and I was so starry-eyed when I went aboard this one, and then it's sold subject to survey (and the survey is what I'm sweating bullets over now).

 

BWM - OK, that doesn't sound so bad about the steel, then. Do you think it will be an issue if/when I come to resell the boat?

Make sure the boat is regularly blacked, keep receipts. Every 2 years is the recommended for bitchumen. Our boat is also 1998 vintage and we have her blacked every 18 months - but that is my preference.

 

If the boat will be subject to mains hook up in a marina make sure it has either a galvanic isolator or transformer.

Edited October 24, 2020 by Ray T

[Lady M]

It looks OK to me too.  If you can get hold of it, it may be worth asking to see the 2017 survey.  This will tell you if there has been any noticeable change in the interim.  As other posters have said, keeping it regularly blacked will keep the steel in good condition and having the baseplate blacked too is a good idea.

[blackrose]

1 hour ago, frankling said:

I'm also not a very practical person - no knowledge of engines etc - and don't really know anyone who is practical...

 

 

Apart from your dilemma about the boat itself, I'm afraid I can't help thinking that this may be another issue for anyone on a limited budget who's contemplating living on a boat.

 

There will always be things to repair on the boat as well as regular maintenance and if you're not hands on or practically inclined and don't know anyone who can help who is, then it will end up costing a lot of money to get people in. 

Edited October 24, 2020 by blackrose

[Richard10002]

Given that your worry about the Hull thickness is unfounded, and you had no other issues with the survey, my suggestion is to get it bought  Presumably the rest of the survey is fine.

 

From the advert, and from what you have said, It looks like a lovely boat, and you have already discovered that they are selling fast for lots of money. You might not get another chance to buy such a nice boat.

 

In terms of the money, each year you live on it you will have saved about £6000 or more in rent.

[Athy]

1 hour ago, frankling said:

Is there a way to reply to individual posts on the forum, or is it just 'Reply to topic'?

 

 

Yes: press the "Quote" button towards the left at the bottom of the post, which is what I've done here.

2 minutes ago, Richard10002 said:

t.

 

In terms of the money, each year you live on it you will have saved about £6000 or more in rent.

He is, or was, a home owner - though whether with or without mortgage we don't know.

[Richard10002]

2 minutes ago, Athy said:

 

He is, or was, a home owner - though whether with or without mortgage we don't know.

Yes... but the fact that his life has been turned upside down may have necessitated the sale. As you say, we don't know, and its none of our business unless he wants to tell.

 

I could have added that, financially,  I hope he did everything he could to keep the house. If the sale hasn't exchanged, perhaps I could suggest this be given more thought.

[David Mack]

1 hour ago, frankling said:

Is there a way to reply to individual posts on the forum, or is it just 'Reply to topic'?

 

Just click on the word 'Quote' below the post you want to reply to. You can edit the  quoted text if you only want to respond to part of it.

[Tracy D'arth]

Water tank capacity is tiny for a live aboard, you will have to moor near a water point all the time!

 

Go back to the seller, be horror struck with the lack of modern steel plate thickness, yes it will affect a sale later.

 

Knock between £11K and £7K off the price, tell them take it or leave it.

[booke23]

I've been looking at buying a boat for the last couple of months in this size range.

 

I think it looks good. It may have 6/5 hull, but crucially it still has nearly all this thickness remaining which is good. Remember there are lots of 6/5/5 aluminium Sea Otters about that get by just fine, and aluminium isn't as strong as steel, so your boat will be more than up to the job. It's got a good modern engine and Victron inverter + solar. Most boats this age are not as well equipped as that. 

 

I wouldn't advise pulling out......it could take you 6 months to find a similar boat. Added to that the current market is boat sales (especially in the 40-45ft range) is crazy. Good boats come on with the major brokers and people put the deposit down on the phone without viewing.......usually within an hour or 2 of it going on the market!

[Machpoint005]

13 minutes ago, booke23 said:

>>aluminium isn't as strong as steel<<

..but it doesn't rust.

 

Agree about the water tank capacity, but that's probably worth checking before you let it become a deal breaker. Get the tape measure out and do it in metres, rather than faffing about with conversions in non-coherent units. Come to think of it, I wonder how the advertiser arrved at 40 gallons (182 litres, in real money). By my reckoning you would empty that in well under half an hour through the pump: mine takes an hour and a half!   

 

[Tracy D'arth]

14 minutes ago, Machpoint005 said:

..but it doesn't rust.

 

Agree about the water tank capacity, but that's probably worth checking before you let it become a deal breaker. Get the tape measure out and do it in metres, rather than faffing about with conversions in non-coherent units. Come to think of it, I wonder how the advertiser arrved at 40 gallons (182 litres, in real money). By my reckoning you would empty that in well under half an hour through the pump: mine takes an hour and a half!   

 

Its an impractical size for a water tank.  4 or 5 times that size would be acceptable for a live aboard.

[Machpoint005]

Yes - mine would be OK.

[Athy]

1 hour ago, Machpoint005 said:

Come to think of it, I wonder how the advertiser arrived at 40 gallons (182 litres).

 

I'm not sure what you mean by "arrived at", but it was a standard size, at least at that time. Hallmark's boat, mass-produced in the late '90s and early '00s, had a tank of that capacity.