Narrowboat storage

[jupiter1124]

prolly an obvious question for those in the know....... I have continuously cruised since I bought my boat several years ago, but I am going to be travelling for mebbe 6 months and i need to store her somewhere on the cheap........

 

Is there such a thing as narrowboat storage, or is it just a case of getting a marina or online mooring........? I was hoping that I could find somewhere cheap were I don't need any services (like mains hookup or water) for living aboard.

 

any suggestions....? im in the nottingham area at the moment but i can go wherever the rates are cheap . she's a full length narrowboat

 

My licence expires in October, must i license the boat while in storage? do i need to tell CaRT that i wont renew or can I just let it lapse and then apply for a new licence when I get back? would be nice to save a couple of months fees

 

Also is there anything I should be aware of when it comes to leaving the boat for that long. make sure the bilge pump is working for example?d

 

thanks in advance..........

[nicknorman]

Another option would be crane out and store on hard standing, but I’ve no idea if this could work out cheaper. But at least the risk of it sinking is reduced! And you don’t need a licence if you are not in the water.

 

eg this one, just as an example : https://www.northkilworthwharf.com/services/mooring-hardstanding/

Edited June 7, 2022 by nicknorman

[David Mack]

CRT's standard Network Access Agreement requires that marinas impose a requirement on their moorers that boats have a current CRT licence, even if they never leave the marina. And some marinas which are not subject to the NAA also require it, so your options for a floating berth without a licence are going to be limited.

You could get the boat craned onto hardstanding where no CRT licence is required and where the storage fees are probably a little lower, but you would incur the cost of cranage out and back in again.

For 6 months you coukd probably just leave the boat on a mooring and it would probably be fine, especially if you have solar to keep the batteries topped up. But if you are half way round the world you might want the comfort of an arrangement where somebody actively checks that things are OK. And for that a friendly marina is probably best.

[agg221]

In the Nottingham area you could enquire about being pulled out onto the Field of Broken Dreams at Redhill (properly known as the boat storage area). I have no idea on price but they do have facilities to easily slip boats out and drive them over to the field using their mobile crane, so it may be quite cost-effective. I wouldn't personally choose Redhill as a marina to base a boat at in the water as the facilities appear rather run down, but on the field there is little to go wrong.

 

Alec

[ditchcrawler]

Here are Debdale prices for hard standing and launching 

[jupiter1124]

i like the sound of hardstanding if the cranage isn't too expensive because i assume there will be less wear on my blacking and anodes and i don't have to worry about taking on water

looks like north kilworth is a bit cheaper than debdale, but either way will cost a bit more than 500 quid per quarter for either floating or not, maybe saving max 100 quid to do hardstanding. so it comes down to the cranage and if the 250 each way is normal it unfortunately looks like floating is the way to go unless I'm out for more than 6 months

The redhill field looks ideal though, I'm looking for somewhere cheap and nasty, i'll get in touch with them and see if their having a crane on site makes it any more affordable...

thanks very much for the links and the info

[Ianws]

Out of water over winter you will need to be thorough with the winterising of the boat. It will get a lot colder out of the water when the temperature plummets. 

[reg]

Also might be worth blacking whilst on hard standing as a large part of the blocking cost is the lift out and in.

Appreciate its an additional cost but could be a good saving on future blacking.

Used both Debdale and Redhill 

Debdale is best

Redhill is (was?) Interesting. OK to use if there is a saving

[stagedamager]

If you decide to keep her in the water for whatever reasons, we're quite cheap at Langley Mill if you need somewhere to store her, failing that Redhill is the best local hardstanding price wise but can flood quite easily, and as Alec says, a tad run down.

Kind regards

Dan

Langley Mill Boatyard 

[Nightwatch]

5 hours ago, stagedamager said:

If you decide to keep her in the water for whatever reasons, we're quite cheap at Langley Mill if you need somewhere to store her, failing that Redhill is the best local hardstanding price wise but can flood quite easily, and as Alec says, a tad run down.

Kind regards

Dan

Langley Mill Boatyard 

And nice conscientious people they are at Langley Mill too. I believe they will look after your boat too.

Edited June 8, 2022 by Nightwatch