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New Narrow Boat advice


amandanadine

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49 minutes ago, LadyG said:

I think my ideas are the opposite, I'd do a power audit, and discuss whether the boat is going to be used for more than a few weeks in winter, and if it needs to be independent of shorepower. 

I have 550w standard solar panels, flat, not angled, they don't get in the way of the centreline very much, but if got the choice, I'd think about flexible panels,,.

I have 600 ah of lead acid type batteries and would equate them with about 2-300ah lithium. I probably need to run the engine for about ten hours per week in the dead of winter, but I would have thought that lithium would charge much faster, and more efficiently, so was thinking five hours per week, ie one days cruising ? I assumed that one is more in need of a big expensive alternator with a big lead acid battery bank than a lithium battery bank.

 

I much prefer portholes in the toilet and bedroom, and standard sized windows with curtains which are insulated in order to keep boat cool in summer, warm in winter.

 

 

We certainly do all have our different preferences regarding power usage, as well as just about everything else! 

Even the phrase leisure boating can mean all sorts of things- to some it is a week or maybe 10 days of cruising snatched here and there between work, with the boat sat empty in a marina for a couple of months at a time.

To others it may include an extended cruise of two or three months in the summer, followed sometimes by 5 months in a marina. 

So when I think leisure boating, I guess I assume mostly summer cruising, and there wont be many days when the boat is not moving, and it wont be used too much during winter.

 

My boat was a leisure boat, and it didnt have a SF stove when I got it- the previous owners were mostly summer cruisers, and felt no need for a stove. 

 

But on the specifics you mentioned: 

I agree with you about flexible panels. They would probably be great for a leisure boater, because you don't really need to maximise the solar.

During summer, which is mostly when you're using the boat, they'll give you all the charge you need on most occasions, and there's no need to drill the roof to fit solar panel brackets- so the roof looks neater too, and its free to walk on when needed. 

 

Re the charging system and alternator, I would not be happy with a beta 38 engine for 170k- or at least not if it has anything like the pathetic pair of alternators that I have on my canaline 38. I would want something that charges at 80 or 100 amps without overheating. Not so much for my own leisure use as such, but just because I want a fair deal, and for 170k I would want something better than a basic bargain spec for the charging system.

One key thing is that I would check whether the alternator uses a poly V belt, which would at least allow you to upgrade the alternator if you ever decided to spend more time living aboard. My canaline 38 alternators both use V belts (not poly V), and they are seriously limited in terms of their power output. 

If you ever decided to do a long winter cruise, the ability to charge batteries more quickly would be a nice thing to have on your still days.

 

Personally I would get lithium batteries even on a leisure boat- I think because they last for at least a decade they are now decent value at about £500 each. But that is a personal thing. 

 

Re the portholes, to be honest I would not have portholes on any windows, even the bedroom. If you want privacy, use net curtains in the day time, and normal curtains at night. 

I'm saying this out of a personal prejudice in a way, because my boat has fairly small windows and I would love to let more natural light in, so I would have preferred loads of windows. I would want at least one extra window fitted on each side in lounge area.  I love light and space, and it annoys me that the smallish windows make the interior dim and gloomy on winter mornings. 

 

ETA- if I was speccing a new boat mostly for summer cruising, I think I'd choose a very light paint colour to minimise heat absorption. Possibly even a variety of white, or a very light cream. Mine is dark green, and the heat it soaks up during the summer is ridiculous. 

 

 

 

 

Edited by Tony1
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18 minutes ago, Goliath said:

Let’s not forget an engine folks!

they were asking about "must have extras". If their boatbuilder considers an engine to be an 'extra' I'd be worried

 

I guess if you opened the door of the air fryer you could propel the boat with a couple of ecofans

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17 minutes ago, Goliath said:

would I have to forego the air fryer?

Not if you have 50kwh of batteries instead of bricks under the cabin sole. 

17 minutes ago, Goliath said:

would I have to forego the air fryer?

Not if you have 50kwh of batteries instead of bricks under the cabin sole. 

17 minutes ago, Goliath said:

would I have to forego the air fryer?

Not if you have 50kwh of batteries instead of bricks under the cabin sole. 

Edited by magnetman
Make that 150kwh !
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18 minutes ago, enigmatic said:

they were asking about "must have extras". If their boatbuilder considers an engine to be an 'extra' I'd be worried

 

I guess if you opened the door of the air fryer you could propel the boat with a couple of ecofans


I was considering an eco fan from the stove,

.. but from an air fryer too would be quite cunning 

 

but come on who cares which way the bed faces, just get a boat that moves and get on with it. 
It must be painted green though. 

 

 

 

Edited by Goliath
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1 minute ago, Goliath said:


I was considering an eco fan from the stove,

.. but from an air fryer too would be quite cunning 

 

but come on who cares which way the bed faces, just get a boat that moves and get on with it. 
It must be green though. 
 

 

I'm sedentary in a boat I bought nearly 14 yars ago and it was painted dark green on the cabin sides. Obviously there has been random shite on the top of the boat but the cabin side paint is almost as good as new. It is an amazingly durable colour. BRG. British Racing Green. They did some minis in this colour. 

 

I have had a few other boats over the yars and none of them had this paint longevity. I think it is the colour. It seems to not fade as much. 

 

Don't go for blue. That is a terrible colour for fade. 

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23 minutes ago, magnetman said:

I'm sedentary in a boat I bought nearly 14 yars ago and it was painted dark green on the cabin sides. Obviously there has been random shite on the top of the boat but the cabin side paint is almost as good as new. It is an amazingly durable colour. BRG. British Racing Green. They did some minis in this colour. 

 

I have had a few other boats over the yars and none of them had this paint longevity. I think it is the colour. It seems to not fade as much. 

 

Don't go for blue. That is a terrible colour for fade. 

Red is the worst colour for fading...

  • Greenie 1
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