New to boating

[Paul les]

Hi there,  I'm thinking of buying either a river cruiser or narrow boat to live on .

It will be just me so not to bothered about loads of room, just need some advice on which will be easier to travel the water ways on...thanks 

[Jen-in-Wellies]

Welcome to the forum,

Which waterways are you interested in? Narrow canals, wide canals, rivers? All of the above? Some boats will be better suited than others to each of these.

Generally you get more boat for your money with a plastic cruiser than a steel narrowboat. At the cheap end of the market, a cruiser can be sound, while the same money will get you a steel narrowboat that is held together by rust.

[Paul les]

Thanks for replying...all of the above really...I've looked and cruisers seem lower in price...

[Paul les]

That's what i thought...and if it's just me a cruiser would be ideal

I was thinking of the height of cruisers, is there a massive difference between them and narrow boats.

 

 

 

 

[Tony Brooks]

4 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

Welcome to the forum,

Which waterways are you interested in? Narrow canals, wide canals, rivers? All of the above? Some boats will be better suited than others to each of these.

Generally you get more boat for your money with a plastic cruiser than a steel narrowboat. At the cheap end of the market, a cruiser can be sound, while the same money will get you a steel narrowboat that is held together by rust.

 

But for living on GRP cruisers are typically not as well thermally insulated as many narrowboats so can be cold in winter. Not all narrowboats are well insulated, especially at the lower end of the market.

 

14 minutes ago, Paul les said:

It will be just me so not to bothered about loads of room, just need some advice on which will be easier to travel the water ways on

 

You need to consider other things than easies to travel the waterways. Basically a go anywhere boat must have a beam (width) of less than 7ft. How is the boat heated, how much does the fuel for heating cost and so on. How big is the water tank, ditto the toilet tank if it is a pump out toilet, the list goes on.

[Jen-in-Wellies]

1 minute ago, Paul les said:

That's what i thought...and if it's just me a cruiser would be ideal

I was thinking of the height of cruisers, is there a massive difference between them and narrow boats.

 

They vary a lot in height. Air draft (height above the waterline) and draft (depth below the waterline) are both important. For narrow canals, maximum 7' beam, 3' draft, maybe 6' air draft shouldn't restrict you. Draft of 2', or less would be better. No deep keel, like you'd see on a sailing boat.

There were plenty of plastic cruisers built that were designed to fit narrow canals. Many of them are still around.

Look for an onboard diesel engine if you can. Better for charging batteries. Boats with outboard petrol engines are cheaper, but restrictive and petrol is potentially more dangerous to store and fill.

[Tony Brooks]

5 minutes ago, Paul les said:

That's what i thought...and if it's just me a cruiser would be ideal

I was thinking of the height of cruisers, is there a massive difference between them and narrow boats.

 

 

 

 

 

That depends upon the cruisers you have been looking at. I agree the fly bridge cruisers are high, but many flat floor "Broads" cruisers are not. Google for photos for "Caribbean" cruisers a sone model, and there are several similar.

[Paul les]

Thank you , that's alot to consider but the sort of information I need going forward. 

I will keep looking and post any relevant questions on site as you have been very helpful...have a great weekend 

[Sue68]

Have a good read of the https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/ It has a lot of information you need

[MtB]

7 minutes ago, Paul les said:

Thank you , that's alot to consider but the sort of information I need going forward. 

 

You've barely scratched the surface so far!

 

You say you want to cruise and live aboard "all of the above". This means a short-ish narrowboat really. Plastic boats are out as too cold in winter (not just lack of insulation but acres of single glazed windows) and wide boats won't fit the narrow canals. That just leaves steel narrowboats.

 

 

[Paul les]

Right..makes sense..Will start looking at narrow boats as well...thanks mate.

[rogher]

I'd look at narrowboats of 57' or less for the freedom to go (almost) anywhere.

Even if you think you don't need a big boat, you cannot have too much space.

I think you'd need to be very well disciplined to get by with a garden shed-sized space.

To live aboard you'll need to survive Winter and I wouldn't want to try that in a GRP boat. 

Think about where you'd stay over winter, how you'd keep warm and where you'd get fuel from, fresh water, provisions and dump your waste.

You'll need to be pretty hardy.

I'm not trying to put you off, but it's not like life within bricks and mortar.

Wider boats will give you more space but restrict where you can go.

[Slim]

Years ago I knew someone who lived on 23' GRP cruiser in a Marina. Even with access to 230v mains, water and Elson disposal life was dismal. Cold, condensation everywhere and any number of other issues, not least, space. Managed to pour a kettle of boiling water over himself and ended up in hospital for several weeks. Strangely he gave the life up after one winter.    

[Paul les]

Good advice...thanks for real life information...just what I'm looking for...cheers

[LadyG]

1 hour ago, Slim said:

Years ago I knew someone who lived on 23' GRP cruiser in a Marina. Even with access to 230v mains, water and Elson disposal life was dismal. Cold, condensation everywhere and any number of other issues, not least, space. Managed to pour a kettle of boiling water over himself and ended up in hospital for several weeks. Strangely he gave the life up after one winter.    

Living onboard all year round is going to be tough at times.

Yes a cruiser will be cheaper, but they we generally designed as day cruisers, with a fèw summer weekends.

The lack of insulation means that condensation is very likely. Condensation from breath, from cooking and from from the air on a wet day. Best thing is to open up as much ventilation as possible and buy a four season sleeping bag, though you may not be able to dry it.

There will be a few boats available that have already been made habitable, with heating!

The days are very short in winter, you will notice this if living aboard. It might be a good idea to stay in a marina for three or four months, having a shorepower connection is going to make things much more comfortable. 

Edited May 10 by LadyG

[David Mack]

Nobody has mentioned licence and moorings. All navigation authorities require your boat to be licenced, and to obtain a licence most require that the boat has a Boat Safety Certificate (sort of boaty MOT) and third party insurance. 

On CRT waterways to get a licence you either have to have a Home Mooring (and they may check up on this) or you have to declare yourself a 'continuous cruiser' moving the boat at least every 14 days. Continuous cruisers pay a higher licence fee and the difference is going to increase over the next few years. Fail to comply with the CCer movement requirements and CRT's enforcement people will be on your back. There is loads and loads of discussion on the forum about CCers (and a range of different opinions on the matter), so I'm not going to attempt to cover the issue here. 

[ditchcrawler]

Just now, David Mack said:

Nobody has mentioned licence and moorings. All navigation authorities require your boat to be licenced, and to obtain a licence most require that the boat has a Boat Safety Certificate (sort of boaty MOT) and third party insurance. 

On CRT waterways to get a licence you either have to have a Home Mooring (and they may check up on this) or you have to declare yourself a 'continuous cruiser' moving the boat at least every 14 days. Continuous cruisers pay a higher licence fee and the difference is going to increase over the next few years. Fail to comply with the CCer movement requirements and CRT's enforcement people will be on your back. There is loads and loads of discussion on the forum about CCers (and a range of different opinions on the matter), so I'm not going to attempt to cover the issue here. 

I had to give evidence that I had a mooring this year as I moved from Alvecote

[Paul les]

Thank you to everyone for your replies  ...cheers