Trying to help a friend decide... if and what to offer on a boat

[pirateofthehighseas]

Hello, 

 

Apologies if this is the wrong section of the forum, tried my best to place it correctly. 

 

A friend of mine is looking to get into a liveaboard narrowboat after a divorce has left him little. 

 

His budget is limited to £15k, although is a cash buyer and is thinking of offering on this subject to viewing:

 

https://www.fishandduck.co.uk/product/38-trad-narrow-boat-it/

 

I am a time served diesel mechanic by trade so happy to go over the engine for him but we're both fairly clueless about narrowboats, with only knowing what we've read online with no first hand knowledge. 

 

This particular boat hasn't been out of the water in 10 years and is 7/8 years overdue for blacking(?).  The marina would let him commission a survey, but does this boat give off any other red flags that would make you say, 'Don't even bother with it'?  10MM thick steel would take decades to rust out, no?  Is there a rough rule of thumb like "X mm of steel loss per year/decade" or "If its got an inch of growth on it, it's beyond saving?" It seems a lot of boat for the money? 

 

The reputation of the Marina seems good as far as I can see.

 

Fundamentally, friend is after a solid hull but a dated interior he can chip away at to modernise. Would buying a boat out of the water be wiser at this price point? My personal advice has been to drop the boat idea as you're at the risky end of the market, but I'm not a boater, or have any experience as one.  Diesel HGV's are my area. 

 

Thanks,

Doug.  

[MtB]

Looks like a lot of boat for the money. But the listing says virtually nothing about it so I think you'd need to go and a look. Now, because tomorrow it will probably sell. 

 

At £15k budget your mate is in no position to be picky about stuff like blacking, or wanting surveys etc, I'd venture to suggest....

 

 

 

 

 

17 minutes ago, pirateofthehighseas said:

Fundamentally, friend is after a solid hull but a dated interior he can chip away at to modernise.

 

Friend and about 5,000 other people, many with bigger budgets!

 

 

[Alan de Enfield]

 

If his total budget is £15k then he may struggle - he will need (probably £800-£1000 for a survey)

If as a liveaboard he will have all his valuables and possessions withhim he may be better to insure in 'fully comprehensive', if he insures it 3rd party only then the boat and contents are not covered.

 

The fuly comp cover the insurers will require a comprehensive survey - so he needs to take that into consideration.

 

He can obtain a boat-licence with only 3rd party insurance.

 

He then has the licence and mooring fees to consider wwhich could be a 'few more' £1000s depending on where he moors.

 

Then there is the cost of re-fitting the boat which could cost 'anything'

 

He may be better looking at a static caravan.

Edited November 16, 2025 by Alan de Enfield

[Tony Brooks]

Single alternator that looks like an older Lucas one, an update of the ACR series, so may only have a 50 amp output. Possibly not enough for a live aboard, especially as it has no solar, not that solar helps much during winter. This means he may need to base it where he has access to a shore  line.

[Alan de Enfield]

3 minutes ago, MtB said:

Looks like a lot of boat for the money. But the listing says virtually nothing about it so I think you'd need to go and a look. Now, because tomorrow it will probably sell. 

 

At £15k budget your mate is in no position to be picky about stuff like blacking, or wanting surveys etc, I'd venture to suggest....

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friend and about 5,000 other people, many with bigger budgets!

 

 

 

 

Advert says its  'offer pending'

Edited November 16, 2025 by Alan de Enfield

[MtB]

13 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

Advert says its  'offer pending'

 

One wonders what that means...

 

"For sale, pending an offer", perhaps?

 

My bet would however, be:

"Lowball offer received and under consideration, further offers invited". 

 

 

 

 

[Arthur Marshall]

I lived on mine quite happily for a year or two with no solar and one domestic battery. A lot depends on how much your friend wants of the usual luxuries, or whether he's happy roughing it a bit. And I bought mine without bothering with a survey, just walloped the hull a few times to see if it went boing or the hammer went ttrough it!

Any cheap old boat may need replating within a few years, so that has to be thought of.

[jonathanA]

If your friend is only looking at boats as a cheap option and has no interest or knowledge of boating as a lifestyle, then the best advice is for him to use his 15 grand to maybe get into decent rented or shared ownership with a community housing association. 

[pirateofthehighseas]

1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

Advert says its  'offer pending'

I must admit I'd had the link saved but not opened it for a few days. 

 

 

Given the replies are mostly along the lines of "you'll be lucky if it's just £15k" I think it's best I advise again to walk away. 

 

Thanks for the replies all.

[David Mack]

May be too late now anyway, but I agree with MtB - it's a lot of boat for the money, and it looks in the photos to be in OKish condition. If this really is the limit of your friend's budget then he could do a lot worse.

Note however that the interior sides are painted white throughout. This is often described as the 'London white' look - a quick cheap makeover of a dated interior in order to sell in the somewhat overheated London liveaboard market. It could be a good quality job to brighten up and modernise, or it could be a slapdash job to cover up where there is water staining or decay from leaks. Only a closeup look in person will help you judge between the two.

Also worth pointing out that this is a cruising boat, and not setup as a liveaboard. Three single bunks in the rear cabin and a dinette in the saloon i.e. dining table with bench seats which converts to a double bed. Most single or couple liveaboards would like a fixed double for sleeping, with a dinette or similar reserved for occasional guest use.

Two domestic batteries, single gas bottle, no solar, no 240V electrics are typical of older cruising boats. All this can be modified of course, but takes time and money (and probably more than you think).

[Bee]

What your friend definitely does not want is a boat with thin and pitted steel below the water. The boatyard has a boatlift with a capacity of 10 tons, that boat weighs a good bit more so to inspect the important stuff means a problem. Every boatyard I have ever seen has a corner with a few boats that have been lifted out for work or surveys to be done only to reveal the depressing truth. The thing needs so much expensive work that it just gets abandoned and never goes back in the water again. I don't want to scare anybody but that is the worst that can happen and without an experienced eye to look it over it out of the water it is too risky. The ad. says it has 'original steel', I would much rather it said 'overplated'

[MtB]

6 minutes ago, Bee said:

What your friend definitely does not want is a boat with thin and pitted steel below the water.

 

But I would suggest that is all that £15k is going to get for anyone with an unrealistically low budget.

 

So recommending the checks and precautions one would apply to a £50k purchase all seems a bit pointless. All thats going to happen is every £15k boat coming along (i.e. one a year) will get predictably rejected or bought by someone else with a more realistic attitude.

 

 

 

 

[ditchcrawler]

When I moored at Napton there was a lady on the moorings there who bought an old boat with no survey. When questioned she replied I knew at that price and age its going to need work so why waste £1000 on a survey that I can spend on repairs. I must admit she wasn't the run of the mill and knew her nuts from her bolts 

[Mike Hurley]

For 15k go buy a static caravan.

[pirateofthehighseas]

Some interesting comments, thank you all.

 

I hammered the point home to my friend that it its £15k, and that the next  cheapest comparable is over £20k as far as I can see. If the seller could ask for £20k, they would. Thankfully they've seen sense! 

[MtB]

52 minutes ago, pirateofthehighseas said:

Some interesting comments, thank you all.

 

I hammered the point home to my friend that it its £15k, and that the next  cheapest comparable is over £20k as far as I can see. If the seller could ask for £20k, they would. Thankfully they've seen sense! 

 

There is a really cute little 30ft tug on the duck at the moment for £16k IIRC...

 

 

 

 

Here:

 

https://narrowboats.apolloduck.co.uk/boat/narrow-boats-tugs-for-sale/808115

 

 

By a good builder too!

[pirateofthehighseas]

A more tech savvy friend has used the "way back when machine" to see it was dropped in price from 30k, to 22k then to 15k. Its been up since April apparently. 

[MtB]

1 hour ago, pirateofthehighseas said:

A more tech savvy friend has used the "way back when machine" to see it was dropped in price from 30k, to 22k then to 15k. Its been up since April apparently. 

 

Which boat?

 

This rather supports my personal view that boat prices are utterly tanking.

 

 

[pirateofthehighseas]

30 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

Which boat?

 

This rather supports my personal view that boat prices are utterly tanking.

 

 

The one in my first post. 

 

The one you linked to looks very good for the money. No idea if extending the living space forwards to the length of the boat is an option.  

[LadyG]

57 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

Which boat?

 

This rather supports my personal view that boat prices are utterly tanking.

 

 

I think it means he can't sell it because it's a lemon. 

The advice to keep capital in bricks and mortar is sound.

Unless OP is very knowledgeable, has time and cash to fix the boat and possibly even decent welding skills, I'd say swerve.

No point in buying a boat that needs an engine rebuild. A mechanic may have worked with engines, but has he worked with boats? 

The idea that anyone can spend £15K and all their problems are solved is unrealistic. Boats need maintenance, they need money spent, and  if the idea is to liveaboard, it needs to be spent fairly quickly.

A solid fuel stove is pretty much essential IMHO.

Edited November 16, 2025 by LadyG

[pirateofthehighseas]

7 minutes ago, LadyG said:

I think it means he can't sell it because it's a lemon. 

The advice to keep capital in bricks and mortar is sound.

Unless OP is very knowledgeable, has time and cash to fix the boat and possibly even decent welding skills, I'd say swerve.

No point in buying a boat that needs an engine rebuild. A mechanic may have worked with engines, but has he worked with boats? 

The idea that anyone can spend £15K and all their problems are solved is unrealistic. Boats need maintenance, they need money spent, and  if the idea is to liveaboard, it needs to be spent fairly quickly.

A solid fuel stove is pretty much essential IMHO.

I can weld, and would be happy to help my friend do so. I can by trade and experience check any engine. That wasn't the issue. 

 

The issue was, is the hull rotten?

 

But it looks like someone has made an offer anyway, so moot. 

[LadyG]

10 hours ago, Tony Brooks said:

Single alternator that looks like an older Lucas one, an update of the ACR series, so may only have a 50 amp output. Possibly not enough for a live aboard, especially as it has no solar, not that solar helps much during winter. This means he may need to base it where he has access to a shore  line.

He could buy a generator, but to be honest, living on an old boat in need of .modernisation at this time of year is not attractive. These older boats may not have foam insulation, so will be more subject to condensation.

It might be possible to fit a Webasto style heater, but be aware that there are specific rules for the installation on a boat on the inland waterways.

5 hours ago, Mike Hurley said:

For 15k go buy a static caravan.

Have you looked at charges? Worse than marinas, and usually they throw out older, they want nice new mobile homes.

If I was OP I'd pack all my belongings in to a suitcase and get a job which provides accommodation and allows him to save a £1000 pcm. 

 

Edited November 16, 2025 by LadyG

[David Mack]

4 hours ago, MtB said:

 

There is a really cute little 30ft tug on the duck at the moment for £16k IIRC...

 

Here:

 

https://narrowboats.apolloduck.co.uk/boat/narrow-boats-tugs-for-sale/808115

 

 

By a good builder too!

That is an unusual tug. Very few 'mid engined' boats have the engine right in the middle.

 

I think I may have known this boat in an earlier guise in the 1980s, under its previous name of Anker - at one point the then owner complained that someone had grafitied an additional letter to the sign writing!

[TID Tug Tony]

11 hours ago, MtB said:

 

There is a really cute little 30ft tug on the duck at the moment for £16k IIRC...

 

 

 

 

Here:

 

https://narrowboats.apolloduck.co.uk/boat/narrow-boats-tugs-for-sale/808115

 

 

By a good builder too!

 

I've looked at that ad a few times over the past couple of months, and do find it a very attractive tug. I thought it would have sold quickly at that price, though I guess the size and layout (combined engine room and bathroom) won't suit everyone. It'd make a great 'weekender' though. Very nice!

[blackrose]

18 hours ago, jonathanA said:

If your friend is only looking at boats as a cheap option and has no interest or knowledge of boating as a lifestyle, then the best advice is for him to use his 15 grand to maybe get into decent rented or shared ownership with a community housing association. 

 

I disagree. Plenty of people have no knowledge of boating before they buy their first boat, but that knowledge often develops over time. And if his friend didn't have any interest in boating as a lifestyle then he probably wouldn't be considering living on a boat. 

 

His main problem as I see it is his very small budget.

13 hours ago, Mike Hurley said:

For 15k go buy a static caravan.

 

No, don't do that until you read the small print of the park operator very carefully. Many are just ripping people off by telling them after a year that the caravan they've bought is now too old to be kept at the site and forcing them to buy a newer one at an inflated price in monthly installments. Either that or they get evicted.

14 hours ago, MtB said:

So recommending the checks and precautions one would apply to a £50k purchase all seems a bit pointless. All thats going to happen is every £15k boat coming along (i.e. one a year) will get predictably rejected or bought by someone else with a more realistic attitude.

 

 

 

 

 

Realistic attitude or reckless & ignorant attitude? I take your & ditchy's points about not spending a grand on lifting out and surveying a 15 grand boat, but the alternative for a newbie could be simply throwing away 15 grand if he later finds the boat needs extensive replating/overplating. I know that even 2mm thickness of steel might last for a while but on the other hand maybe it won't. Also there's little point spending time and money refitting a boat with an unknown hull to make it suitable for a liveaboard.

 

£15K boats come along all the time and most of them are rotten. That's the realistic attitude.