Lengthening our boat

[sanford]

We have a 42 ft narrow boat, me and the wife would like a bit more room so looked at bigger boats then the wife said why dont we get a bit (8 to 10 ft ) put in this one, seems like a good idea to me, is it possible and a good idea? Thanks for any help.

regards

[greywolf]

If you read the blog for narrow boat caxton they have recently had it done .It looks good but i do not think it is a cheap option

[rolimo]

We have a 42 ft narrow boat, me and the wife would like a bit more room so looked at bigger boats then the wife said why dont we get a bit (8 to 10 ft ) put in this one, seems like a good idea to me, is it possible and a good idea? Thanks for any help.

regards

 

Hi, Dave Thomas in braunston extended my boat a few years ago. The join was strong enough to allow the boat to be craned back into the water. I thought it was a good idea.

[paulcatchpole]

We have a 42 ft narrow boat, me and the wife would like a bit more room so looked at bigger boats then the wife said why dont we get a bit (8 to 10 ft ) put in this one, seems like a good idea to me, is it possible and a good idea? Thanks for any help.

regards

 

Streethay Wharf seem to be popular at this sort of thing, and know what they're doing, IMHO.

 

If we had a boat with any value, sentimental or otherwise, we'd probably consider it.

 

PC

[ditchcrawler]

We have a 42 ft narrow boat, me and the wife would like a bit more room so looked at bigger boats then the wife said why dont we get a bit (8 to 10 ft ) put in this one, seems like a good idea to me, is it possible and a good idea? Thanks for any help.

regards

Is the engine man enough?

[casper ghost]

My boat's 43 feet and i'm considering lengthening mine too. I'm in the process of changing the engine as the old one was hardly up to pushing the baot as it was. You need to consider the internal layout and whether adding the extra bit would fit in. Would you extend each room, eg, bathroom, kitchen and lounge etc, or just add a bedroom. Are you that attched to your boat as selling and buying a longer boat makes more sense, unless like me you like to give yourself lots of hard work..

[sueb]

We thought about lengthening our 48' but worked out we could get a 58' for the same price and we would have had an old boat just with a small new bit.

Sue

[Bobbybass]

Any rough idea on prices for this...?

I have a 60 footer...and was pondering adding an extra 7 foot to make a nice sitting area on the bow...

Thanks.

Bob

[alan_fincher]

As has been indicated, a major consideration in costing such an exercise is whether your original engine has enough reserves of power to still be fit for purpose in the stretched boat.

 

Engine swaps usually come expensive, so might be the determining factor in whether to consider it.

 

If you are skin tank cooled, you need to check you have reserves there too, as even if the engine can cope, it will need to be run harder, and you need to be sure the cooling areas will still be large enough.

[Liam]

A few years ago somebody I know who moors on the same mooring as me, had their boat stretched from 40ft to 58ft.

 

A fair bit extra weight and length but still has the original engine, gearbox and prop pushing it along... somewhat more slowly

[homer2911]

We have a 42 ft narrow boat, me and the wife would like a bit more room so looked at bigger boats then the wife said why dont we get a bit (8 to 10 ft ) put in this one, seems like a good idea to me, is it possible and a good idea? Thanks for any help.

regards

 

Streethay added 10ft to my 52 footer some years ago. You will need to remove the internal panelling for 1 mt either side of where they will cut, and of course make good internally after lengthening. The welded joins making up the stretch were virtually undetectable, but of course you need to repaint. Fortunately my engine was more than man enough at 40 hp to drive the bigger boat, although I have since had the cooling massively improved by Oxley Marine.

 

The Streethay price was good, but like all businesses, they will charge for doing anything that was not expressly included in the price - GET IT ALL IN WRITING.

Edited April 12, 2010 by homer2911

[RichardH]

We too had a 42 footer and did all the sums around stretching - in the end it turned out to be more cost effective to sell and replace.

[ditchcrawler]

Any rough idea on prices for this...?

I have a 60 footer...and was pondering adding an extra 7 foot to make a nice sitting area on the bow...

Thanks.

Bob

Try this site

http://narrowboatcaxton.blogspot.com/2010/...ton-is-cut.html

[dave_2A_]

I seem to remember being told it was about £1000 per foot - even the boatyard I was talking to reckoned it was better to trade up than extend.

Edited April 13, 2010 by dave_2A_

[Liam]

I seem to remember being told it was about £1000 per foot - even the boatyard I was talking to reckoned it was better to trade up than extend.

 

There goes the idea of putting 20ft back into Ariel then

[alan_fincher]

I seem to remember being told it was about £1000 per foot - even the boatyard I was talking to reckoned it was better to trade up than extend.

Surely the "per foot" cost will vary enormously depending on the length of the actual "stretch" ?

 

No way is adding 30 feet going to cost 30 times what it would cost to add 1 foot.

 

OK, I'm exaggerating the point, but the actual act of pulling it out, cutting through it, pulling it apart, and joining it back together must be a major part of the steelwork cost, with the actual cost of the materials being put in the middle being relatively low.

 

I can't imagine this is something where it is realistic to give a guide price measured as "per foot" ?

[RLWP]

There goes the idea of putting 20ft back into Ariel then

 

Cheaper to do an open hold than a narrowboat with a roof.

 

Richard

[Liam]

Well I'd halved the cost in my head, but the answer is still no

[casper ghost]

Well I'd halved the cost in my head, but the answer is still no

 

Have to do it yourself, the steel wouldn't cost much, rent for yard space doesn't cost much either. Get welding... on an old working boat you won't even have to worry too much about getting it too straight

[Scooby]

Wife wanted a foot, i told her 10 inch will have to do for now...

[Tim Doran]

Wife wanted a foot, i told her 10 inch will have to do for now...

 

Right you! To the norty step.

[RLWP]

Have to do it yourself, the steel wouldn't cost much, rent for yard space doesn't cost much either. Get welding... on an old working boat you won't even have to worry too much about getting it too straight

 

You joking of course. You can weld any monstrosity into a narrowboat that you want, and you may get some comments on the welds or the flatness of the panels. But woe betide you if you don't use the correct size and shape of rivet heads and the proper imperial sized steel, together with a carefully researched coat of red lead if you do any work at all on an ex working boat. There are an army of experts, all armed with a thousand photographs, drawings, anecdotes from old boaters, builders and painters to tell you just how wrong the work you have do is.

 

Richard

Edited April 14, 2010 by RLWP

[casper ghost]

You joking of course. You can weld any monstrosity into a narrowboat that you want, and you may get some comments on the welds or the flatness of the panels. But woe betide you if you don't use the correct size and shape of rivet heads and the proper imperial sized steel, together with a carefully researched coat of red lead if you do any work at all on an ex working boat. There are an army of experts, all armed with a thousand photographs, drawings, anecdotes from old boaters, builders and painters to tell you just how wrong the work you have do is.

 

Richard

Maybe you could treat it like doing an extension on a listed building, english heritage like the extension to stand out as being new, therefore do the boat extension so it's obviously new too, no rivets, wrong size strakes, even get the panels straight... only joking of course...

[RLWP]

You shouldn't joke about these things. I can hear archives being opened and poison pens sharpened even as we speak

 

Richard

 

[ditchcrawler]

There goes the idea of putting 20ft back into Ariel then

For steel work alone I was quoted a much lower figure by Roger Farington at Braunston, lengthening a hold like Caxton would not be to bad.