buying on Sunday, don't know the first darned thing.

[Woodstock]

Painful-I actually hoped it was a wind up

[MtB]

I cannot believe it can be any more expensive than living in commuter belt Surrey

 

 

Having done both I'd say it is about the same.

 

 

But your later comment about CCing worries me. Proper CCing is not cheaper than renting a mooring as you have to buy the fuel necessary to CC the boat around.

 

And if you plan on bending the rules and trying to CC in Surrey you're in for a nasty shock. As Mark points out the Wey don't allow liveaboards, and on the Thames you are generally limited to 24hrs mooring in one place. And forget about the Basingstoke canal, there is effectively no freedom to boat on the Basingstoke.

 

 

MtB

[bottle]

Boatywooster

 

Have you been welcomed to the forum, if not welcome.

 

Lots of advice has been given I will just say this, the only reason to buy a boat is because you wish to live the life of boating.

 

It will never save you money, well it might if you are paying a £1,000 per month rent.

[Alan de Enfield]

 

 

It will never save you money, well it might if you are paying a £1,000 per month rent.

 

Or - it might not if you are paying £12000/£14000 per annum for a London residential mooring

[bottle]

I agree but the OP (boatywooster) said they wanted to CC but that opens another can of worms as to whether they can comply with the requirements.

 

I would add that possibly the best thing they could do is find somewhere else to live and then do some more research, then if they still want to do it in say a years time, think again.

[patty-ann]

Read like a horror story waiting to unfold.

So pleased that they appear to have taken advice from forum.

Welcome to you both, please take time to read threads and post questions..research to gain facts then ask..everyone very helpful.

[zenataomm]

There's so much valuable information and experience in the above post, which when coupled with the amount of times we see this kind of thread suggests and idea.

 

Should we not dedicate a slot of the forum to "Thinking of buying a boat and know 'Nowt!" to which admin could move these threads for easier reference and referral.

[Peter X]

Let me look on the bright side and offer a few words of encouragement, as I feel your situation may not be as dire as some think.

 

As I understand it, you just need accommodation for yourselves, a young couple with some useful practical skills and very little money. You're in Surrey but about to lose your housing, and haven't mentioned any children or other dependants, or indeed any need to stay in Surrey. Somehow I suspect you will have no prospect of getting housed by your local council, so let's not discuss that.

 

As an interim solution to get a roof over your heads cheaply while you look for something more permanent you may want to persuade a friend or relative to rent you a spare room, or pitch a tent on their lawn (spring is coming!). This could save you a lot of stress and prevent you from having to rush into making a dubious purchase. Meanwhile it's a good idea to try to steadily reduce the amount of possessions you have; boats are small, cheap boats are smaller, and anything you don't use needs to go. eBay is your friend!

 

I think your logical starting point in choosing a boating lifestyle should be where you need to be; you said your husband is not working at present, so you need some idea of where one or both of you will be working over the next year or two; boating can be done on a low-ish budget if you're prepared to do without luxuries (see Dan Brown's YouTube videos for a fairly extreme example of this), but you still need some income.

 

As MtB (standard abbreviation for Mike the Boilerman!) and others have said, moorings close to Surrey are expensive; from all I've read on the forum it sounds as if Brentford is about the cheapest that's anywhere near, and you can expect that to cost a few thousand per year. So I think you're probably right to be looking to CC, but must be aware of the rules about movement. To summarise, you have to move on at least every 14 days, typically as little as a mile or two is enough but probably not if you just go back and forth within a small area, and many moorings especially in popular areas have shorter time limits. While there's a lot of controversy as to precisely what the law means, CRT are gradually tightening up their enforcement according to their interpretation of the law, especially on the ever-popular central and east London canals; you may find it much easier to stay under their radar if you can go somewhere that has less boats.

 

Two things not mentioned so far which could save you a lot of money:

(1) A shorter boat will be cheaper to buy, licence and maintain. Lots of people want a boat around 57' which is the most that can fit in all the shortest locks, and with just the two of you something around 35' to 40' may be enough.

(2) Consider a GRP boat, perhaps as an interim measure. They're cheaper and better able to cope with the odd wave on a river estuary, but they have some disadvantages: not so easy to keep warm, some have petrol engines, and a GRP boat may be either too small, or too wide to fit in the narrow canals. Think about its draft too, both above and below water. If a GRP interests you, there are people on this forum who have them and can offer you much wiser advice than you'd get from me.

[Guest]

I don't mean to be rude to the OP, and there is some very good advice in this thread from experienced liveaboarders, but if your main question is about car insurance rather than moorings etc. then you really have a lot of things arse about face I'm afraid.

Which is precisely why the OP has come to the right place. You have to start somewhere and this is as good a place as any. There are also some good books out there which we read when we were considering moving aboard. This being one of them.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Living-Aboard-Towpath-Guides-Corble/dp/0752445197/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1425132348&sr=8-1&keywords=living+aboard

 

It can be had for a few quid if bought used. (The OP could have had mine but it's just gone to the local Red Cross charity shop along with some other boaty books.)

[Barge Maria]

To MGJ - I never said they hadn't come to the right place, but the OP needs to get a sense of priorities. Hence my comment. Nothing else meant by it, and I assure you not trying to be rude.

[Guest]

To MGJ - I never said they hadn't come to the right place, but the OP needs to get a sense of priorities. Hence my comment. Nothing else meant by it, and I assure you not trying to be rude.

 

I think the OP will have grasped that now or at least will have started to, that is all I was meaning.

 

One thing that was reassuring was they didn't persist with trying to 'argue' or imply that no matter what they were going to persist with their idea. So many times we have seen newbies in the past get a bit arsey with people when posters with experience of what they are asking about point out their ideas might actually be flawed.

[chubby]

Its nice to see the forum dishing out some very sound advice , as it almost always does . Often theres bickering & sniping . The OP has openly stated theyre in a far from ideal situation re thier housing & have stated that thier planned purchase is a means of cheaper accomodation . Often this has the potential to open a can of worms & indeed it has been pointed out that living afloat is not necessarily as cheap as some may hope for . Sometimes it is cheaper & this issue can get folk hot under the collar & to an extent thats fair enough .

However , this thread hasn t been steered that way . The OP has been given extremely helpful & accurate advice & consequently appears to to have been convinced not to buy that wooden boat .

This is a very good example of the forum working at its very best & well done to those who offered very well thought out , reasoned & plain talking , easy to understand advice .

Congrats !

'

[Terryb]

Have you you given any thought to buying a cheap caravan and putting that in a friends garden maybe. When you could then reflect and maybe take more time to get your ideal boat. The caravan could then be sold off, probably for the same money you paid for it.

Good luck whatever you decide.

[Arthur Brown]

Is there one good reason to stay in one of the most expensive places in the country (world?) Surrey. Given a truly minimal budget I'd be looking for a plastic boat in Yorkshire.

 

It seems that the OP is making restrictions on their choices that make things very expensive.

 

I can't see a way of CCing in a butty without engine. There are only a few moorings within walking distance of an elsan point and you will need to visit a water point every week or so.

[Guest]

Is there one good reason to stay in one of the most expensive places in the country (world?) Surrey. Given a truly minimal budget I'd be looking for a plastic boat in Yorkshire.

 

It seems that the OP is making restrictions on their choices that make things very expensive.

 

I can't see a way of CCing in a butty without engine. There are only a few moorings within walking distance of an elsan point and you will need to visit a water point every week or so.

And GRP need not mean small and cramped either. There are some decent wide ex broads boats up here that people seem quite comfortable living on. But I'm guessing the Op has ties to the South East that mean a move up this neck of the woods is not an option.

[Naughty Cal]

Shoot me down if I'm wrong here.

 

But buying a boat on the basis that it is cheap housing is a sure fire route to failure and disappointment.

 

It should be a way of life, something you enjoy, something to look forward too.

[mrsmelly]

Shoot me down if I'm wrong here.

 

But buying a boat on the basis that it is cheap housing is a sure fire route to failure and disappointment.

 

It should be a way of life, something you enjoy, something to look forward too.

 

Completely utterley correct.

 

Tim

[steven wilkinson]

And GRP need not mean small and cramped either. There are some decent wide ex broads boats up here that people seem quite comfortable living on. But I'm guessing the Op has ties to the South East that mean a move up this neck of the woods is not an option.

 

Indeed one such family were featured on Barging About Britain just yesterday. (GRP, not necessarily ex-broads!)

Edited February 28, 2015 by steven wilkinson

[Bee]

Most of us started without knowing much, I didn't even know which was the front or the back end, OK so it was a wooden joey boat. If there is only two of you then 45 ` is enough and cheaper to run. A 'traditional' boat, i.e. one with the cabin extending almost to the back of the boat gives you more storage space and keeps everything dry, boats are pretty cheap these days as there are so many of them. You must get at least a hull thickness survey. I love wooden boats and I owned one once but now? NO.

[Arthur Brown]

The issue with a very old boat is that it's lovely while it floats but when it sinks you lose EVERYTHING, If you were off the boat you keep your pocket change, If you were ON the boat then you lose your cash, cards, wallet, phone, computer and everything. Even if you have total insurance you still have nowhere to sleep and no clothes to change into because insurance takes time to pay out.

 

An old timber boat is going to need hull work most years when you need somewhere to sleep while the work proceeds.

[sueb]

Think about whether you need a car. Going back for the car and finding somewhere to park it every fortnight will be a pain. The boat is your transport. Good luck with your plans

[Tom Richmond]

Lots of good advice on here, also lots of people telling you to think again and maybe not do it, get a caravan etc... This may be good advice, but if you DO really want to get a boat, don't be scared to ignore it!

[Guest]

Lots of good advice on here, also lots of people telling you to think again and maybe not do it, get a caravan etc... This may be good advice, but if you DO really want to get a boat, don't be scared to ignore it!

 

I think I read most of the advice as being 'just pause, don't rush, take your time' and that will get you living on a boat. The caravan suggestion was exactly in the same vein, just to be done pending finding the right boat.

 

I think that advice is worth taking note of, rather than ignoring TBH.

[Arthur Brown]

Think that it can take less than 20 minutes for a boat to sink, sinking costs you all, from passports to overalls -all gone. PLUS you must salvage the wreck at your cost. SO most people take precautions! A newish boat, a surveyed boat, a steel boat. Above all don't buy in a panic you will miss something vital.

 

Assume that a historic timber boat will need some new planking every year.

[mark99]

The op has already sussed a impulse buy on an old wooden boat is a nightmare.

 

They now need to suss out whether their reason for buying a steel boat is a false economy, going to risk losing their boat via enforcement, or whether they can hack living on a boat that has massive logistical Issues, they also need to consider whether they have realised what it's like to trudge through mud and cold for 3 months of non ideal weather.

Edited February 28, 2015 by mark99