Considering Buying a Boat
Discussion
Mrs CT and I are about to do the Level 2 Powerboat Training, not necessarily with the intention of buying a boat but it is a possibility.
If we do buy I would be looking for something in which we could live aboard for long weekends and occasionally a week or more, a floating caravan if you like.
It could be a river/loch boat but something which could be taken in coastal waters would be an advantage.
Not considering a sailing boat, I have done a little sailing but wife is not interested so definitely motor driven.
The big question is could this be done for a budget of around 12-15K and not prove to be ruinous in the future ?
Ta.
If we do buy I would be looking for something in which we could live aboard for long weekends and occasionally a week or more, a floating caravan if you like.
It could be a river/loch boat but something which could be taken in coastal waters would be an advantage.
Not considering a sailing boat, I have done a little sailing but wife is not interested so definitely motor driven.
The big question is could this be done for a budget of around 12-15K and not prove to be ruinous in the future ?
Ta.
IMO it's not the buying of the boat but the annual costs, moorings, license etc together with the perpetual maintenance that costs most.........from your description I would say something like a Princess 32 (there are many manufacturers) would more than meet your needs.We previously had a Princess 25 which was ok for the odd weekend but a bit small if using regular or for longer periods.
There are lots out their but be careful not to buy someone elses junk .....Good luck
There are lots out their but be careful not to buy someone elses junk .....Good luck
Thanks
Yes, I understand what you are saying, is a boat for sale because it is being offloaded prior to a big bill coming along.
I was thinking around a thousand pounds for mooring fees and a similar amount for annual maintenance, but have not researched it much yet.
First thing is to do the training and see how Mrs CT enjoys it.
Yes, I understand what you are saying, is a boat for sale because it is being offloaded prior to a big bill coming along.
I was thinking around a thousand pounds for mooring fees and a similar amount for annual maintenance, but have not researched it much yet.
First thing is to do the training and see how Mrs CT enjoys it.
I have recently researched this (in some depth) as it’s a long held dream to own something like what you say.
Maintenance is the killer; the cost of a 2nd boat is peanuts in comparison – up to a point!
Mooring fees are £300- ish /metre/year depending upon where you live, South East for me.
There’s painting/anti fouling, anode replacement, Lift in/lift out fees (£160/time)…. Sea water takes its toll on all equipment that it goes near. Or dry storage.
Engines seem to have a hard life –the thought of sea water rushing round a decent engine block fills me with dread! I know loads of engines work fine on this principle but to me – it hurts! There are kits available to get rid of this though.
Anything close to getting a move on and the fuel bill rockets. A good mate hired a twin engined Scarab near to Miami and went through £300 worth of fuel in a day, and that’s at US prices.
Outdrives – as above - lots of preventative maintenance required – usually boat-out-of-the-water time.
Then there is all the upkeep/maintenance of the engine plumbing, electrics, water, fuel, oil, and then there are the boat electrics, hot and cold water, and the heads. One of the people I know has constant problems with mildew and condensation on the boast, and a substantial amount of time is spent cleaning the boat before they go out in it. One of these is a 24 foot Thames river cruiser.
Insurance, transport to new areas. The list goes on and on…
Everyone I know (on a survey of 3!) - who has a boat of the sort you are looking at drops a minimum of £5k per annum into it.
A good basic principle is to find out the cost of the boat new, divide it be 10, and that’s your yearly running cost –ish…
There are loads of people on here with boats, so they will have far more idea than me.
Yep….. I still want one…..
Maintenance is the killer; the cost of a 2nd boat is peanuts in comparison – up to a point!
Mooring fees are £300- ish /metre/year depending upon where you live, South East for me.
There’s painting/anti fouling, anode replacement, Lift in/lift out fees (£160/time)…. Sea water takes its toll on all equipment that it goes near. Or dry storage.
Engines seem to have a hard life –the thought of sea water rushing round a decent engine block fills me with dread! I know loads of engines work fine on this principle but to me – it hurts! There are kits available to get rid of this though.
Anything close to getting a move on and the fuel bill rockets. A good mate hired a twin engined Scarab near to Miami and went through £300 worth of fuel in a day, and that’s at US prices.
Outdrives – as above - lots of preventative maintenance required – usually boat-out-of-the-water time.
Then there is all the upkeep/maintenance of the engine plumbing, electrics, water, fuel, oil, and then there are the boat electrics, hot and cold water, and the heads. One of the people I know has constant problems with mildew and condensation on the boast, and a substantial amount of time is spent cleaning the boat before they go out in it. One of these is a 24 foot Thames river cruiser.
Insurance, transport to new areas. The list goes on and on…
Everyone I know (on a survey of 3!) - who has a boat of the sort you are looking at drops a minimum of £5k per annum into it.
A good basic principle is to find out the cost of the boat new, divide it be 10, and that’s your yearly running cost –ish…
There are loads of people on here with boats, so they will have far more idea than me.
Yep….. I still want one…..bucksmanuk said:
I have recently researched this (in some depth) as it’s a long held dream to own something like what you say.
Maintenance is the killer; the cost of a 2nd boat is peanuts in comparison – up to a point!
Mooring fees are £300- ish /metre/year depending upon where you live, South East for me.
There’s painting/anti fouling, anode replacement, Lift in/lift out fees (£160/time)…. Sea water takes its toll on all equipment that it goes near. Or dry storage.
Engines seem to have a hard life –the thought of sea water rushing round a decent engine block fills me with dread! I know loads of engines work fine on this principle but to me – it hurts! There are kits available to get rid of this though.
Anything close to getting a move on and the fuel bill rockets. A good mate hired a twin engined Scarab near to Miami and went through £300 worth of fuel in a day, and that’s at US prices.
Outdrives – as above - lots of preventative maintenance required – usually boat-out-of-the-water time.
Then there is all the upkeep/maintenance of the engine plumbing, electrics, water, fuel, oil, and then there are the boat electrics, hot and cold water, and the heads. One of the people I know has constant problems with mildew and condensation on the boast, and a substantial amount of time is spent cleaning the boat before they go out in it. One of these is a 24 foot Thames river cruiser.
Insurance, transport to new areas. The list goes on and on…
Everyone I know (on a survey of 3!) - who has a boat of the sort you are looking at drops a minimum of £5k per annum into it.
A good basic principle is to find out the cost of the boat new, divide it be 10, and that’s your yearly running cost –ish…
In my experience of (inland) boats:Maintenance is the killer; the cost of a 2nd boat is peanuts in comparison – up to a point!
Mooring fees are £300- ish /metre/year depending upon where you live, South East for me.
There’s painting/anti fouling, anode replacement, Lift in/lift out fees (£160/time)…. Sea water takes its toll on all equipment that it goes near. Or dry storage.
Engines seem to have a hard life –the thought of sea water rushing round a decent engine block fills me with dread! I know loads of engines work fine on this principle but to me – it hurts! There are kits available to get rid of this though.
Anything close to getting a move on and the fuel bill rockets. A good mate hired a twin engined Scarab near to Miami and went through £300 worth of fuel in a day, and that’s at US prices.
Outdrives – as above - lots of preventative maintenance required – usually boat-out-of-the-water time.
Then there is all the upkeep/maintenance of the engine plumbing, electrics, water, fuel, oil, and then there are the boat electrics, hot and cold water, and the heads. One of the people I know has constant problems with mildew and condensation on the boast, and a substantial amount of time is spent cleaning the boat before they go out in it. One of these is a 24 foot Thames river cruiser.
Insurance, transport to new areas. The list goes on and on…
Everyone I know (on a survey of 3!) - who has a boat of the sort you are looking at drops a minimum of £5k per annum into it.
A good basic principle is to find out the cost of the boat new, divide it be 10, and that’s your yearly running cost –ish…
First boat - cost £8,500s/h - annual running costs £1,500
Second boat - cost £47,000 new - annual running costs £2,000.
That's marina, river licence, insurance and fuel. But not beer.
Essentially, costs vary massively dependng on the boat, the engines and where you keep and use it.
Neither of my boats has ever suffered from mould/mildew. Dry as a bone.
Raw water doesn't (usually) go through the engine block, most engines use closed-circuit coolant with a heat exchanger.
ETA: If you make the decision with your head you will never buy a boat becaue they make no financial sense. Sometimes you have to buy things because you want them and will enjoy them
Edited by Simpo Two on Monday 15th August 14:20
No out and out figures but some information on a similar thread from a while back if you have not already seen it.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Having never owned a boat before, I researched this some months back as i thought it'd be great fun and the whole family can get involved.
We're six months in and really enjoying it however its been a steep learning curve and the degradation on boats is quite immense.
We purchased a 6 year old 23ft day cruiser (£30k) with a small cuddy, toilet, hob, sink etc as we live close to the marina - so staying overnight on the boat for anything other than a couple of nights is unlikely.
A few things we've learnt are that outboard engines are much much cheaper to maintain than inboards. Our boat has a 150hp Yamaha outboard and is quite fuel efficient. Larger boats with inboards absolutely drink fuel especially if you start opening them up in coastal waters.
Maintenance costs are reasonable - engine service, antifoul and anodes - circa £1000 covers this on our boat. The biggest costs by far are marina fees. We opted to have our boat in the Marina to remove any obstacle of use but fees are £3.5k per annum - and it's a small boat.
The upside is that it's huge fun for either fishing with some mates or an overnight stay with the wife at a South Coast marina or, taking the children out.
We're six months in and really enjoying it however its been a steep learning curve and the degradation on boats is quite immense.
We purchased a 6 year old 23ft day cruiser (£30k) with a small cuddy, toilet, hob, sink etc as we live close to the marina - so staying overnight on the boat for anything other than a couple of nights is unlikely.
A few things we've learnt are that outboard engines are much much cheaper to maintain than inboards. Our boat has a 150hp Yamaha outboard and is quite fuel efficient. Larger boats with inboards absolutely drink fuel especially if you start opening them up in coastal waters.
Maintenance costs are reasonable - engine service, antifoul and anodes - circa £1000 covers this on our boat. The biggest costs by far are marina fees. We opted to have our boat in the Marina to remove any obstacle of use but fees are £3.5k per annum - and it's a small boat.
The upside is that it's huge fun for either fishing with some mates or an overnight stay with the wife at a South Coast marina or, taking the children out.
Edited by Candellara on Tuesday 16th August 11:28
The two happiest days of boat ownership will be the day you buy it and the day you sell it and it's really true that if it floats, flies or fkucs you're better of renting it by the hour
This is my usual steer for a couple of weeks every year. I just hand the keys back when done and walk away for a whole lot less grief, time and wallet raping carnage than I used to suffer through actually owning one.
This is my usual steer for a couple of weeks every year. I just hand the keys back when done and walk away for a whole lot less grief, time and wallet raping carnage than I used to suffer through actually owning one.
Jaguar steve said:
The two happiest days of boat ownership will be the day you buy it and the day you sell it and it's really true that if it floats, flies or fkucs you're better of renting it by the hour
This is my usual steer for a couple of weeks every year. I just hand the keys back when done and walk away for a whole lot less grief, time and wallet raping carnage than I used to suffer through actually owning one.
Whilst i partially agree, it really depends on whether you immerse yourself into the social scene at a given Marina / Yacht Club. We have pretty much lived at the Marina every weekend, are often on or around the the boat during the week and taken her out a couple of times a week for the last 6 months. It wouldn't be cost effective to rent a boat for this type of usage. This is my usual steer for a couple of weeks every year. I just hand the keys back when done and walk away for a whole lot less grief, time and wallet raping carnage than I used to suffer through actually owning one.
Out of interest, how much does it cost to charter such a magnificent vessel for a couple of weeks?
Jaguar steve said:
The two happiest days of boat ownership will be the day you buy it and the day you sell it and it's really true that if it floats, flies or fkucs you're better of renting it by the hour
I completely disagree with this - I've lost count of the amount of "happiest days" I've had on mine, and it's always there whenever I want to head over to it.Candellara said:
Jaguar steve said:
The two happiest days of boat ownership will be the day you buy it and the day you sell it and it's really true that if it floats, flies or fkucs you're better of renting it by the hour
This is my usual steer for a couple of weeks every year. I just hand the keys back when done and walk away for a whole lot less grief, time and wallet raping carnage than I used to suffer through actually owning one.
Whilst i partially agree, it really depends on whether you immerse yourself into the social scene at a given Marina / Yacht Club. We have pretty much lived at the Marina every weekend, are often on or around the the boat during the week and taken her out a couple of times a week for the last 6 months. It wouldn't be cost effective to rent a boat for this type of usage. This is my usual steer for a couple of weeks every year. I just hand the keys back when done and walk away for a whole lot less grief, time and wallet raping carnage than I used to suffer through actually owning one.
Out of interest, how much does it cost to charter such a magnificent vessel for a couple of weeks?
ks, it's cheaper to rent. I was once told, that in order of cost and hassle as a function of increasing disposable income it went, pool, boat, plane, helicopter.
I can vouch for the pool and boat and friends can vouch for the others. Expensive toys are expensive.
I reckon in sequence on average, 2k, 5k, 10k, 50k.
But fun.
I can vouch for the pool and boat and friends can vouch for the others. Expensive toys are expensive.
I reckon in sequence on average, 2k, 5k, 10k, 50k.
But fun.
mikees said:
I was once told, that in order of cost and hassle as a function of increasing disposable income it went, pool, boat, plane, helicopter.
I can vouch for the pool and boat and friends can vouch for the others. Expensive toys are expensive.
I reckon in sequence on average, 2k, 5k, 10k, 50k.
But fun.
Wot no motorsport? I can vouch for the pool and boat and friends can vouch for the others. Expensive toys are expensive.
I reckon in sequence on average, 2k, 5k, 10k, 50k.
But fun.
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