Thinking of buying a boat - what do I need?

[Jonty355]

Thanks for the replies guys. I think I have a better understanding about things now. Still very tempted but I may wait until next year now as I have some other projects taking up a lot of cash, so probably better to finish those and know where I stand first.

Thanks Jonty

[JumboBeef]

Can I jump onto this thread please?

What about offshore? If you were looking for weekend boat with two berth, what would the running costs be please?

Thanks.

[Fishtigua]

JumboBeef said:

Can I jump onto this thread please?

What about offshore? If you were looking for weekend boat with two berth, what would the running costs be please?

Thanks.

Hmmmm....... Our offshore boat costs about £1k a year.

BUT

We own our own berth.
We have our own slipway.
We have our own workshop.
We get our parts at cost.
We've been doing it for 35 years.
Fuel is cheap over here.

Yep, just about do-able.

[srj2411]

JumboBeef said:

Can I jump onto this thread please?

What about offshore? If you were looking for weekend boat with two berth, what would the running costs be please?

Thanks.

Depends on the type of boat you're after. A two birth motorboat is borderline whether it would be kept in a marina or on a trailer, so assuming a 25 foot cabin cruiser:

Marina charges: £4k/year (as opposed to say £2k on trailer for a 20 foot)
Fuel: £100/weekend - 10 weekends/year £1k
Annual haul out/jet wash: £200
Bi-annual anti foul: £300 (cheaper if you do it yourself)
Engine service: budget £500/year
Insurance: £250

Running costs total could be anything between £3-4k and £7-8k depending on whether you squash into a 22 foot speedboat with a cabin, or go for a 30-foot cruiser that will comfortably sleep 2 for a week away. Boats aren't cheap but really are great fun.

[Simpo Two]

srj2411 said:

[Fuel: £100/weekend - 10 weekends/year £1k

Worth considering the differences in engines here. A relatively big petrol engine like a Mercruiser is going to cost far more in fuel than a small modern diesel, for example. Also, though I have no experience of offshore, judging by that price list it's considerably more expensive than inland.

[srj2411]

Simpo Two said:

Worth considering the differences in engines here. A relatively big petrol engine like a Mercruiser is going to cost far more in fuel than a small modern diesel, for example. Also, though I have no experience of offshore, judging by that price list it's considerably more expensive than inland.

Yep fair point. To give real life examples we have a 38 foot motor cruiser which will use around £150/hour diesel, and a 90 HP 5 metre RIB which will use £35 petrol for 2-3 hours - I went somewhere down the middle.

[Simpo Two]

I haven't done the maths exactly but I think my 40hp Yanmar inboard costs less than £5/hr in diesel. But them I'm just bumbling along at 4-6mph not smashing through breakers

[JumboBeef]

Thanks.

I know nothing about boats, other than the pointy end is at the front and the blunt end is at the back.

I want to bop along the coast on nice days, and spend the occasional night away.

I do like the look of these sort of boats:

http://www.boatsandoutboards.co.uk/Speed-Boats-for...

http://www.boatsandoutboards.co.uk/Speed-Boats-for...

http://www.boatsandoutboards.co.uk/Speed-Boats-for...

Any idea as to the per hour costs for these?

Should I be looking at one on a trailer which I can keep at home (plenty of space) and trail to wherever I want to use it in Devon or Cornwall?

I live in south Devon.

Thanks.

[Fishtigua]

JumboBeef said:

Any idea as to the per hour costs for these?

Single Merc/Volvo 5.7 V8s burn around 50/60Lph at cruise and 80/100Lph at full chat.

[Simpo Two]

We seem to have three threads in one now, all looking for different things.

[R8Steve]

Fishtigua said:

Single Merc/Volvo 5.7 V8s burn around 50/60Lph at cruise and 80/100Lph at full chat.

A useful site to gauge running costs here - http://www.boat-fuel-economy.com/

The above sounds about spot on though, approx 10 gallons an hour on my 5.0 V8 Mercruiser. The difference in fuel consumption with different engine sizes (the usual 4.3/5.0/5.7/7.4/etc) is usually fairly minimal at cruising speeds but flat out there is a massive difference. I notice one of your choices is turbo diesel which of course will be slightly better using about 30/40% less fuel - back when you could run red diesel would have been an excellent choice, unfortunately you can't now.

[JumboBeef]

Thanks.

How much is fuel? Less than road going?

[R8Steve]

JumboBeef said:

Thanks.

How much is fuel? Less than road going?

Unfortunately if you fill up at a marina you can typically expect to pay a LOT more. I think mine is about 1.50+ a litre at the moment!

[JumboBeef]

!!!!!!!

Do these boats really cost >£200/hour? Or is my maths wrong?

[JumboBeef]

Can that lastboat be trailered and can I then fill it up at Tesco en route....?

[srj2411]

Jumbobeef,

Those 3 you've listed are probably on the border of what you'd keep at home and tow on a regular basis. I would guess costs for the Windy and Chaparral around £50/hour and maybe slightly more for the Bayliner (instinct says the Bayliner is also too big for towing so you'd want to keep in a marina).

Bit of a jaunt but if I was you I'd try and get to the Southampton boat show if you can (11th-20th September). Fun day out and you can look round every kind of boat available from 2 metre tenders to 80 foot yachts. You'll get a feel for what it is you actually want and which models you prefer, and gives you an idea of what to look for on the used market...or buy one if you see a good deal.

[R8Steve]

JumboBeef said:

!!!!!!!

Do these boats really cost >£200/hour? Or is my maths wrong?

Yes, unfortunately your maths is correct.

That's the upper range though, you generally won't, if ever, be flat out for hours at a time. I'd say i'd usually use £200 max for a full weekend.

You could tow the 3rd one but it's probably at the maximum size i'd advise towing to be honest. If it was in a marina i wouldn't be pulling it out just to go down the local Tesco to fill up though! Just take a few large jerry cans and do 2/3 runs to the petrol station when going for supplies, that's what i do!

Edited by R8Steve on Monday 24th August 16:54

[markmullen]

Jonty, I'm Lead Coxswain of York Rescue Boat so out on the river Friday and Saturday nights till the early hours, if you're in York pop down and say hello, we base ourselves at Queens Staith.

You can hire day boats or cabin cruisers from Naburn, worth a try to see if you enjoy the lifestyle.

There are quite a few people who have berths at Naburn or Bishopthorpe and come into town Friday and Saturday night, use the visitors moorings, either at Queens Staith, Kings Staith (although I'd recommend against that, too many drunks) or Dame Judy Dench Walk, near the back of the museum gardens. They then either have a few drinks on the boat for the evening, or use it as a base to go into town.

I'd recommend some RYA training, per other posters. Even on the river if you're not sure what you're doing you can do a lot of damage, I know, I watch people who can't come alongside to save their lives making a hash of it every week, other boat owners prairie dogging to make sure it's not their pride and joy that is going to get hit next. Boat repairs get really expensive really quickly so it makes sense to have some training, even if you've done some in the past, as a refresher. Also if you train in much more difficult conditions than you're likely to face then you'll find it much easier. I qualified to Advanced Powerboat Certificate of Competency (commercially, up to 24 metres, up to 20 miles from safe haven, by day or night) even though what I do for YRB is a 5.3m rib on a river. It'll also serve you well if you decide to venture beyond the lock at Naburn and onto the tidal stretch, or out to sea. It can also qualify you for an International Certificate of Competency which is useful if you want to hire a boat abroad.

[ColinM50]

ecsrobin said:

However RYA does give you the skills to manouvere a boat and teach you the right way to go about things.

I'd take issue on that. They teach you THEIR way of doing things, not necessarily the BEST way to do thinks. As an analogy, when you're learning to drive, you're taught never to cross your hands when steering, how many do the "feed the wheel through the hands" thingy once they've passed their test? Apart from women drivers of course.

If you're going to be on the Ouse or Trent then tbh you don't need any fancy courses, you'll pick it up easily within a couple of hours and reading a few boat handling books. For a decent twenty something foot single engine mobo you can get a reasonable boat for £10-15k. Check locally for mooring costs. A marina will be more than a bankside mooring but in your area should be under grand.

If you want to see half a million pound secondhand boats for sale, try Burton Waters near Lincoln, http://www.burtonwaters.co.uk/used-boats?pagenum=3...
But you can't use most of these inland, you'll need to more at the coast and if that's your plan you don't have enough experience/skills yet. Learn on the river, then move on up if that's your plan/budget

Or for more sensible boats have a look at

http://yorkshire.boatshed.com/freeman_30-boat-2074...

[R8Steve]

ColinM50 said:

ecsrobin said:

However RYA does give you the skills to manouvere a boat and teach you the right way to go about things.

I'd take issue on that. They teach you THEIR way of doing things, not necessarily the BEST way to do thinks. As an analogy, when you're learning to drive, you're taught never to cross your hands when steering, how many do the "feed the wheel through the hands" thingy once they've passed their test? Apart from women drivers of course.

If you're going to be on the Ouse or Trent then tbh you don't need any fancy courses, you'll pick it up easily within a couple of hours and reading a few boat handling books. For a decent twenty something foot single engine mobo you can get a reasonable boat for £10-15k. Check locally for mooring costs. A marina will be more than a bankside mooring but in your area should be under grand.

If you want to see half a million pound secondhand boats for sale, try Burton Waters near Lincoln, http://www.burtonwaters.co.uk/used-boats?pagenum=3...
But you can't use most of these inland, you'll need to more at the coast and if that's your plan you don't have enough experience/skills yet. Learn on the river, then move on up if that's your plan/budget

Or for more sensible boats have a look at

http://yorkshire.boatshed.com/freeman_30-boat-2074...

Having seen some of the people, some that have been here for years, trying to moor up at the marina i'm not so sure