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thomo
Barlick Born Old Salt


2021 Posts
Posted -  16/05/2007  :  17:04
Questions about this subject keep cropping up amid closely related topics, so I thought it may be a good idea to expand on the subject. I will not go on about my qualifications to discuss Canal Boats so lets just give it a go and see what transpires.


thomo
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thomo
Barlick Born Old Salt


2021 Posts
Posted - 08/06/2007 : 21:55
Hi, Call. Steel is better than plastic, but at the end of the day it is your own personal happiness that matters. A steel boat needs to be re-blacked every couple of years, there is a similar treatment for plastic, whichever you choose, a happy boat is one that is well cared for and maintained. But a note of caution here, on the grand scale of live-on boats, 33' is pretty damn short, our day boat Mr, Punch was 35', have a look and remember, the more boats you look at, the better you will be armed. Good luck, but please take care, remember, help is here if you need it.


thomo Go to Top of Page
Ringo
Site Administrator


3793 Posts
Posted - 08/06/2007 : 22:42
Found an ex BW shell at a boatyard in Goole but they've put a wheelhouse on top so that means it won't fit under L&L bridges.Cant you just take it off?


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Stanley
Local Historian & Old Fart


36804 Posts
Posted - 09/06/2007 : 07:08
I remember seeing that programme where the chef went across France on a barge and they had to take the wheel off to get under some bridges......


Stanley Challenger Graham




Barlick View
stanley at barnoldswick.freeserve.co.uk Go to Top of Page
melteaser
Genealogist


4819 Posts
Posted - 09/06/2007 : 08:13
Rick Stein. He travelled through the canals du midi. 30 miles down the road from us.


Mel


http://www.briercliffesociety.co.uk Go to Top of Page
moh
Silver Surfer


6860 Posts
Posted - 09/06/2007 : 21:10
It is getting very complicated - make the right decision Calle


Say only a little but say it well Go to Top of Page
hydrojack
New Member


21 Posts
Posted - 09/06/2007 : 23:33
 Calluna, have you spoken to people who have made the shift to life on the canal? Its a big decision and you need as much informationn as possible to make the right choices.



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Callunna
Revolving Grey Blob


3044 Posts
Posted - 10/06/2007 : 09:13
Hello Hydrojack - nice to meet you. Thanks for your interest - are you a canal boat person? Your name suggests a watery connection.

As you can imagine our decision hasn't been taken lightly and we've done/are doing a lot of research before taking the plunge.

All the people we've talked to who live on a widebeam love it unconditionally. Some of those who chose a standard narrowboat have mixed feelings. Single people seem OK with it, but couples & families seem to differ in their opinion.

I'm certain that's the key - a 6' 10" narrowboat is just not wide enough for two human beings to live peacefully!

We're off to Goole shortly to look at a boatyard that seems more down-to-earth than some of the brokerages you find on t'Internet.Go to Top of Page

hydrojack
New Member


21 Posts
Posted - 10/06/2007 : 10:23
Hello, no I know nothing about boats or living on them. I do know a little about canals though.
It just semed to me that if I was making such a major life changing decision I would not just want to know about the techno/practical bits about  boats  but also the social implications so I would want to speak to as many people as possible who had experienced a lengthy period of living on a boat.
I f you are intending to utilise broadband in any shape or form whilst on your boat check this out carefully as I do know that connections from some areas can be very poroblematic.



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Callunna
Revolving Grey Blob


3044 Posts
Posted - 11/06/2007 : 22:49
It seems the use of recycled vegetable oil is more common than you'd imagine. Travelling down the A1(M) today near Wetherby with the windows down because of the heat, there was a powerful chip shop smell. It must have been coming out of the car in front as there were flat fields all around us - nowhere near a cafe or restaurant.

If you do put this fuel in your engine, you have to fill in a form and send the taxman 28p for every litre you use, although until 2008 it will be totally free for boats and farm equipment which run on red diesel.

Went to look at a little motor cruiser in Goole that would have been great fun if I had a spare £16k, but of course it was far too small to live on permanently. We knew this already but wanted to take a look at a GRP cruiser as an alternative to a steel narrowboat. GRP isn't as trad as steel, but I'm not ruling it out. These cruisers have a better layout than a narrowboat and let's face it, we aren't going to be transporting several tons of coal on a daily basis. A 40' long 12' wide cruiser might just do it for us.

However, we've a long way to go yet and a lot of research to do before any decisions are made.Go to Top of Page

Stanley
Local Historian & Old Fart


36804 Posts
Posted - 12/06/2007 : 06:36
H, it's quite possible to run diesels on a variety of fuels ranging from light oils to coal dust, they have all been done.  However, there is always a trade-off in terms of increased wear on the engine and the best solution at the moment is to use bio-diesel which is a mixture of diesel, waste oils and essential additives.  Many bus and rail companies use this already.  It has the advantages of low tax, guaranteed quality and legality.  Look it up on the web.....


Stanley Challenger Graham




Barlick View
stanley at barnoldswick.freeserve.co.uk Go to Top of Page
belle
VIP Member


6502 Posts
Posted - 12/06/2007 : 10:25
Sure it wasn't a whiff from the Wetherby Whaler, Call? it's one of the best fish and chip shops round here! Though I know a better one closer to home.


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tripps
Senior Member


1404 Posts
Posted - 12/06/2007 : 17:00

Cally, I am very cautious in this kind of thing, and the following has gone through my mind in no particular order. Have  have you considered -

Your photos of the canal look wonderful, but what is it like in a Pennine January?  Will the boat keep its value, or do they depreciate. If you don't take to the life, and decide to go back ashore, after a few years, with  large commssions payable, would you be able to afford to buy back your house, or one similar?

If you continued to work, how would it be for internet access, and client visits, since you are now of no fixed abode? Can you do it on a 'try before you buy'  basis, i.e. rent out your house, and also rent a boat, for a year say?

However it works out I wish you all the best, and thanks for sharing your dreams with us all.

Dave.




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Callunna
Revolving Grey Blob


3044 Posts
Posted - 12/06/2007 : 19:03
Thanks, Dave, I appreciate your concerns. That's one of the reasons I decided to go public with the dream: you can get carried away by all the plus points and conveniently forget the less appealing aspects. Sometimes it takes a disinterested bystander to raise an issue that hadn't surfaced before.

Your question about winter conditions is valid. However, being a November baby I spent my first few months in the pram outside. Apparently this was the only way to stop me bawling (it still works today...) Before my mum gets reported to the RSPCA (sic) I mean that I was tucked up snugly for my afternoon kip. They did let me indoors occasionally, or so they claim. Consequently I love the winter months and I'm more comfortable dressed in a woolly hat and warm anorak than sweating cobs in a T-shirt and shorts.

Boats obviously don't increase in value like bricks & mortar, but neither do they depreciate like a car. If we play it right and buy a decent boat whose interior has seen better days, we can do it up and it could be worth more (in theory at least).

I'm an anti-social little begger on the quiet. When we came back to Barlick we rented farmhouses and loved being surrounded by the peace & quiet of the countryside. Then we got all sensible and bought a house on a pleasant-enough ex-council estate. The neighbours aren't at all bad and the youngsters quite well behaved, but I miss the countryside. I can't afford to buy a rural property so the boat is a way of achieving this. If the neighbours did decide to have a party, all we'd need to do is unhook and float down the canal for a mile or so.

I'm very much aware that this life isn't a dress rehearsal - it's all we've got and as I approach the big 5-0 (can't bring myself to say the "f" word, as I'm in denial) [No, Cally, you're not in de Nile, you're in de canal. Sorry) where was I? Yes, as I approach fi... fif... nope I can't even write it... I don't want to spend the rest of my life in front of a computer, wondering whether I'll still have enough work and income in the umpteen years before the mortgage is paid off.

So what happens if it goes pear-shaped? At least I would have had a go. I don't want to sit there as a 90-year-old regretting not even trying. I never want to say "I wish I'd..." because by then it would be too late. Maybe that's why my life up to now has been, let's say... 'colourful'. But I don't regret anything I've done, even though it could be said I haven't been as sensible as I should have been.

We've got to sell the house to raise the money to buy outright. I don't want a loan. I don't want to go into debt because the whole idea is to be free from all that. So if it all went wrong, we'd just have to pitch a tent in Letcliffe Park (joke!). No, we do have a contingency plan in that department.

Thanks once again, Dave - although it sounds like I've got all your concerns covered, it's very useful for someone to express them and so keep our feet on the ground. I'm glad I can share this dream with you people because it makes me think hard about every decision we make.Go to Top of Page

Stanley
Local Historian & Old Fart


36804 Posts
Posted - 13/06/2007 : 06:46
H. The key to comfort is good insulation.  I like the stuff you spray on to the inside of the hull before doing the trim.  As for condensation on windows....  the latest tin tents have plastic double-glazed units and they are brilliant even in the coldest weather.  The other consideration is to have a big enough heat source to allow adequate ventilation.  I'd be going for a wood burner as you can always find wood near the cut..... and probably a gas heater for occasional use.


Stanley Challenger Graham




Barlick View
stanley at barnoldswick.freeserve.co.uk Go to Top of Page
melteaser
Genealogist


4819 Posts
Posted - 13/06/2007 : 07:15

Go for it Cally. 

I had similar reservations about buying the property in France except we weren't selling up here to do it. However was still a big decision that affected many aspects of our life. I'm not sure I would have had the courage to do it if we had been moving out there permanently at that time. You are only here for such a short time, if something takes your fancy, try it. What have you really got to lose? You came into the world with nothing...

 




Mel


http://www.briercliffesociety.co.uk Go to Top of Page
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