new here. about me, and a question.

[jukesy]

No offence buddy, but sounds like your in for a world of hurt

[CPseudonym]

Just to add to Woodsong's excellent post don't be surprised when the county tax man comes calling as well depending upon where it is moored.

And just to beat ya to the follow up question, yes, they drive the marinas checking registration identification in our parts. Good luck in your quest.

[scoobert]

i believe in CA they would. they are brutal out there. we would most likely spend the summers in Pittsburgh once we move aboard. our choice b would be NH. here on the Mohawk canal in NY they do not check the numbers. not in my area.

[Phil Fill]

Originally Posted by scoobert

i believe in CA they would. they are brutal out there. we would most likely spend the summers in Pittsburgh once we move aboard. our choice b would be NH. here on the Mohawk canal in NY they do not check the numbers. not in my area.

The previous reply indicated upper East Coast, and you keep replying as to the cold Northern climates. To be a live aboard in the cold/freezing climates required a bigger and more capable boat than the warmer Southern climates. Even in the warm southern climates there is still a concern as to their safety. Make darn sure getting off and on the boat can be done carrying a baby/child and/or walk to/from the boat safely. Getting out of the water even on a low floating dock can be challenging/daunting. Please make sure you read most if not all of the Live Aboard discussions, and understand that if people think you are putting you wife and/or child in danger, the marina management and/or child services might come rapping on your hull.

Again I am very much against you even thinking about being a live aboard in the colder/freezing climates.

[scoobert]

why does everyone think i am living in cold climates for the winter?
i will be going south.....?

[Codger2]

Originally Posted by jukesy

No offence buddy, but sounds like your in for a world of hurt

He's not in for a world of hurt, jukesy! He knows everything about owning a big boat and beating the tax man.

[scoobert]

lots of naysayers. i don't mind them, they think they have a job to do

[jukesy]

I'm not trying to be a naysayer bro. A lot of us on here are in pursuit of similar dreams. Myself included! But I think we're ate just trying to give you a reality check. There's a lot more to it than just buying a boat and a fish finder and running up and down the ICW. We're really here to help! Sorry if my comments seemed a bit harsh.

[scoobert]

i am not sure what your referring to?
checklist:
leaks
proper thru hulls with shut offs
top side leaks
bottom blisters or signs of osmosis
bottom paint
impeller
any hull soft spots
HVAC system
engine, transmission
safety systems, fire, co2, bilge pump operation bail out kit, first aid kit
steering systems
anodes, zincs
electrical systems
kitchen appliance operation
date of last diesel tank scrub
water tank scrub
pressure water system
helm controls

if i can prepare a plane for flight and do a full pre-flight checklist and catch something that 12 students and instructors missed for 83 hours, then i can find flaws in a boat.
by the way, it was the tach inspection sticker. the service was preformed, but the stick was not updated.

your talking to a pilot, and commercial truck driver. who went to school for two years of mechanics. and 6 months of welding.
unless your discussing the (pick a saying) unknown factor then i dont get it.

[dhmeissner]

Hi scooobert,

Are you sure a sailboat is not a better choice? I do a lot of craigslist surfing and it seems to me a nice sailboat can be had for far less than a diesel yacht. With a sailboat, an engine failure is far less catastrophic, as in, you can still go somewhere.

Here's a few of many examples:

Reduced! 50' ketch. Glass. Ctr. Cockpit Project
1976 49' Schooner Sailboat
36' Sailboat Hillyard Cutter 1950
Kettenburg K40 Sailboat

These are in Seattle, but on the east coast check the Baltimore CG.

Price on boats like these is always very negotiable. Good luck with your dream!

[boatpoker]

All you will get in a 40 - 50' trawler for 20k is a $150k project.

[scoobert]

Originally Posted by dhmeissner

Hi scooobert,

Are you sure a sailboat is not a better choice? I do a lot of craigslist surfing and it seems to me a nice sailboat can be had for far less than a diesel yacht. With a sailboat, an engine failure is far less catastrophic, as in, you can still go somewhere.

Here's a few of many examples:

Reduced! 50' ketch. Glass. Ctr. Cockpit Project
1976 49' Schooner Sailboat
36' Sailboat Hillyard Cutter 1950
Kettenburg K40 Sailboat

These are in Seattle, but on the east coast check the Baltimore CG.

Price on boats like these is always very negotiable. Good luck with your dream!

those first two, especially the first one i would snap up in a heartbeat...
there are so many lovely boats on the west coast.

to bad shipping would be $7000 from LA to gulf coast.

[scoobert]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

All you will get in a 40 - 50' trawler for 20k is a $150k project.

if i paid someone for a refit, i would agree completely.

[CPseudonym]

If you paid someone to do it all for you on a 40-50'er it would be quite a bit north of 150K. That would be the DIY price.

[scoobert]

Originally Posted by CPseudonym

If you paid someone to do it all for you on a 40-50'er it would be quite a bit north of 150K. That would be the DIY price.

if i did two new engines, a new gen, repaired the entire gel coat, every window, put in new wireing, redid the kitchen, new matresses, new heads, new canvas, new floors and walls, then maybe.

i have a budget in mind of 20-50,000. not 150. for a sailboat, it would be quite a bit more.

[Woodsong]

Scoobert,
Let us know if any other specific questions. We all have opinions and pretty much none of us will hesitate to share them with you. None of us know you, your circumstances, or your abilities. Not knowing that, your proposed $20k budget, proposed cruising grounds, and plans seem to be a difficult path to align. But- that is what dreams are made of. Best advice I could give you is put your wife and soon to be born child first...put their care and their protection and their health and safety and well being first and work hard and make your dreams come true. I'm not a full time liveaboard but we average around 120 nights aboard a year. Our kids are now 10.5 and 9 and have been boating since they were born. Boating with young children is an entirely different circumstance than boating as a retiree or a middle aged man. Their mobility is not as good, ladders dangerous, etc. etc. The boat that fit us when our kids are now 10ish is not the same boat that fit them when they were 2.
Don't let a dream supersede the need to provide and protect your family (I am not saying you are doing that!) and if you stay true to that then the rest will work itself out.

[scoobert]

Originally Posted by Woodsong

Scoobert,
Let us know if any other specific questions. We all have opinions and pretty much none of us will hesitate to share them with you. None of us know you, your circumstances, or your abilities. Not knowing that, your proposed $20k budget, proposed cruising grounds, and plans seem to be a difficult path to align. But- that is what dreams are made of. Best advice I could give you is put your wife and soon to be born child first...put their care and their protection and their health and safety and well being first and work hard and make your dreams come true. I'm not a full time liveaboard but we average around 120 nights aboard a year. Our kids are now 10.5 and 9 and have been boating since they were born. Boating with young children is an entirely different circumstance than boating as a retiree or a middle aged man. Their mobility is not as good, ladders dangerous, etc. etc. The boat that fit us when our kids are now 10ish is not the same boat that fit them when they were 2.
Don't let a dream supersede the need to provide and protect your family (I am not saying you are doing that!) and if you stay true to that then the rest will work itself out.

your very correct. wife and children safety come first, and this is our first.
we will find a few snags, i am sure, on that end.
but i have been reading blogs about children on boats.
the bums have had two, on a sailboat. thats a huge freeboard, and a huge set of steps. there will be modifications, that will be ugly, to protect the children. i have plans to redo the railing, to a higher height, and to of course add netting.

and i am not experienced parent, but were any of us?

[JohnP]

Your dream is not uncommon among trawler folks. Perhaps that is why you came to this forum.

Sometimes dreams have to be adjusted to the present circumstances.

You say you are going to work at least 4 more years. Is your work New York based or can you telecommute?

If it is New York based than maybe you should buy a 20k, 45 footer and start fixing her up. Four years is a good time frame for that project.

If your Wife moves aboard a workshop boat with a newborn, you have found a one and a Billion Lady!!

Save up a lot of money, because all this moving the boat North and South, keeping it somewhere, and taking care of it will cost.

Don't forget to factor in healthcare, insurance, maybe keeping a car and all that boring stuff.

That said-- I think you can do it!!! But I think it will be harder than doing the landbased life.

Best to you and yours.. JohnP

[scoobert]

thanks john.
i am what they call a hotshot.
a trucker that is in a smallish truck that moves small freight of all kinds.
i can work from anywhere.
i prefer the north east because we have the best CPM rate on cars. we are at $1 a mile for cars, florida for example is at 50CPM for cars. so i can do my job anywhere, but the north east, pittsburgh, boston, new york, have the best rates in the country.

[Nomad Willy]

Live aboard in a cold climate?

I remember a guy living aboard an old wood OB boat w no bulkhead on the aft end of the little cabin. He had plastic (common stuff usually called Visquine (SP?) covering the whole aft end of the boat.

He was a young man and of course by himself. He had an small electric heater, a light bulb and I liked to see him at night w 6" (or so) of snow in the plastic.

Living in Alaska on a boat is quite popular and much more economical than you might think. Moorage for a 35 to 40' boat is often to usually about 6 to $700 a year. Not a misprint ... a YEAR. Groceries are of course about 25% higher ....
or more depending on where you are.