Day two

Well we did it. We bought our very first trawler. My fiance and I plan to have many great adventures aboard. But getting started seems to be daunting. After spending two days cleaning varnishing dehumidifying checked all the books and crannies, where to go next. We are in no particular rush for moving out of our rental home and onto the Never Stop, and I would love to hear the maximum amount of advice on small space organizing before the boxes show up to the harbor.
Very excited to start this journey. Would also love to hear some budgeting advice from those that have lived aboard awhile.
Thanks for having me! Chris says hi.

Welcome aboard. What did you buy?

78 marine trader aft cabin

Jessicka said:

78 marine trader aft cabin

Click to expand...

Based on your avatar Marine Traders sure have changed a lot since '78!

Welcome to the forum!

Great avatar!

Ted

For storage, measure as many lockers/drawers as possible, then hit Target/Walmart for lots of plastic boxes/storage containers to fit in the lockers. Makes storage and finding/getting at stuff a LOT easier.
budget wise, a VERY rough rule of thumb for overall costs is about 10% of boat cost per year. First year, maybe double that to get the boat set up the way you want it.
Congratulations on embarking on your great adventure!
Oldersalt
"Everything on your boat is broken, you just don't know it yet!"

Hmmm just don’t take those boxes onboard! Critters arrive with them usually ;-)

Welcome aboard! If you get overwhelmed, consider a small nearby rented storage unit until you can downsize your stuff.

Step 1: Every last thing must come off the boat. Every spare part, every line, fender, life jacket, pot, pan, silverware, toothbrush, dish soap, laundry detergent, shop rag, spare prop, oil, antifreeze, every tool, spare wire, replacement hose, sleeping bag, sheet, towel, windex, paper towel, flashlight, battery, fire extinguisher, etc, etc, etc...

Each piece must be evaluated, organized documented and strategically stored while making note of it's location.

When you have that project done for/with all the stuff that came with the boat and all the stuff you already brought on board only then can you consider bringing your dirt home things on board. And then, only one box or suitcase at a time.

The key is NOT to bring everything you have on board. The key is to get rid of as many things as you can do without.

Its daunting but doable

pete

Jessicka said:

After spending two days cleaning varnishing dehumidifying checked all the books and crannies, where to go next. We are in no particular rush for moving out of our rental home and onto the Never Stop, and I would love to hear the maximum amount of advice on small space organizing before the boxes show up to the harbor.
Very excited to start this journey. Would also love to hear some budgeting advice from those that have lived aboard awhile.
Thanks for having me! Chris says hi.

Click to expand...

Now clean it all again. Seriously. Everywhere, including bilges, engines spaces, etc. Maybe even hire a detailing company to do all the below decks areas. If you have any foul odor anywhere, you haven't cleaned it enough. (You might also get a copy of Peggie Hall's book about managing odors, search HeadMistress or PegHall.)

For general storage, in stowaway spaces, we use a combination of clear Rubbermaid boxes (but which won't fit just everywhere), and vacuum-packing. Latter, for example, for engine spares or whatever that should be kept dry/rustfree.... and our vacuum thing will accommodate a fair number of shapes and sizes. Then make/keep a list of where you stowed what.

For the galley, consider buying new/replacement stuff that is purposefully sized for your situation. Examine spaces before you buy, decide what will fit best AND do whatever its job is. For example Magma offers a set of nesting pots/pans, way easier to store than typical household stuff.

-Chris

Pete Meisinger said:

The key is NOT to bring everything you have on board. The key is to get rid of as many things as you can do without.

Its daunting but doable

pete

Click to expand...

This. Read it over and over again. You can thank us after your first year aboard.

What Pete said. Do not attempt to bring everything aboard. And definitely keep cardboard off the boat.

ranger42c said:

For general storage, in stowaway spaces, we use a combination of clear Rubbermaid boxes (but which won't fit just everywhere), and vacuum-packing. Latter, for example, for engine spares or whatever that should be kept dry/rustfree.... and our vacuum thing will accommodate a fair number of shapes and sizes. Then make/keep a list of where you stowed what.

Click to expand...

And... sometimes we just use ziplock bags in various sizes, especially for stuff we go through more quickly.

And... we've sub-divided some larger stowage spaces with milk crates, to help organize a bit better. (Zip-tie some together, to straddle concave bilge areas, etc.)

And... we often lose the boxes right away, just after stuff comes from the grocery... e.g., cereal... in favor of a ziplock or a smaller airtight container.

And... when it comes to food and so forth, we've altered our shopping habits, only buying what we can stow... including sizes that better fit specific shelf areas.

-Chris

The fear of living without stuff is far greater than the reality. Getting a storage unit continues the addiction to stuff. Breaking free becomes liberating and reduces ones financial burden. Still, down sizing is probably the hardest step to moving aboard.

My advice, making her a boat is first priority, making her a home is second priority.

Two items we have found important. 1. Lable your bags of parts as you take them off the boat for evaluation and identification. PO may have known what they were for, and not mentioned it. 2. Use oists and databases to avoid tge impossibility of remenbering everything.

We have inventory and maintenence scheduling Excel spreadsheets personalized from the ones that MV Dirona's owners published to their web site, as well as the provisoning and storage one from boatgalley.com.
When possible, complete one project at a time. You may need to have two open, an inside and an outside, to accomodate weather.
Plan major work seasonally, so that you are not detail sandibg the tppsides in the high summer, unless you like that.
We use Wunderlist for grocery / shopping and task tickler, as it automatically updates between two phones, if set up that way..
The Dirona databases are useful for storing model and serial numbers of equipment on the boat, as well as addresses and suppliers sites for parts.

There are several good articles here on the things people have done, or are doing, to fit out a new to them boat.
The thread search feature willbe your friend

PM me if you can't find the Dirons spreadsheets directly.

Welcome.

Vacuum bags for soft goods like extra bedding, seasonal clothing, etc absolutely RULE for keeping boat odors at bay. Pureayre at Odor eliminator PureAyre eliminates cat, pet, smoke, skunk, cigars, gasoline, cooking and musty odors absolutely rules for killing existing odors. You can inject it into old cushion and spay it on any surface. Once after I had finished cleaning up as much as possible (using mostly soap and water after pumping out and soaking up with rags) the thirty gallons of diesel a leaking filter allowed into my bilge, I took a whole gallon of Pureayre and poured it into the bilge - odor eliminated.

I agree with previous posts! Welcome Aboard

However: Before you both go nuts trying to accomplish so very much at once. Because you and Chris are now boat owners just beginning your tri love affair with your new female family member; The Boat - BREATH! BREATH!! BREATH!!!

Take your time to write down just what you expect to use your boat for and what you want your boat to do for you. That list will help you decide what to bring aboard and what you purchase new to also bring aboard.

Happy New-Boat Daze! - Art

Oldersalt said:

For storage, measure as many lockers/drawers as possible, then hit Target/Walmart for lots of plastic boxes/storage containers to fit in the lockers. Makes storage and finding/getting at stuff a LOT easier.
budget wise, a VERY rough rule of thumb for overall costs is about 10% of boat cost per year. First year, maybe double that to get the boat set up the way you want it.
Congratulations on embarking on your great adventure!
Oldersalt
"Everything on your boat is broken, you just don't know it yet!"

Click to expand...

Old Salt hits the nail on the head.

Enjoy your adventures, make memories and the ownership cost will be worth it.

Plastic bin boxes for dry storage need to drain and need to be well ventilated. Buckets for liquids would be an exception. Like an oil jug in a bucket. Bleach jug in a bucket.


Anything that absorbs moisture needs to be sealed, waterproofed, "moistureproofed".


Anything edible, even on the microbial level, needs to be sealed and dated. Think in terms of starting food chains. Think in terms of spores, etc.


Ventilate anything that off-gasses. You're breathing air in an enclosed space. Create your own environment.


Mostly, Never Stop. Hi Chris.

bayview said:

What Pete said. Do not attempt to bring everything aboard. And definitely keep cardboard off the boat.

Click to expand...

Having just moved from sail to power and gone through this exercise, I concur with Pete's advice. Removed everything to identify it, clean it and decide whether to keep it. Only then did new stuff come on board. We have a clubhouse where members can 'gift or recycle' their stuff which sometimes make it easier to offload still useful items. Good luck and welcome.

Boat 1st. Then a home.

Boat is 1st priority.
Home is in/on boat.

What Pete and Chris said prior.
And, do it every year

Wow! I can't thank you enough for your detailed responses. First thing I did was go and clean the boat again. I had previously considered a vacuum sealer and after the responses received its on the top of my list. With spores and such a major issue any suggestions for good dehumidifiers that can stand up to the task?

Back on the boat and loving every minute!