moorings? ha ha ha residential moorings are non extistant

[magictime]

We're going to have a good go at living on about £7.5k a year when we move aboard next year, hopefully with £10k in savings to draw on when big maintenance costs crop up. It's probably stretching a point for two people, but with me having nearly dropped dead with a brain haemorrhage a few weeks back, and with my wife getting more stressed and disillusioned with work by the week, we've just hit a point where life feels too short to wait around any longer.

[LadyG]

36 minutes ago, magictime said:

We're going to have a good go at living on about £7.5k a year when we move aboard next year, hopefully with £10k in savings to draw on when big maintenance costs crop up. It's probably stretching a point for two people, but with me having nearly dropped dead with a brain haemorrhage a few weeks back, and with my wife getting more stressed and disillusioned with work by the week, we've just hit a point where life feels too short to wait around any longer.

All the best , I think that when you can relax you will both feel the benefit, there's loads going on that you can do, I ve done lots of courses online with coursera.org and futurelearn.org great stuff. and my life aboard is a fresh new chapter, can't wait!

Edited September 11, 2017 by LadyG

[Prue]

Thats exactly why we are selling up and opting in to life rather than working ourselves in to the ground , feeling exhausted, miserable and fed up with living under this Tory government. My husband is a Police officer in Bradford of all awful places, he takes daily insults and abuse from the public, his teams are all off on long term sick through stress, I work in FE, we are on a knife edge , funding has cut 70% from our HE qualifications, we tried to run HND/HNC but only enrolled about 3 students which of course is unsustainable so that has been cut, most staff are on hourly paid and part time, God knows how Huddersfield Uni have got the millions to build fantastic new campus's and halls of residence when we cant cover our wage bill.

I got an email back from Canals and Waterways trust, their advice was to just use leisure moorings or move around a lot ! this tickled me, if they say its ok then it must be .

[The Grumpy Triker]

On 09/09/2017 at 16:59, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Tony makes a very good point. Generating and storing enough electricity in winter as an off-grid liveaboard I have found 'challenging' to say the least. Virtually impossible in fact, as generators and engines may not be run outside the hours of 8am to 8pm, the hours most people who have jobs will be away from their boats. 

I designed an installation I hoped would allow me to charge once a week at weekends but it was an abject failure. Daily charging (or at least alternate days) is broadly mandatory in order to keep your battery bank from needing replacing annually. 

I now have a generator so quiet, it can be used at any hour of the day or night.

Is running the engine not allowed after 8pm in Winter?....even away from housing....or just in Marinas?

8pm in summer is the same as 8pm in winter....I go to bed the same time as do my kiddies?....I'd understand not revving the engine up down the canal but just ticking over!?......I stand to be corrected I know but have to ask.

[LadyG]

5 minutes ago, Prue said:

Thats exactly why we are selling up and opting in to life rather than working ourselves in to the ground , feeling exhausted, miserable and fed up with living under this Tory government. My husband is a Police officer in Bradford of all awful places, he takes daily insults and abuse from the public, his teams are all off on long term sick through stress, I work in FE, we are on a knife edge , funding has cut 70% from our HE qualifications, we tried to run HND/HNC but only enrolled about 3 students which of course is unsustainable so that has been cut, most staff are on hourly paid and part time, God knows how Huddersfield Uni have got the millions to build fantastic new campus's and halls of residence when we cant cover our wage bill.

I see the local small town has managed to find zillions for a new campus almost out of town, kids to be bussed in, theres a huge sportscentre too, money splashed rt left and centre, I think its funding from EU or something, the LA can hardly afford qualified teachers, proper books etc etc, 

Edited September 11, 2017 by LadyG

[The Grumpy Triker]

6 minutes ago, Prue said:

Thats exactly why we are selling up and opting in to life rather than working ourselves in to the ground , feeling exhausted, miserable and fed up with living under this Tory government. My husband is a Police officer in Bradford of all awful places, he takes daily insults and abuse from the public, his teams are all off on long term sick through stress, I work in FE, we are on a knife edge , funding has cut 70% from our HE qualifications, we tried to run HND/HNC but only enrolled about 3 students which of course is unsustainable so that has been cut, most staff are on hourly paid and part time, God knows how Huddersfield Uni have got the millions to build fantastic new campus's and halls of residence when we cant cover our wage bill.

I got an email back from Canals and Waterways trust, their advice was to just use leisure moorings or move around a lot ! this tickled me, if they say its ok then it must be .

....but he never got insulted under a labour government for 12yrs!?....I am a-political but statements like this do make me wonder. Too many people aim their anger at whoever, they are all as bad or as good as each other. I see the same mess whoever runs this country but I do draw the line at certain ideologies......would hate to see Monty Python outvoted at next election 

[rusty69]

7 minutes ago, The Grumpy Triker said:

 

8pm in summer is the same as 8pm in winter....I go to bed the same time 

8pm summer =7pm winter 

If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" 

[The Grumpy Triker]

On 10/09/2017 at 17:57, Dyertribe said:

Early retirement went out of the window when we had our one and only child when I was 40! I''l be 64 before she is out of full time education some hope to retire about 3 years after that. As my husband is 8 years younger than me he will get to return early - just1

Know that feeling, started my crew late - first at 39...almost 40, then 42 then 45....in amongst some bad moments.....I then worked out what it was & not looked back. Sadly Mummy & Daddy stopped being Husband and Wife so just got my first floating home...will still be working until I am 70....if I make it.....but the boat will change my outlook I know. .....and the 12, 9 & 7yr olds love it 

[The Grumpy Triker]

6 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

8pm summer =7pm winter 

If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" 

True!....still 8pm on my clock ......if an owl hoots just before the tree falls in the forest, was it his fault?...action & consequence!?

If I have another beer will the sunrise tomorrow....MUST I have that beer or will we all be doomed!?

[ditchcrawler]

27 minutes ago, The Grumpy Triker said:

Is running the engine not allowed after 8pm in Winter?....even away from housing....or just in Marinas?

8pm in summer is the same as 8pm in winter....I go to bed the same time as do my kiddies?....I'd understand not revving the engine up down the canal but just ticking over!?......I stand to be corrected I know but have to ask.

The rules are the same

[rusty69]

12 minutes ago, The Grumpy Triker said:

if an owl hoots just before the tree falls in the forest, was it his fault?...action & consequence!?

Suspect it was the Grumpy Gruffalo! 

[Gareth E]

11 hours ago, magictime said:

We're going to have a good go at living on about £7.5k a year when we move aboard next year, hopefully with £10k in savings to draw on when big maintenance costs crop up. It's probably stretching a point for two people, but with me having nearly dropped dead with a brain haemorrhage a few weeks back, and with my wife getting more stressed and disillusioned with work by the week, we've just hit a point where life feels too short to wait around any longer.

I think you'll be fine. You'll probably need to plan a little, such as staying at places where you can access an Aldi or similar, rather than shopping at the Co Op. Get a decent array of solar panels, you'll recoup the cost in 3 years. If something breaks don't panic and call in an expensive engineer, get on here for free help, have a go, most things are possible with patience. Maybe you can reduce coal costs with a little wood from around the towpath? Take advantage of free resources. I currently have 10kg of under ripe pears in dark storage, and 5kg of plums. Not stolen, simply harvested from land on the offside that's either public, CRT or owned by someone who doesn't care.

[Iain_S]

12 hours ago, rusty69 said:

8pm summer =7pm winter 

If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" 

If a man speaks in a forest, and there is no woman to hear him, is he still wrong?

[Dyertribe]

1 hour ago, Iain_S said:

If a man speaks in a forest, and there is no woman to hear him, is he still wrong?

Yup

[plainsman]

I am full of admiration of people going live aboard in later life but I would not give up my house. I have met a few people who unfortunately have developed illnesses etc associated with advancing years (stroke for one). They are struggling to remain afloat and do not have a house to return to as they sold up years back. Go live aboard by all means but keep at least a small property (rent it out) if possible just in case poor health hits.  The philosophy of 'the only way I will leave the cut is in a wooden box' is to be applauded, but sometimes the reality is that people  can slowly become incapacitated in one form or another or suffer life changing illnesses.

I wouldn't deter anyone from taking the plunge but think ahead. Enjoy a new lifestyle but have a plan B just in case 

 

[magictime]

1 hour ago, plainsman said:

I am full of admiration of people going live aboard in later life but I would not give up my house. I have met a few people who unfortunately have developed illnesses etc associated with advancing years (stroke for one). They are struggling to remain afloat and do not have a house to return to as they sold up years back. Go live aboard by all means but keep at least a small property (rent it out) if possible just in case poor health hits.  The philosophy of 'the only way I will leave the cut is in a wooden box' is to be applauded, but sometimes the reality is that people  can slowly become incapacitated in one form or another or suffer life changing illnesses.

I wouldn't deter anyone from taking the plunge but think ahead. Enjoy a new lifestyle but have a plan B just in case 

Yes, this is our attitude. When we sell the family house, we will be keeping on a cheap, ex-council, 2-bed flat that will mean we have a way back on to dry land when the time comes, as well as providing us with a crucial chunk of rental income meanwhile.

[Bee]

4 hours ago, plainsman said:

I am full of admiration of people going live aboard in later life but I would not give up my house. I have met a few people who unfortunately have developed illnesses etc associated with advancing years (stroke for one). They are struggling to remain afloat and do not have a house to return to as they sold up years back. Go live aboard by all means but keep at least a small property (rent it out) if possible just in case poor health hits.  The philosophy of 'the only way I will leave the cut is in a wooden box' is to be applauded, but sometimes the reality is that people  can slowly become incapacitated in one form or another or suffer life changing illnesses.

I wouldn't deter anyone from taking the plunge but think ahead. Enjoy a new lifestyle but have a plan B just in case 

 

And that, is good advice. Or, keep the house if at all possible and get something just about big enough to live on in the summer and cheap enough to not break the bank. With luck you can rent the house for 6 months and be in a very good position. That is what we try to do, it never works that neatly but in the winter I have a decent shed / workshop for projects. I lived on for 12 years or more and the winters can be long, muddy, and boring.

[MtB]

A word of warning there. Renting a house for a fixed period of only six months is pretty difficult to do. 99% of tenants will not want to move on after only six months. You could easily spend two months looking for a six month fixed term tenant, by which time you are offering only a four month tenancy.  

[magictime]

24 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

A word of warning there. Renting a house for a fixed period of only six months is pretty difficult to do. 99% of tenants will not want to move on after only six months. You could easily spend two months looking for a six month fixed term tenant, by which time you are offering only a four month tenancy.  

Yes, if we ever decided we wanted to spend winters ashore and still get some rental income the rest of the year, I think we'd look into swapping our current flat for one in Scarborough, say, and advertising it as a holiday let.

[Tony Brooks]

21 hours ago, The Grumpy Triker said:

Is running the engine not allowed after 8pm in Winter?....even away from housing....or just in Marinas?

8pm in summer is the same as 8pm in winter....I go to bed the same time as do my kiddies?....I'd understand not revving the engine up down the canal but just ticking over!?......I stand to be corrected I know but have to ask.

The reason I talked about winter is that with enough solar the OP can probably get by without running the engine between those hours. As far as I know the "rule" applies summer and winter.

Also to the best of my knowledge it applies all over CaRT waters but if you are not annoying anyone no one is going to complain so on your own, way out in the sticks you can probably ignore it. However the OP stated she needed to work so the likelihood she will be moored near a convenient road access and that means along with other boats. Certainly it may cause problems on an online leisure mooring.

In my view it would be foolish to run an engine on tickover to recharge the batteries, it might cause glazing (and it might not). I would not run at less than about 1000 rpm because below that vibrations start to annoy.

What is vital in all this is that the OP gives careful consideration to all the problems that come from the decision to work and live aboard and I happen to think that one of the major ones if there is no shoreline will be keeping the batteries charged in winter.

Marinas may have their own rules about running engines but in that case shoreline charging is normally available.

[Richard10002]

22 hours ago, The Grumpy Triker said:

....but he never got insulted under a labour government for 12yrs!?....I am a-political but statements like this do make me wonder. Too many people aim their anger at whoever, they are all as bad or as good as each other. I see the same mess whoever runs this country but I do draw the line at certain ideologies......would hate to see Monty Python outvoted at next election 

Those were my thoughts too. I'm no supporter of the Tory Party, but I don't believe that a Policemans lot would have been a happier one with a Labour government.

They can tell us it would have been, but it probably wouldn't, and we will never know.

[Prue]

Ive been very Left all my life, my father was a Communist Party member in the 60's, a policeman's lot is shit all round ! but some ones got to do it lol 

[Jerra]

3 hours ago, magictime said:

Yes, if we ever decided we wanted to spend winters ashore and still get some rental income the rest of the year, I think we'd look into swapping our current flat for one in Scarborough, say, and advertising it as a holiday let.

From my experience with our holiday let it needs careful consideration.  There are many logistical/cost implications.  You know the sort of thing cleaning, laundry, sorting out problems such as "the tap is dripping".  To get a good % occupancy a letting agency is easier and in my experience provides more bookings but takes a fairly large slice of the income.

Would probably work OK if you weren't hoping for a lot of surplus income.

[mrsmelly]

8 hours ago, Jerra said:

From my experience with our holiday let it needs careful consideration.  There are many logistical/cost implications.  You know the sort of thing cleaning, laundry, sorting out problems such as "the tap is dripping".  To get a good % occupancy a letting agency is easier and in my experience provides more bookings but takes a fairly large slice of the income.

Would probably work OK if you weren't hoping for a lot of surplus income.

Agreed. We paid 23 percent of the income to the holiday letting agency in Cornwall. The plus points of buying in areas such as Cornwall ( we had a house in the harbour in Looe ) is they are very easy to rent out. We have always thought that fifty percent of rental income is to be paid out on maintainance etc. 

[magictime]

9 hours ago, Jerra said:

From my experience with our holiday let it needs careful consideration.  There are many logistical/cost implications.  You know the sort of thing cleaning, laundry, sorting out problems such as "the tap is dripping".  To get a good % occupancy a letting agency is easier and in my experience provides more bookings but takes a fairly large slice of the income.

Would probably work OK if you weren't hoping for a lot of surplus income.

 

1 hour ago, mrsmelly said:

Agreed. We paid 23 percent of the income to the holiday letting agency in Cornwall. The plus points of buying in areas such as Cornwall ( we had a house in the harbour in Looe ) is they are very easy to rent out. We have always thought that fifty percent of rental income is to be paid out on maintainance etc. 

I'm getting way ahead of myself here, but the sort-of-plan is to let out the flat year-round on a standard tenancy for now, hope we get on with living aboard over winter, and review things when we hit 55 and are entitled to take our work pensions and lump sums early. That might put us in a position (1) to trade up to a somewhat nicer, more holiday-friendly flat and (2) to be less reliant on a steady income from letting for our basic living costs, giving us the option of letting a place through the summer and living there through the winter. But that's all a long way off; we might do one winter and hate it, or find that the frugal life we're picturing is just too frugal. We need to see how it goes in practice and take it from there.