Cruising and boat maintenance costs

[sailorboy1]

Does the cruising boat ever become less of a money hog? So far full time on the boat for "boat maintenance, repairs, upgrades" it has cost:

year 1 - $8,291
year 2 - $5,187
year 3 - $14,262
year 4 - $19,856
year 5 - $3,315
year 6 - $8,364 (and that is only for 8 months)

That's $59,277 and all but about $4000 I did all the work. Yes there have been a few expensive upgrades in that number, but that still leaves a lot for just maintenance and repair. It works out to 26% of my total costs to live and travel on the boat. And this is for a 2001 boat that was I feel in good condition at the start that I had and maintained for 5 years prior.

Can some longer term cruiser tell if and when the curve drops on these costs?

[PippaB]

Short answer (based on decades of live-aboard cruising), no.

Look at your costs and identify the recurring items:

Bottom/antifouling - every 2-3 years
Standing rigging - every 10 years (if insured, otherwise more variable).
Running rigging - some every year
Sails - highly variable depending on sailing style, 2-10 years (although I have a light-air drifter that is 40 years old).
Engine service - my experience, you'll be doing something expensive every 5 years or so. Transmission rebuild, saildrive rebuild, alternator, heat exchanger, exhaust elbow....
Biminis/awnings - 5-10 years even when made of Sunbrella or other 'sun-resistant' fabric
Hatch rebed/reglaze 10 years?
Instruments/electronics ?
Refrigeration ?
Topsides paint/varnish?
Dinghy/motor (we even end up replacing our wooden oars every 5 years or so)

There are so many items, but very few of them last the life of the boat. I see a lot of cruisers who don't want to keep up or don't have the funds, and so the boat slowly declines. That is one approach, but if you want the boat to be as operational and functional tomorrow as it was yesterday then you'll be spending $ on maintenance every year.

Sorry

[sailorboy1]

probably worst for the low cost fantasy people than me

meanwhile someone pointed out that if I ate more steak, still more on marinas, and go out to eat/drink more I can get the boat costs as a percentage of total spending to decrease

[Tetepare]

Some run the boats to the ground and sell them all beat up after cruising. Cuts down on maintenance costs.

It would be interesting to know what it would have cost if you’d only used it on weekends. Some maintenance is unavoidable, if you want to keep it up in condition.

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by Tetepare

It would be interesting to know what it would have cost if you’d only used it on weekends. Some maintenance is unavoidable, if you want to keep it up in condition.

I used to have that. As I remember it was pretty high and that I spend 20% of my money on "boating". It wasn't a lot less than I spend on my house.

Maybe I either I take too good of care of my boat (I don't think I do) or I ride and use it too hard. I will say we tend to maintain the boat to handle being beyond the worst conditions we have experienced. Maybe that is why we never have had a boat problem during passage or bad conditions.

[Fore and Aft]

Sailorboy1 I doubt the curve ever drops if you want to keep the boat in good condition.
Where it pays of is the ease of selling a well maintained boat at a good price compared to a run down boat. I see this time and time again where good boats sell quick and the poorly maintained boats can sit around for years before they are sold or the owner almost gives them away. All this deferred maintenance stands out a mile during a survey.
We are always upgrading and maintaining our yacht as well and just consider it part of boat ownership. I would still say we are miles in front financially compared to chartering, reliability and all the family memories we have created.
Cheers

[El Pinguino]

I think you have to take the food and entertainment out of the equation as that has nothing to do with owning a yacht.

The only standing cost I have is marina fees. In the normal world that would be for maybe 6 months of the year - the last two have been abnormal years.
I think you have to average costs over 10 years or so as many are not a weekly, monthly or yearly charge.
The last 6 weeks I have dropped a bit over $2kUSD on my boat over and above marina fees. Liferaft survey $1500, Engine overheat problem $600 , alternator problem ?.
These are my first costs since late 19.
Have to drop maybe $1K before I come back to the boat on pumps and stuff.
Prior to that, haul and antifoul in 18/19 plus a rather nice paint job from antifoul to toerail.
New mainsail in 19.
Dropped 70k US on a half life refit in 15.
So maybe $80k in the last 10 years or so...8k a year.
But the half life refit should probably be spread over her 36 year life - say 2000 a year.
So maybe 3k a year? Dunno, don't really care. It is what it is.

[LeeV]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

Does the cruising boat ever become less of a money hog? So far full time on the boat for "boat maintenance, repairs, upgrades" it has cost:

year 1 - $8,291
year 2 - $5,187
year 3 - $14,262
year 4 - $19,856
year 5 - $3,315
year 6 - $8,364 (and that is only for 8 months)

That's $59,277 and all but about $4000 I did all the work. Yes there have been a few expensive upgrades in that number, but that still leaves a lot for just maintenance and repair. It works out to 26% of my total costs to live and travel on the boat. And this is for a 2001 boat that was I feel in good condition at the start that I had and maintained for 5 years prior.

Can some longer term cruiser tell if and when the curve drops on these costs?

Just throwing this out as Apples vs Turtles: we spent 60k fixing and updating the galley (kitchen/dining room) and adding a cockpit (patio) on our house last year. That does not include all the maintenance and repairs from the last 8 years, including windows, doors reglazing, septic tank,…
And I look at the same trees every day, 🤣😂
Just sayin’…

[OBT]

Our house costs include $6500 in taxes; then there are the maintenance costs. We spent c. $5,000 on a week vacation in Florida. So I don't worry too much about the $3-4000 per year we spend to own our boat.

[sailorboy1]

guess if the money doesn't matter

[LeeV]

What Fore an Aft said above. Having read many of your posts I’m guessing your boat will hold greater increased value over many of its kind for selling in the future. I know this because we sold ours last Friday. I didn’t sell it to “make a killing” in this market, but because I’m recovering from hand surgery on my right, after enduring it on my left 2 years ago. A 45’ cat with flybridge is too large for us now that we can’t roam any oceans, and maintaining/cleaning it left me in pain for days. That said, the surgeon replaced the thumb joint cartilage with something else and suggests giving them a few months rest; I may be able to handle something smaller.
I learned so much here over the years (thanks to many of you out there), and our boat was a reflection of that. It was terribly neglected and we spent a great deal of blood, sweat, tears and boat bucks to bring her back and she’ll be a great boat for the new family, so it was worth it. As yours will be too. I hope!

[Mike Crothers]

We cruise full time on a 30 year old boat and spend between 15 and $20,000 on what I consider boat costs, everyone defines it a little differently. I hope the expense goes down over time but I am not betting on it.

[El Pinguino]

My half life refit - OK my boat's refit- took place in 2015/16 when she was 29 years old.
Involved a major osmosis job which was $NZ 30,000. All standing rigging including turnbuckles replaced. Tballs at the top of the lowers replaced with tangs. Baby stay modified at and under deck with better deck to keel arrangement. Focsle stripped to bare f/glass, insulated and relined Tread master removed and replaced. New dodger, new genoa. Keel dropped and shot blasted, replaced with new bolts. Galley sorted, new cooker, modified sinks etc.
Sundry structural glass work under the cabin sole. assorted other stuff.

Breakdown and programmed maintenance six and a half years since then? New main sail, yet another dodger and a new sail cover. new fridge compressor and thermostat, new shore power inverter to replace the old ferro-resonant one, new batteries ( twice) , running rigging as required, new autopilot drive on Mamba steering, overhaul Mamba turning box(?). New eberspacher. Renewed most of the fw/sw cooling pipework on the MD17D ( the rubber bits ) and should really buy a new heat exchanger (UKP500).

Pending - 1 new bilge pump, two new shower sump pumps, new diesel bidones/jerrys.

I would like to think thats it for a few years but I'm sure something will turn up.

[gittist]

Old adage: A boat is hole in the water into which one pours money. (or something like that

[conchaway]

A boat is a hole in the water into which one throws money.