DIY yard your wife will be happy at.

[squarpeg]

DIY yards are getting hard to find. The place i am at just informed me they no longer allow diy. Currently i am in north Florida. I have looked at st Mary's, green cove, ft pierce. If it was just me any of those places might work. The wife however has higher standards. If i want her to live there for a month. Not like she is a premadonna, but if you have been to these places you get what i am saying. Its a guys place. We have different standards we are comfortable with. So where would i suggest to the wife we go..something south of north Carolina

[Talk Story]

Not sure that a DIY yard and a happy wife go hand and hand....

[hpeer]

I am no expert, I have been to St Mary’s and Green Cove Springs, so I “get” what you are driving at.

Indiantown in central Florida may be better, I was there only briefly 12 years ago.

In Beaufort, North Carolina is Bock Marine. Their facilities are excellent, well maintained. Mush else good to say about Bock, top shelf and very reasonably priced among other praises.

BUT, at least either place, you really need a car.

[alctel]

I have been in a number of yards, and none of them even approach comfort. Living on your boat in a yard is thoroughly miserable and if you can afford to rent something for a month she'll be a lot happier

[flightlead404]

I spent 2.5 weeks in Port St. Lucie while the boat was in Crackerboy Ft. Pierce. Its about 10 miles away so pretty quick to get there.

IDK what your whifes standards are, but PSL is essentially one giant strip mall, a paean to suburban american mediocre crass commercialism.

Also, there's no port in Port St. Lucie

[letsgetsailing3]

Seems to me the wife goes to a hotel after a certain age when your boat goes to a DIY yard

[JPA Cate]

As an 81 yr. old wife on a sailboat, I'd like to say that in all our years, there have been a few good yards for me, and one superlative one. That one has a separate ablution block, and a separate laundry, just for the people who are living aboard and working on their boats. They provide a free courtesy car and a free courtesy pickup truck, so you can go to chandleries and do grocery shopping easily, or be driven to public transportation, should you need it for something. There are picnic tables you can use if you want to picnic.

The yard hauls quite large vessels, but also small ones. Instead of rickety ladders, they have roll around staircases, aluminum, with industrial non-skid, and a hand rail.

They are friendly and competent. They really work hard to make your stay there pleasant as possible. There are marine services providers, too.

There is a cafe on site open from about 0600 to about 2100. The whole setup isn't cheap, but it is VERY user friendly, and it isn't all that much more than other yards in the general area.

This is the sort of environment that encourages [some] wives to not build up hotel bills.

We have no financial investment in them, but it is such a nice quality of service they offer, that they are pretty appealing.

Ann

PS Sorry, guys, it is not in the US.

[Tayana42]

Choose a good yard to do your work in and get an AirBNB near by to stay in.

[Chotu]

Get the cheap yard, since that will be a high expense and stay off site but very close by.

[Flying Monkey]

Green Cove Springs Marina is working hard to make improvements and is not too bad right now. There was a little New Years Eve party, and it seems like all the ladies were happy to be there; although, there might have been some hungover ones on New Years Day
There is a DIY yard in or near St Augustine as well.
Otherwise, may be make a run to Playboy marina in Fort Lauderdale. The catch with Playboy is that all bottom paints and stuff must be purchased at the yard. Prices are decent, unless you compare to a West Marine Pro price.

[MicHughV]

try St.Augustine, they have several yards back on San Sebastian River, old town is a short walk away, etc, etc...
most yards are dirty regardless of where you go, that's the nature of these places. St. A also has reasonably priced motels. A bike will get you around without much trouble.
Comanche Cove on the north side of the St. A inlet is another yard which is part of a larger marina which has all the amenities.

[squarpeg]

Originally Posted by alctel

I have been in a number of yards, and none of them even approach comfort. Living on your boat in a yard is thoroughly miserable and if you can afford to rent something for a month she'll be a lot happier

Yeah, I am aware of that option. Actually she could just stay at home till I am done. However, that is not the question. The question is what yard might a woman feel comfortable in.

[MicHughV]

In my youth, I often stayed on board while doing the bottom. My boat was my only home, so had little choice.
It was then, and still is today, a dirty, grimy job, no matter how you slice it.

These days, I let others do the cleaning and painting. Sure, it costs a bit more, but worth every cent in my opinion, so as to not breath in a single molecule of paint, nor collect a half ton of sanded bottom paint on my hair, clothes, nor anything else.

People often forget that their own time has a value. When pricing a bottom job, most people add up the cost of paint, etc, but not their own time. It's easily a 3 day job for most. Most yards these days, require that you buy the bottom paint thru' them.

If you absolutely insist on having your wife with you, I can recommend Comanche Cove in St. Augustine. It's part of a marina complex, with showers, shops, restaurants, etc.
I have hauled there before. You'll like it.

[squarpeg]

Does anyone have any experience at this yard. Charlotte Harbor Boat Storage.

[Shrew]

I'd also vote for an AirBnB. IMHO you get more work done when you're not living in the work site. Too much of your time is spent converting the work space into livable space at night, and back to a work site in the morning.