What to take, toss, sell or store

[SV Sailfish]

Hi Mike! Just found this. Great topic by the way!

Before my first circle of the Pacific, I rented out my house knowing I would probably be back in a year or two. Got rid of a lot of stuff but... all those treasures I thought I had to keep or just could not seem to part with, I put in climate contoled storage. A 20x20 space crammed with all my important "stuff". I came back 3 years later from my adventure and rolled up the storage door, looked at all those "treasures" and said to myself, you... were an idiot to keep all this... junk!

Also during my years gone, I had to evict 2 different tenants from my house, pay a bunch of legal fees to do this and had to spend 20k rehabing my beautiful home as the second "wonderful" evicted couple that just quit paying rent took hammers and put holes in every single piece of sheetrock in the house. Walls, cielings, etc., then poured motor oil on the carpet in every room! "Oh boy are we having fun now!"

My second Pacific circle a few years later... I SOLD EVERYTHING!!!
I kept a few sealed boxes of small family treasures that would fit in my car and I placed these with a relative.

The difference in the shoreside stress level from trip #1 to trip #2 was... from "oh crap!" on trip one to "oh yes!" on trip two.

We all gotta learn what will work for us as we step aboard our floating moveable homes and sometimes, like in my case, I learned the hard way! (I just love this head bangy guy. I used to be him.)

Cheers Mike! And welcome to your new adventure!!

[oldragbaggers]

How horrible, Sailfish, that someone would do that to your home. I often say that nothing surprises me anymore, but then I read something like that and it surprises me, at least a little.

We have been cleaning out with a fury. Have taken quite a bit to the dump, sold a lot on eBay the past couple of months, and on May 2 will be having the first of what will probably be several yard sales this year. If anyone comes to my house and remarks that they like something, they are leaving with it. Last weekend a friend told me she was looking for a bicycle so Sunday we took her one of ours. (We had 7.....we're only 2 people....ridiculous.)

We are also working furiously on some home repairs/renovations that need to be done in order to get the house ready for sale. I am not sorry to see one single thing go, and the day we settle on the sale of the house will be one of the happiest days of our lives. The more stuff that disappears the less burdened we feel. It is so liberating to know that eventually it will (almost) all be gone and we will be free. It's just stuff. You can always get more stuff.

[hoppy]

Going through the process now. I'm selling up my life in Sweden with the eventual plan to move back to Australia, but in the mean time will spend a couple of years on board.

I have rented a 3 sqm store room which I have been gradually filling over the last couple of months with stuff that will eventually move to Australia. Much of the stuff I am keeping is my photo studio gear. It's unbelievable how much space that gear has taken up in my 1 bedroom apartment.

I've also made many trips to the rubbish room to throw out stuff I don't need.

The apartment is almost ready to be photographed and listed for sale. I redecorated my bedroom and have employed a decorator to style the rest of my apartment to make it look less bachelor pad for the sale. It kind of sucks because between the removing of the clutter and the new styling it looks so much better. I wish I did this years ago.

Once the sale is agreed then the real serious phase of selling & tossing begins. Not sure it there is too much left that will be stored.

I will keep everything stored in Sweden until it's 100% certain that I have moved back to Aus. I was offered a VERY tempting job opportunity last week which I turned down. If after sufficient liveaboard time something like that crops up, then maybe I wont move after all.

This weekend I fly to Greece for a week on board. I have paid for a luggage allowance of two 23kg bags and one 32kg bag. I will be using every kg. I have packed about 60kg so far, but this mainly consists of my scuba gear, boat parts & tools and perhaps a bit too much camera gear

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by SV Sailfish

Hi Mike! Just found this. Great topic by the way!

Before my first circle of the Pacific, I rented out my house knowing I would probably be back in a year or two. Got rid of a lot of stuff but... all those treasures I thought I had to keep or just could not seem to part with, I put in climate contoled storage. A 20x20 space crammed with all my important "stuff". I came back 3 years later from my adventure and rolled up the storage door, looked at all those "treasures" and said to myself, you... were an idiot to keep all this... junk!
...
My second Pacific circle a few years later... I SOLD EVERYTHING!!!
I kept a few sealed boxes of small family treasures that would fit in my car and I placed these with a relative.

The difference in the shoreside stress level from trip #1 to trip #2 was... from "oh crap!" on trip one to "oh yes!" on trip two.

Thanks Sailfish, your hard-earned wisdom seems to be consistent with most of those who are saying. What a PITA with those dead-beat tenants. We don't have the option of keeping our house, so it's a non-issue, but at one point we did consider becoming remote landlords. Most people advised against it b/c of the kinds of problems you ran into.

By the end of June we will be land homeless. We plan to keep just a few personal treasures, plus a bare-bones amount of kitchen/bedroom stuff so that if we have to come back to land we can at least boil and egg and sleep in a bed (although we're not keeping any beds... ).

[jangann]

This us all great advice. We are just getting the house on the market for a 2018 departure, and I'm taking a break from staging the house right now. You are all making me feel good that I just filled a box with perfectly good shoes that I actually like. And another box, and another . . . .

Best to OP and fair winds!


An Ocean Lover in Maine.

[SV Sailfish]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

By the end of June we will be land homeless. We plan to keep just a few personal treasures, plus a bare-bones amount of kitchen/bedroom stuff so that if we have to come back to land we can at least boil and egg and sleep in a bed (although we're not keeping any beds... ).

Hey... who needs a bed! If you ever come back to land, just pretend you are back in college or your first apartment. Let's see... sleeping bags on foam pad, stereo shelf made out of cinder blocks and wood scraps, candles for atmosphere and that pot to boil your egg you spoke of.

Oh, and almost forgot... Boone's Farm strawberry wine.

Heaven on land.

[Nivels]

Mike!

We have been selling, giving away, and dumping all sorts off 'stuff'.

Just got some soft sided bags for my tools, and was wondering what kind of power tools you might be bringing.

I am stuck on the triangle shaped corded palm sander....I should ditch it because I need an orbital for the boat right?

I have not ditched my skillsaw yet either....something tells me I might need it

Hope all is well with you and yours...... I have a free chainsaw and numerous snow shovels if you know anyone....

Matthew

[Bulawayo]

Originally Posted by Nivels

Mike!

We have been selling, giving away, and dumping all sorts off 'stuff'.

Just got some soft sided bags for my tools, and was wondering what kind of power tools you might be bringing.

I am stuck on the triangle shaped corded palm sander....I should ditch it because I need an orbital for the boat right?

I have not ditched my skillsaw yet either....something tells me I might need it

Hope all is well with you and yours...... I have a free chainsaw and numerous snow shovels if you know anyone....

Matthew

Nivells, We carry 18v DeWalt power tools; a jig saw, a circular saw, a drill, a driver and an angle grinder. We also have a main powered polisher, mains router and mains orbital sander (the mains items run from our invertor or Honda gen set). We have three batteries and all the DeWalts share the same batteries. They are just so conevenient to use and they are frequently at work on our boat or someone elses. Our little Dremel does not get as much use as I thought when I bought it, but when it is needed, nothing else it seems would work.

[Nivels]

Thanks Bulawaylo!

Looks like the jigsaw stays with us. We have the bulkier (non lithium ion) ryobi cordless with flashlight, charger, vacuum, impact driver, and drill. Thanks for the response, looks like all of the tools will be keepers for now. Minust the ax, wedges, and chainsaw

As far as hand tools go, do you guys WD-40 them and put them in plastic bags? We don't deal with rust here in Colorado, so I need some tips to keep my wrenches shiny!

Thanks again,
Matthew

[Nivels]

Out of 90% selfishness, lets keep this thread going.

Does everyone have non breakable dishes?, Glasses? Favorite coffee mug? We are packing up, just like Mike, and want to know what else is going to be useful on the boat.

Our dishes in question can be used in the oven, on the grill, micro, etc. but they shatter! We have a few good ones but don't know if we should keep them or donate.....

The boat galley website endorses plastics and 'unbreakable' dishes.

How do you store your legos for the kids?

What about 'household' cleaners and soaps?

Do I really need all 30+ flathead screwdrivers?

Great thread Mike!

Matthew

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Nivels

Mike!

We have been selling, giving away, and dumping all sorts off 'stuff'.

Just got some soft sided bags for my tools, and was wondering what kind of power tools you might be bringing.

I am stuck on the triangle shaped corded palm sander....I should ditch it because I need an orbital for the boat right?

I have not ditched my skillsaw yet either....something tells me I might need it

Hope all is well with you and yours...... I have a free chainsaw and numerous snow shovels if you know anyone....

Matthew

Thanks Matthew. I'll pass on the snow shovels ... I just sold all of ours .

I went to soft tool bags a while ago. A big improvement over the hard-shells. I've got a bag for plumbing, two for electrical (I like electrical ), an engine bag, an adhesives/caulking bag, and two general tools bags ... I probably have too many bags .

On the power tool side I've got a cordless drill, an orbital sander, and a grinder. But the best tool by far continues to be my Fein Multimaster. I use it in so many ways that I can't believe that I ever lived without it.

[leftbrainstuff]

If you haven't used it in a year then it's a candidate for not being kept.

We currently keep in storage in Oz stuff that will fit in a 2 bedroom house. Not sure whennwe will return but it'll be years.

Sent from my SM-N900T using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[serah]

I have been living aboard for 5 years, at a dock granted, but out cruising regularly. Keep some of your nice things on the boat. It shouldn't feel like camping. We have a nice set of heavy stoneware dishes (set of 4, but 6 would be nice. We occasionally have 2 couples over.) We keep a single set of the lightweight stainless steel camping plates and bowls for when we are cooking/eating and it is snotty out (or for us to eat off when we have too many over for dinner). I love my morning tea ritual and I am very particular about my cup for that, but again we have legit traveller mugs for underway. All these are securely stowed when underway.

I think keeping the boat feeling like home is one of the best ways to enjoy the life. It shouldn't be about deprivation. I just happen to find a bit of joy in a quality mug for tea (and real sheets on the bed, and a down duvet, and real wineglasses, and our proper knife set -- very important --, and a few sets of nice clothes that don't brand me as a dirty boat person right out of the gate) That being said, we are realistic about how much we can carry on our racey cruiser, and try to keep the weight down. (Except for tools And spares. So many tools and spares...)

Edit: we have stripped down "regular" cleaning supplies to basically white vinegar, baking soda, bleach (for dire need only), lemon oil, and dish soap. The harsh chemicals in most cleaners don't make it on to our boat, especially when hot water and a good scrub on a regular basis is enough. For the deck and hull, good ol' cheapo boat zoap and salt water rinses is about all she gets. A good wax once a year, but we don't keep that on the boat. Finally, as we have the hairiest, sheddiest dog alive, we were about to break down and buy a handheld dyson, when we were gifted one from our friends. Invaluable

We seem quite content with one large slot head, plus a normal multi-bit and a stubby multi-bit.
Sent from my XT1034 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Nivels]

Serah!

Thanks for the input! We don't want to feel deprived either, but we want to be realistic! How do you store your knives? I have some sharp ones, and was thinking magnet bar, but want to keep them rust free (as possible).

I'm glad to keep my favorite mug....your tea sounds like my coffee!

We should have a shed contest with our dog....I don't think my ryobi handheld is any match for the dyson.....

Kudos on the 'harsh free' cleaners. We are a vinegar and dr. bronners family ourselves. I do see the need for some bleach however!

Matthew

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Nivels

Out of 90% selfishness, lets keep this thread going.

Does everyone have non breakable dishes?, Glasses? Favorite coffee mug? We are packing up, just like Mike, and want to know what else is going to be useful on the boat.

Thanks for kickstarting this thread again Matthew. It has been a good chat.

We use a set of corning ware (sp?) dishes, plates and bowls on board. Pretty much indestructible, but still nice to eat off of. We also have some covered bowl/mugs for when things get bumpy. Coffee mugs are the wide-bottomed ceramic and stainless steel variety. Wine glasses are lexan.

Our main pots/pans are a Magma 3-pot set. We've had this set for over 10 years, and love them. Now that we have a functioning oven (didn't for years) we now carry a roasting pan, some sheets, and three bread pans which I make good use of.

What we're getting rid of is a whole set of family china, plus far too many kitchen pots, pans and utensils. We are planning to keep a basic set of kitchen stuff so that if/when we come back to land we can at least boil an egg in something. This will go into our storage trailer which we plan to park (for free) on a friend's farm.