Best boat for extended quarantine

[CaptRehab]

After 14 days in quarantine followed by an order to remain aboard except for emergency food shopping for an additional 17 days, I thought it would be interesting to discuss what makes a boat truly self sufficient. The list is equally important for any long distance passages.

1) large tankage for fuel and water
2) lots of storage space for non-perishable foods
3) watermaker
4) sufficient solar/wind/batteries to power refrigeration
5) space to move about

On our Nautitech 441 we take daily walks around the boat. 20-25 laps is pretty good exercise.

It is a new boat for us so we found things that if they had been fixed earlier would have made life better
Such as having a new prefilter for the watermaker because we are getting 45 l/hr instead of 60, having a spare MPPT controller because 1 of the 2 controllers died. Oh and I wish my shipment with my fishing lures had arrived.

Here is my YouTube Channel

https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCU2Qqw7dDjsXHWPzK1waR7w

[dwedeking2]

3 and 4 will remove most of 1.

outside of the spreadsheet (having x gallons of water, x number of calories of food) I'd include:

having a variety of food. eating the same each day drives me crazy.

a fully loaded kindle.

a large music collection (or way to stream)

if more than one person aboard, a way to get alone time (separate cabins)

[CaptRehab]

Missed one.
Plenty of cooking gas

Correct that solar/wind for power and a watermaker reduces the need for tank storage. Having both is luxury

Agreed that the Kindle is a fantastic thing to have aboard and saves weight too!

[Mike OReilly]

I'd add:

• a well stocked galley with the right tools to prepare and cook interesting food.
• a good supply of cooking fuel.
• a head that can be used for long periods (no holding tank limitations).
• a heat source, if needed.
• laundry facilities/capabilities.
• books, music, games.

[Chotu]

I think having everything above is good. Large tankage and the water maker. Because that water maker may malfunction. And then you are done.

Sitting here at anchor on my 50 foot Gulfstar Sailmaster now loaded to the gills with non-perishable food, a super reliable northern lights generator, solar to power the refrigerator and freezer Above regular electrical needs, 350 gallons of water, 200 gallons of diesel, and this thing just sits here like a rock no matter what comes at it. I’m kind of enjoying it.

Brand new sails Means I don’t need to motor anywhere so the diesel can go to the generator instead. When needed. And it is needed right now. It’s going to be 35° tonight and I don’t have a diesel heater. LOL I have electric oil filled radiator heaters for the moment on this thing. That’s the one place it’s falling a little short. Ha ha

But I was thinking, this thing could really be a great extended quarantine boat. And that’s exactly what I’m using it for. I have enough to go half the summer right now. I have to make one stop this summer for diesel and water and to replenish whatever else. The rest of the time I don’t need to go ashore.

I grabbed my small portable gasoline generator to add in case the diesel is down, instead of the 30 pounds of propane it already has, I added an extra 30 pounds for a total of 60 pounds propane, I have 25 gallons of gasoline for the small generator, two Outboards for the tender that don’t work. LOL I need to get onto that project first.

Composting head so I don’t need to worry about pump outs and all of that stuff.

The Internet, books, games, fishing equipment to pull in fish while on quarantine.

The knowledge to make nearly anything available to eat from scratch here in the galley. And here is what my galley storage looks like. There’s a lot more of it, but here are some pictures.

Just made that bread yesterday because I ran out of store bread already. Only had one loaf on hand and ate a lot of it because I was moving all of this stuff into the boat.

I have about 10 pounds of meat to can over the next couple days as well.

[Woodland Hills]

A 50 to 60 foot pontoon houseboat with solar panels on the roof. Seaworthiness does not come into it at all, just living space.

[CaptTom]

I don't know that there's any one "best" boat. And, of course, size matters. Being isolated on a 30-footer is different from being isolated on a 100-footer.

We found interior space critical for long-term living. It's great to have wide-open cockpits and flybridges on those rare days of good weather. But more often than not, it's cool and damp overnight and in the morning, too hot and sunny during the day, or it's raining or blowing or otherwise making the decks uncomfortable. So, like it or not, being comfortable "indoors" becomes important.

The perfect boat for long passages isn't the perfect boat for long periods at anchor. Like everything in cruising, it's a compromise.

[dwedeking2]

Wow, how the virus can change the world. 2 months ago the houseboat anchor outs were boat scum. Now they're the vehicle of choice for the well to do.

[CaptRehab]

No need for a heater here. We are on a mooring in southern Grenada. It is about 85-87 F during the day and dipping as low as 81F at night. Being able to easily board the boat after a swim In another nice feature. Chotu is certainly well provisioned! Houseboats certainly look great today. The money spent for my new mainsail and electric winch are not contributing much to our comfort today

[Volkeno]

1.I would like a catamaran for the space with plenty of solar.
2.A watermaker with large water tanks just in case.
3.An induction cooktop, so no need to find cooking gas or adaptors when your bottles don't fit the place you find yourself quarantined.
4. an incinerating toilet, so no holding tank or need to go offshore to dump or finding a pump out.
5. an electric engine with plenty of batteries. Not going anywhere, so the batteries could run my cooktop, toilet and AC.
6. inflatable SUP for exercise
I would nominate the Silent Yachts as close to perfect except I couldn't afford one. I have an Albin 25 that would be cramped if I had to stay on it for months without moving. I do have a SUP and Kindle for entertainment if I was on anchor, but since I am at home, I mostly ride my bike. It is a carbon fiber folding ebike that is better than my last boat bike that became a rusty mess.

[sailone3032]

I would like a working head!

[a64pilot]

Nix the houseboat, cause for whatever reason, you may have to move, and they don’t do passages well. Besides bad weather season is coming for many of us in the Northern hemisphere, and do you really want to be in a house boat in severe weather?
We left with 6+ months of provisions in a 38’ boat and had lots more room left if we needed it so it’s not hard to do, just at the time 6 months was one more month than we needed.
We have a 7’ cu ft freezer that we packed with meat, and put 40 vacuum packed T bones in an Engle with other meat.
But it’s been three weeks+ since we have been able to buy anything, and I’d kill for a gallon of milk, some lettuce and a Pizza Hut pizza, or a Whopper, Arby’s roast beef, Outback blooming onion etc.

[Montanan]

Home. Home sweet home. No boat.

[dwedeking2]

Originally Posted by Montanan

Home. Home sweet home. No boat.

Zombies can't swim... just sayin'

[tarian]

No different from doing an Atlantic or Pacific crossing and all shapes and sizes do this , no such thing as the best boat and storage
Water maker
Fishing line
lots of Rice