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Old 06-09-2012, 17:39   #16
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Re: Has anyone ever had 2 boats as liveaboards???

Bigger boats usually have bigger cabins, but in truth, the cabin that suits as a living space on a 35' boat would suit as well on a 55' boat. We raised on two children aboard a 33' boat until they were 7 & 9 and then moved aboard a 41' boat. Our best choice was to split the large aft cabin into two port and starboard cabins for our children. With five children and the ability to be innovative a boat like the 55' Defever mentioned in an earlier post would make a palatial space for your size family with proper consideration for the functional use of the space. Most people who are adapting to livingaboard from a house have a tendancy to over estimate the required functional space for comfortable living aboard. We've been living aboard for more than forty years and have limited experiene wirrh houses, but I don't see two boats as the best option.
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Old 06-09-2012, 17:41   #17
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Re: Has anyone ever had 2 boats as liveaboards???

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Since u can afford xxxxx for two boat's maintence should not be a problem,If live aboard is all that u are seeking.With all that family put them to work,most day to day things would be taken care of,
Great feedback. I'm in my late 30's and my kids will soon be teens. I certainly plan on giving them some chores(as soon as I figure out what needs to be done...LOL) I figure if I have to drop 2 grand a month on things that I don't want to or can't do, then fine. It's worth it. Would I want to drop 4 or 5 grand per month, not so much and I'll be the first to admit that I honestly have no clue which is realistic.
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Old 06-09-2012, 17:48   #18
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Re: Has anyone ever had 2 boats as liveaboards???

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Bigger boats usually have bigger cabins, but in truth, the cabin that suits as a living space on a 35' boat would suit as well on a 55' boat. We raised on two children aboard a 33' boat until they were 7 & 9 and then moved aboard a 41' boat. Our best choice was to split the large aft cabin into two port and starboard cabins for our children. With five children and the ability to be innovative a boat like the 55' Defever mentioned in an earlier post would make a palatial space for your size family with proper consideration for the functional use of the space. Most people who are adapting to livingaboard from a house have a tendancy to over estimate the required functional space for comfortable living aboard. We've been living aboard for more than forty years and have limited experiene wirrh houses, but I don't see two boats as the best option.
yeah, that makes sense to me for sure. I now live in a 6 bed house. It's pretty big. I guess I didn't want to forfeit my space to live aboard, hence the 2 boats. Never occurred to me to break up some spaces, although most of these size boats still only have 3 cabins and I would hate to compromise the integrity of the boat by messing around too much, especially since there is always the chance that I could hate the life and decide to sell out.
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Old 06-09-2012, 17:51   #19
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

Ahh how much boat do you really need ?? We Raised 4 kids on a 42 ft boat ! 3 girls and 1 boy !! It was a little crowded, for sure but we were a Family and everyone did there share !! We Now have a 51 ft Ketch that would do even better then our 42 Ftr did! 3 seperate sleeping areas! 2 heads, and can be sailed by a couple ! Im sure that a 55 or 60 ft Motorsailer, would fit the bill for you and yours! Ive seen a coulple of Swans That would be the real thing for you guy's!! If it were us looking, I think I would be spending a little more time looking at Bigger boats not 2 boats. Just my 2 cents
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Old 06-09-2012, 17:55   #20
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

when my son was 17 i had a jensen wenk 24 for him and my 34 olympian sloop---worked quite well, but, then, i was making more than enough money to be able to do that.
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Old 06-09-2012, 18:05   #21
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Can't speak to much as a live aboard but I currently own two boats. I did almost the exact opposite of your thoughts and went with a 33 hunter and a 15 footer seadoo jet boat.
The maintenance is a lot, but I still go home at night. you gotta really want it to make it worthwhile.
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Old 06-09-2012, 18:06   #22
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

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Ahh how much boat do you really need ?? We Raised 4 kids on a 42 ft boat ! 3 girls and 1 boy !! It was a little crowded, for sure but we were a Family and everyone did there share !! We Now have a 51 ft Ketch that would do even better then our 42 Ftr did! 3 seperate sleeping areas! 2 heads, and can be sailed by a couple ! Im sure that a 55 or 60 ft Motorsailer, would fit the bill for you and yours! Ive seen a coulple of Swans That would be the real thing for you guy's!! If it were us looking, I think I would be spending a little more time looking at Bigger boats not 2 boats. Just my 2 cents
I originally started my thought process with a bigger boat, but I had so many say that I wouldn't be able to operate a big boat that I switched gears and ended up here with maybe 2 medium sized so that I can run them without a professional captain.

It does make me feel better to know that someone had 4 kids living aboard.
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Old 06-09-2012, 18:19   #23
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

If I had that big a brood, I wouldn't be looking at yachts. Find yourself a boat built as a research vessel. More crew's quarters, fewer owner's staterooms. Convert the lab into a study hall for all those teenagers.
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Old 06-09-2012, 18:23   #24
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

Research vessels are still a lot of work. Trust me on this one Bash.

I would rather be out sailing on the first boat than spending the day at the dock working on the second boat.
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Old 06-09-2012, 18:41   #25
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

I'm pretty new to the whole boat thing, but if it were me and I could afford those two boats, I would instead buy 1 bigger boat and hire one experienced crew to help out. But that's just me. 2 boats + 2 ongoing costs (maint/slip/repairs/etc) would be about the same or more than 1 bigger boat + 1 ongoing costs + 1 crew member over say 10 years?
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Old 06-09-2012, 18:45   #26
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

If you've never piloted a boat before, your going to need a captain at first anyway. Undocking and more importantly docking a 50' foot boat is not something you can read a book on and do. Lots of weight and windage and no brakes. Its not at all like a car..

Your going to need at least three people to dock a 50' boat at least in the beginning. One at the wheel and two line handlers. With lots of experience two might do it, depending on the winds and tides.
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Old 06-09-2012, 18:49   #27
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

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Research vessels are still a lot of work. Trust me on this one Bash.
As someone who has spent a bit of time on the research end of the haul, I always thought the researchers were doing more work than the R/V captain.




But we agree on one thing here, my friend. Boats are work.
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Old 06-09-2012, 19:23   #28
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Re: Has anyone ever had 2 boats as liveaboards???

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Bigger boats usually have bigger cabins, but in truth, the cabin that suits as a living space on a 35' boat would suit as well on a 55' boat. We raised on two children aboard a 33' boat until they were 7 & 9 and then moved aboard a 41' boat. Our best choice was to split the large aft cabin into two port and starboard cabins for our children. With five children and the ability to be innovative a boat like the 55' Defever mentioned in an earlier post would make a palatial space for your size family with proper consideration for the functional use of the space. Most people who are adapting to livingaboard from a house have a tendancy to over estimate the required functional space for comfortable living aboard. We've been living aboard for more than forty years and have limited experiene wirrh houses, but I don't see two boats as the best option.

That's what I call a clever and thoughtful answer.

There's always more than one solution to any problem.
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Old 06-09-2012, 19:30   #29
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Re: Has anyone ever had 2 boats as liveaboards???

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yeah, that makes sense to me for sure. I now live in a 6 bed house. It's pretty big. I guess I didn't want to forfeit my space to live aboard, hence the 2 boats. Never occurred to me to break up some spaces, although most of these size boats still only have 3 cabins and I would hate to compromise the integrity of the boat by messing around too much, especially since there is always the chance that I could hate the life and decide to sell out.

Galaxy, have you ever rented an RV? We did, decades ago, and found that the adventure of traveling in the RV made up for the lessened space. It was what planted the seed in my head for living aboard. I already knew I could live happily in the decreased space.

You really DO have to give up living space -- a lot of it -- to live on a boat, even with two boats. But the issue of privacy and personal space is important to teens, and I think the idea of dividing cabins makes a LOT of sense.

You also could get a slightly larger boat (still dividing cabins) to get more living space, and just hire someone to teach you how to handle it.

But I would suggest you rent a big RV first, and all get in and try it out.

You're going to need a big one, so I suggest you rent it for a couple of extra days to practice driving it, but since you already know how to drive, you have the basic foundation. Ours wasn't as big as you will need but there were only four of us.

I think you would find that handling a 60' boat is not that different from handling a 50' one. That ten extra feet translates into more than you might think on a boat.

In any case, finding a way to manage on one boat is really a much better idea than having two boats. That's a lot of work, and truly, you will not be able to supervise the youngsters on the boat you're not on adequately. It's not a workable plan. You have to find a way to make one boat work.
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Old 06-09-2012, 20:51   #30
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Re: Has Anyone Ever had 2 Boats as Liveaboards???

I have a Hartley Queenslander 35' on a swing mooring in Sydney Harbour and almost ended up with a second boat based in Brisbane a couple of weeks ago. Honestly, when a Hartley Tasman 30' sells for $2,650 it's hard to resist.

Luckily I forgot to check the auction at the end and missed out on it.

I'm also aware of a 50' Roberts ferro with a permanent, transferable live-aboard mooring at a yacht club pier going for $37k total. Worth it for the mooring alone, especially when club membership is just $300pa.
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