Live aboard vessel advice

[Sofa King Fishy]

Howdy~ by summer’s end I’ll be needing a vessel. I’ll liveaboard in MD on the Chesapeake Bay. I’ll need 2 heads- one with stand alone shower. I’m 6’1’- coincidentally, that’s also maximum draft. I have an all-in budget of $150,000. I’ll sacrifice performance for comfort. Lots of dock time for the next 5 years. I’ll be single handing 90% of the time. Shorter the better for slip savings. Hoping to find local in the Mid-Atlantic. Anything come to mind?

[Sailmonkey]

Ummmm......Well, first, with your username, Are you a Troll? because something is fishy.

Beyond that, sailboatlistings and yachtworld are your friend.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Fishy.
Sail or power?

[Sofa King Fishy]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

Ummmm......Well, first, with your username, Are you a Troll? because something is fishy.

Beyond that, sailboatlistings and yachtworld are your friend.

Ha! Not a troll - just a regular dude who’s making a change. I’ve been researching a lot on YW & Boat Trader & have contacted a few brokers. Thinking I’m going the Trawler route, but I do sail, and wanted to get the skinny on boats with 2 heads, as my 2 teenage daughters will be visiting frequently until they go to college.

[ksanders]

Here is a great discussion about styles of boats for liveaboards

https://www.liveaboard-boats.com/for...-actually-have

[gonesail]

Grand Banks 36.

[Hudson Force]

You have many potential questions and things to learn, but I'll just address one item. I found that my greatest accessory allowing me to single hand my sailboat was a auto-pilot.

[Dave22q]

i UNDERSTAND YOUR PROBLEM AS i HAVE ONE DAUGHTER. hOWEVER, 2 HEADS CAN STRONGLY CONFLICT WITH ECONOMICAL LIVE ABOARD. fOR A SMALL FRACTION OF YOUR BUDGET YOU COULD GET REASONABLE SPACE AND LET YOUR DAUGHTERS USE THE MARINA REST ROOMS FOR NON EMERGENCIES. USE THE 100K+ YOU DON'T SPEND TO SPOIL THEM, CARS, TRIPS TO EUROPE, ETC.

[jen1722terry]

We agree with the advice on only getting a boat with one head. Marine heads with showers are fairly complicated and require some maintenance. Unclogging a marine toilet is no fun.

Another place to look for boats is owners groups. This is best done once you've settled on a few models that you like. Then google to see if that make has an owners association. These groups can offer a wealth of detailed knowledge about your boat, often advertise spare parts and, yes, boats for sale. You can still use a broker if you like, but the money could also be spent on a good survey.

Best of luck. I sailed the Bay for many years and there is a lifetime of lovely anchorages, fine marinas and things to do.

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Sofa King Fishy

Howdy~ by summer’s end I’ll be needing a vessel. I’ll liveaboard in MD on the Chesapeake Bay. I’ll need 2 heads- one with stand alone shower. I’m 6’1’- coincidentally, that’s also maximum draft. I have an all-in budget of $150,000. I’ll sacrifice performance for comfort. Lots of dock time for the next 5 years. I’ll be single handing 90% of the time. Shorter the better for slip savings. Hoping to find local in the Mid-Atlantic. Anything come to mind?

Sail or power? If power...

Almost any aft-cabin motor yacht (ACMY or MY) of reasonable size could work... These are commonly set up with en quite heads for the aft master stateroom, and then another head forward for other staterooms and day use.

A cockpit motor yacht (CPMY) version would give you some additional outdoor space to play around with...

Or a trawler with whatever you need. It's easy enough to often drive MYs at slow speeds, approaching trawler economy sometimes, but with a turn of speed available for whatever reason...

Friends who have boats with two heads don't seem to have much more problem than those with only one...

-Chris

[jrbogie]

You do have a livaboard slip lined up I trust. Can be few and far between.

[jackheape]

You could get a nice sized Carver aft cabin for $50-60k. 2 heads and a decent sized shower. Get gas, not diesel. Most have generators. If they don't put one in. Install a watermaker onboard if there isn't one. Buy a nice sized tender to go with, like a 16-17 ft. with a 30hp 4 stroke Boston Whaler and anchor out a lot. You will save a bunch of money and have a blast.

[Arthurwg]

Why gas and not diesel?

[Madehn]

Gulfstar 47-- 6 ft 6 inches headroom throughout- 2 heads 2 showers, 5ft 5 inches draft- should be well within price range

[Mike Banks]

If you want to live aboard--and can afford it, buy a catamaran. If the budget is limited, a fibreglass sloop no smaller than thirty feet and preferably up to forty feet.

The bigger a boat is, the more costly its maintenance and berthing, and the deeper its draft, which limits some of the places one can hide from storms.

While it is theoretically possible to live on a tiny vessel, it will not be with any great degree of comfort or the ability to have aboard a guest for any length of time.

Having said that--I had a friend who lived aboard a 29 footer for twenty years, and travelled extensively on it whilst so doing--but I would not say he had many creature comforts aboard besides his brewing kit and at one stage a still--

(one has to keep up spirits)

.