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Old 13-11-2016, 12:02   #31
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Originally Posted by msrcal36 View Post
It's the boat you neglect. Cheap to maintain boat is an oxymoron. Any boat can be expensive or cheap depending on your level of expectation.
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Not sure I agree... I bought a well maintained, solid, good quality, 1974, fiberglass boat and I do sail it regularly. Maintenance doesn't seem to be outrageous. Admittedly, my boat's appearance is acceptable, not sparkling, lacquered, and unscratched. My marina fees <$400/mo are much lower than an apartment, BUT then I'm not in the San Francisco area either. So unless you are committed to SF, how about Seattle, Portland, or Vancouver BC?

I think that a 1970-80s displacement fiberglass boat will give you more room and a solid hull. IMO an inboard straight shaft diesel engine is more durable and less finicky than gas, especially if you aren't using it regularly.
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Old 13-11-2016, 17:02   #32
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Originally Posted by Steady Hand View Post
My tip: go to YouTube. Search for "smacksman1" channel.
Watch his video of cruising the ICW on an Albin motor cruiser he bought for low cost. The segment went from Charleston to New Orleans. There are also CF members who go own the same type boat.

My Point? So you can see how it can be done with a low cost older motor cruiser that fits your budget and size etc.

I also enjoyed his other previous videos which show how he bought a small sailboat on eBay and cruised from Connecticut to Miami.

Here is a link to that video where he shows his boat and trip.
He bought the 1983 Albin 27 boat on eBay.

https://youtu.be/GthaDtl7eMc
Thanks for posting the link, Steady. I enjoyed watching all of them. I've been thinking about taking my Chris up the Tombigbee just for fun. The big stopper thus far is the 1,600+ gallons of diesel it will take. OUCH!
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Old 13-11-2016, 17:08   #33
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

BoxHome

I have a 28' fiberglass Flying bridge cruiser with twin V-8 V-drive engines. Two forward berths, a convertible dinette and a pull out settee can sleep four max. One head, Propane range & oven, Small 12/120 Volt refer. Water tank holds about 35 gallons. Great for weekends, but as a collector of 'stuff' I could never live on it. It's moored in Southern California salt water and requires montlly bottom cleaning and haul out and bottom paint every two years. Not running the engines is harder than running them often as seals harden and fuel and tanks become contaminated. Boat is 34 years old and one similar to it would be just above your price range. Any boat, particularly an old boat can be a money pit, depending what your use plans are, and the purchase price is just the beginning. I also recommend staying away from outdrive units if you plan to keep the boat in salt water all the time.
I suggest you and your wife look at a lot of boats to determine what size works for you. Then check marinas for availability of liveaboards as well as access to parking, shopping and other amenities. A capsule size apartment in Japan allows you to get outside and walk around. Can't walk far on a 23' - 30' boat.
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Old 13-11-2016, 19:05   #34
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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That stuff about out drives is really interesting considering just about every power boat in my marina under 30 ft has out drives . The key to out drive maintance is zink.
Zink paint and zink anodes .
In order for I/O's to tilt up they have corrugated rubber bellows that expand & contract. There's 1 big one & 2 or 3 small ones. As these age they get hard & then can split or tear & flood your boat so they need to be replaced every couple of years. This is not a do it yourself job & it's not cheap. On top of that you've got exhaust mixed with salt water eating up metal, carburetors that don't like ethanol, everything electrical hating salt water, power steering pumps that leak & outdrives that even when tilted all the way up only come part way out of the water so then you've got galvanic corrosion which you hope the zincs will take care of but with a mixture of steel & aluminum, good luck. With the advent of 4 stroke outboards I/O's are really obsolete.
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Old 13-11-2016, 19:39   #35
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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In order for I/O's to tilt up they have corrugated rubber bellows that expand & contract. There's 1 big one & 2 or 3 small ones. As these age they get hard & then can split or tear & flood your boat so they need to be replaced every couple of years. This is not a do it yourself job & it's not cheap. On top of that you've got exhaust mixed with salt water eating up metal, carburetors that don't like ethanol, everything electrical hating salt water, power steering pumps that leak & outdrives that even when tilted all the way up only come part way out of the water so then you've got galvanic corrosion which you hope the zincs will take care of but with a mixture of steel & aluminum, good luck. With the advent of 4 stroke outboards I/O's are really obsolete.
OK here ya go those exhaust bellows you speak of I have never needed to replace one that was less than ten years old . Next replacing the exhaust bellows is not that difficult if you know how to use a couple of tools and read the manuals. Exhaust mixing elbows are good for at least ten years of regular use longer if not used as much. The carbs or i injection systems on the engine is exactly the same as when the engine is in a car . Ethanol plays no role in it. True the out drives dontmtilt all the way out of the water . Hence the zinc paint on it and the regular visual inspecting of the unit and the zincs. ( By the boat owner) it is easy. Lastly if the I/o units hooked to maranized automotive engines were so obsolete why are they the primary installation in boats from 18 to 30 feet.
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Old 13-11-2016, 20:31   #36
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Lastly if the I/o units hooked to maranized automotive engines were so obsolete why are they the primary installation in boats from 18 to 30 feet.
They may be (as you claim) the primary propulsion system for boats in the 18' to 30' foot range, but they were never designed to live in the water 24/7/365 and keeping one in the relatively high fouling waters of San Francisco Bay is a mistake, IMHO.
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Old 13-11-2016, 21:37   #37
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Honestly...why don't you just look for a house boat? If you don't plan on traveling on it it but once or twice a year, then throwing out traveling in it at all would eliminate a whole host of maintenance issues and costs. The money you save could be put towards a real vacation.
We actually don't want to vacation. Most of our vacations are actually work But house boats are big, we don't want all that space. We want to be compact, and if the need arises, to leave the marina or anchor easily.

I'm actually looking into buying a sailboat that we can power by an outboard engine, more than a powerboat now. Someone mentioned that it could be cheaper or we could get more bang for our buck.

We are also utterly in love of how sailboats look. We like the sleek design, and we like that the are not as wide. I personally love how they don't have big windows. I've lived in a windowless cabin and it war perfect, so small windows are as big as we can go
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Old 13-11-2016, 21:57   #38
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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We actually don't want to vacation. Most of our vacations are actually work But house boats are big, we don't want all that space. We want to be compact, and if the need arises, to leave the marina or anchor easily.

I'm actually looking into buying a sailboat that we can power by an outboard engine, more than a powerboat now. Someone mentioned that it could be cheaper or we could get more bang for our buck.

We are also utterly in love of how sailboats look. We like the sleek design, and we like that the are not as wide. I personally love how they don't have big windows. I've lived in a windowless cabin and it war perfect, so small windows are as big as we can go
Well if you have changed your mind to sail with small outboard over power boats then that changes things considerably annual maintance costs have just gone way down . Small outboards can be completely removed from the water.
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Old 13-11-2016, 22:07   #39
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Assuming you are planning to liveaboard in the Bay Area, you need to be aware that marinas here are limited to 10% liveaboard occupancy. As you might imagine, you are not the first person to try to beat the high cost of living in this area by living on a small boat. Most marinas are full up with liveaboards already. In addition, most (if not all marinas) have minimum size requirements for liveaboard vessels. And none of them are particularly interested in having you use a slip as an apartment when actual boaters could be renting it.

You would do well to do a little research.
Yes we already found out about the minimum size. It is very unfortunate for us since we are very passionate about living in a small boat. If living aboard in SF bay in a small boat is not possible, our entire plan falls apart.

Maybe we can compensate the marina by paying as if we are using a larger boat? Maybe some marinas allow smaller boats? And worst case we can anchor out right off the bat.

the 10% waiting list I've read about and I'm willing to roll the dice. I think if we hang out in marinas a bit more eventually something could come up. We don't have a pet, child, we're very clean and have a stable income. I think the marina would benefit from our other skills in terms of marketing, camera work, design etc.
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Old 13-11-2016, 22:12   #40
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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There is a Fisher 25 for sale on Craigslist that is really worth looking at. It's a motorsailer that can be used as a trawler & is a very high quality seaworthy boat at a great price.
Avoiding IO's for sure. Outboard for us if we can choose

The Fisher 25 is slightly bigger, but it's nice since we absolutely have to have a small kitchen and a separate bathroom head. We're adding this on the list for sure. Thank you!!
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Old 13-11-2016, 22:15   #41
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Where do you plan to keep this boat?
You'll probably get a better quality boat and be cheaper to use and maintain with a sailboat and just use the motor.
However any boat you get, you need to motor around for an hour of so every two weeks at least. With a little diesel is a sailboat that would be about 1 gl a month of fuel.
Surveyor will I'm afraid be out of your price range, just doesn't make sense in my opinion to spend that much on an inexpensive boat.
You need to be a jack of all trades and have tools to pull this off inexpensively, you need to be a good mechanic, plumber and electrician
This is it. I'm entirely reconsidering powerboats since we wouldn't use the power, and we don't like the overall profile. It's not for us. We want thinner width wise, lower, with less pronounced windows.

Could you explain why we'd get more bang for buck if we get a sailboat vs a powerboat? I'd love to sail one day but I think we need to move up the ladder very carefully and slowly. First year we'd just use motor and travel very lightly if at all.

I really want to learn to be a mechanic and plumber and electrician and generally I'm a fast learner but I also would love if I don't get electrocuted because I don't know some basic things. At first we would hire an electrician and I guess I will observe and learn as we go.
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Old 13-11-2016, 22:58   #42
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Just a question. Would it be acceptable to liveaboard if you take the boat out every night and anchor some place. Get back to slip every morning go to work..
I'm curious about this too. Ideally we could anchor out and I will bring my wife with a dinghy to land, leave her there to get transport for work, go back to boat. If we don't pay the marina for living aboard that way, then that's perfect. Just a weekly top up and empty of sanitation and we're done. (Solar and mechanical k-tor maybe top ups for electricity can suffice).

We're quite content to live a harsh life as long as it is cheaper or equally expensive as on land AND we get to live on a boat AND it's healthy

I read somewhere that you can't legally anchor out anywhere in San Francisco bay. I really REALLY hope that's not true.
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Old 13-11-2016, 23:09   #43
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Well if you have changed your mind to sail with small outboard over power boats then that changes things considerably annual maintance costs have just gone way down . Small outboards can be completely removed from the water.
I'm very happy about this!!!!

Will tell my wife. I thought sailboats are MORE expensive to maintain because ... eh reasons beyond my comprehension.

So maintenance is lower in terms of engine only or the entire boat?
This sounds so ideal I'm afraid to believe it
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Old 14-11-2016, 03:18   #44
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Exhaust mixing elbows are good for at least ten years of regular use longer if not used as much. The carbs or i injection systems on the engine is exactly the same as when the engine is in a car . Ethanol plays no role in it.

Gas boat owners in our club advise risers, elbows, and sometimes manifolds should be changed every 5 years in salt water. Either inboard or IO. Longer than that is on borrowed time, according to them. Internal corrosion isn't visible without dismantling... but they've shown pictures of poking a screwdriver through an elbow that looked fine from the outside.

In my experience, ethanol sitting around unused in a vented tank will draw moisture and phase separate. We didn't use our outboard often enough to use the gas fast enough... but at least I could more easily recycle all that into a car, compared to using fixed tanks in a larger boat. None of the "stabilizers" I tried had any useful effect after about 2 months. Don't know of any effect that would have on an outdrive, but for OP's intention of not using the boat all that much... it'd probably be a pain anyway. OTOH, maybe ethanol-free gas is available out there in SF. (CA? hmmm... probably not, I guess.)

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Old 14-11-2016, 04:08   #45
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Re: What is the cheapest to maintain sub 30 feet powerboat?

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Yes we already found out about the minimum size. It is very unfortunate for us since we are very passionate about living in a small boat. If living aboard in SF bay in a small boat is not possible, our entire plan falls apart.

Maybe we can compensate the marina by paying as if we are using a larger boat? Maybe some marinas allow smaller boats? And worst case we can anchor out right off the bat.

the 10% waiting list I've read about and I'm willing to roll the dice. I think if we hang out in marinas a bit more eventually something could come up. We don't have a pet, child, we're very clean and have a stable income. I think the marina would benefit from our other skills in terms of marketing, camera work, design etc.
Hello.
What follows is written in a friendly tone of voice, and my sole intent is to help you, but it may not appear that way.

I am an optimist. But, even an optimist must learn to face reality or facts.

I think you are being unrealistic about anchoring out while living aboard a boat in SF Bay.

The SF Bay is not a typical "anchor anywhere you want" place.

But, to help you see that, you should read more in the archives here. A good thread for you to read is the one about Richardson Bay as it discusses many issues such related to anchor outs. Here is a link that will take you to a mix of previous threads or discussions related to Richardson Bay.

https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=011403...Bay&gsc.page=1

In short, I think you are being very unrealistic to expect to anchor out, long term, or to expect a marina owner or manager to value you for any reason other than paying the rent, preferably on a large boat.
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