Just bought a boat to live on. Now what?...

[SV-DonnaMarie]

Sooooo....Hi there. My names Chris. Uh, so first off I must have spent a total of 4 hours on a sailboat in my entire life. But after dreaming about living on one for so many years I finally went out and purchased one. Im now the proud owner of a 28 ft Irwin. Im learning a lot while I make her live aboard worthy, but some simple tips and tricks would be greatly appreciated for a sailing noob like myself.

[sailorboy1]

cold beer tastes better

[dwedeking2]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

cold beer tastes better

End of thread. Well played.

[babaluey]

My wife and I had not much more experience than you when we bought our first sailboat, a 30 foot Mercator, and moved aboard. We knew we wanted not just to live aboard, but to be free to go sailing as well, so one rule was sacrosanct from the start: We allowed nothing on to the boat that would prevent us from being able to get underway within 15 minutes. The boat would always be sail ready. In 18 years of owning that boat, 16 of them living aboard, we never broke that rule. It's a vehicle to take you places, not a mobile home to be parked long term. Enjoy your boat!

[Ida_Lewis]

Congratulations on your new boat!

I fine The Boat Galley very useful for tips and tricks: www.theboatgalley.com

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

cold beer tastes better

In case you don't get it, the ability to have cold beer involves a lot of systems. If you can accomplish having cold beer your boat life is greatly improved.

[hobopacket]

Cold beer and fresh water, all set.

[rrn]

well sailorsoy 1 has a great point i find that cruising north to alaska i don't have much problem w cold beer in face i need to pull it in outa the cold hehe
seriously if you have the old lighting and you can't reaD COMFORTABLY well led lighting is a great help watch for condensation and ways to battle it keep hatches open take some time without working on anything just settle into your new environment then plan and execute the ideas that seem the most useful babaluey looks like they found a great solution as i am tied up way to much of course a livaboard mate would be helpful in that regards two is better than one (usually)
good sailing

[DumnMad]

Congratulations. We were in your position 5 yeards ago - moved on board 3 days after purchase & started the learning under pressure. Its a great life but not as cheap as you imagine.
1st up was to sort the plumbing and drainage, figure out what all the noises were about, and reassure myself the boat wasn't sinking during the night.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Chris.

[capt-couillon]

Originally Posted by Ida_Lewis

I fine The Boat Galley very useful for tips and tricks: www.theboatgalley.com

+1 on this suggestion... Plus, Carolyne and David are genuinely nice folks. Lots of "why didn't I ever think of that suggestions.

They are moored just a few balls away for the early season, will be sorry to see them take off again. Learn something new every day, and I been doing this for 30 years...

Good luck and stick with it.

[gamayun]

Congrats and welcome! I bought a big boat as a newb, too, but knew the basics. Sailing/racing were bigger goals than just having a place to live. What worked for me is to get comfortable singlehanding whether that's sailing or maneuvering under motor to get over to the fuel dock. That said, without much experience, you could get yourself into trouble quickly, so latch onto dock mates and other sailors for advise, and read everything you can get your hands on to learn as much as you can. Then, go put it into practice (after you've confirmed that the weather is going to be mild on your outing). Thunderstorms roll in quickly in Florida! Have fun

As to tricks on living aboard, clear out lockers occasionally so you can find stuff more easily and keep tools and boat parts in smaller, individually-marked containers to find them when you need them.