Can I work in the marina?

[dbs0007]

As a Automotive engineer and body repair specialist for over 35 yrs I now want to move aboard and live 60% of the year in and around marina until the wife is comfortable with ocean crossing..
My question is are Marina’s ok with independent engineers working freelance on other ppls yachts? .

 

[waynes world]

Most are ok with it aslong as you have insurance , need to ask but most will charge the boat owners or contactor a fee to work in there marina/yard.

 

[Yngmar]

Pretty common for boaters to help each other out for a few beer tokens. No issues if you stay under the radar.

If you want to do it commercially with a big sign advertising, you'll have to play by the rules though. Which are outlined in your marina regulations. Here's an example (just search for all occurrences of "work": https://www.premiermarinas.com/-/me...hash=31735C4C8E3394206474E7E64D74E63D520E96D3

Contractors may not work on a Boat for reward
without the Company’s permission. This permission
will only be given only to resident contractors and to
offsite contractors registered with the Company. Such
contractors should demonstrate their competence and
provide proof of current insurance against potential risks
in the sum of at least £5,000,000 (or such sum as the
Company deems appropriate to the risk presented). On
arrival contractors must report to the Marina Reception
with a copy of their insurance documentation.

And so on.

 

[sailaboutvic]

I think you may have problems making a living doing work for other boaties in a marina many people like Yngmar and myself are happy helping others out for free usually,
something is given in return for our time and knowledge like a meal out , drinks but very rarely money and in my case I wouldn't except money .
My partner on the other hand use to do a lot of sails and canvans work until it just got too much and she did charge a small amount to people who wasn't friends and unknown to her but the amount was so little it hard worth her while when you work out the cost of material electric and the cost of the up keeping of a very expensive machine, let alone her time,
Although most when're happy to pay to get the job done without sending it away which could take weeks of not months and very regular they payed her more then she ask, others expected it for next to nothing.

 

[waynes world]

I think you may have problems making a living doing work for other boaties in a marina many people like Yngmar and myself are happy helping others out for free usually,
something is given in return for our time and knowledge like a meal out , drinks but very rarely money and in my case I wouldn't except money .
My partner on the other hand use to do a lot of sails and canvans work until it just got too much and she did charge a small amount to people who wasn't friends and unknown to her but the amount was so little it hard worth her while when you work out the cost of material electric and the cost of the up keeping of a very expensive machine, let alone her time,
Although most when're happy to pay to get the job done without sending it away which could take weeks of not months and very regular they payed her more then she ask, others expected it for next to nothing.

I agree fully here. And the marina/yard will want most of the work if they have that service to offer. Yes won't work as not enough work to a living.
If you can travel more places then yes will defo work. Worked for me on a good scale, I travelled all over though.

 

[dbs0007]

I think you may have problems making a living doing work for other boaties in a marina many people like Yngmar and myself are happy helping others out for free usually,
something is given in return for our time and knowledge like a meal out , drinks but very rarely money and in my case I wouldn't except money .
My partner on the other hand use to do a lot of sails and canvans work until it just got too much and she did charge a small amount to people who wasn't friends and unknown to her but the amount was so little it hard worth her while when you work out the cost of material electric and the cost of the up keeping of a very expensive machine, let alone her time,
Although most when're happy to pay to get the job done without sending it away which could take weeks of not months and very regular they payed her more then she ask, others expected it for next to nothing.

Thanks
I agree with what you and others are saying on the point of free help and just looking out for each other,
It is the appeal of the boating life
Maybe the marina yards are the place to look for the hired help.

 

[ashtead]

Here at Haslar many will remember Malcolm whose brand was a battered leather hat but sadly he moved to Thailand but yes there are a number of self employed contractors who live aboard .( we found an excellent engineer this year by word of mouth which is how they build client base) Clearly services are available from boatfolk but independent contractors for engine servicing ,fridge repairs, rigging , repairs to tables etc allowed. I believe some mobo fly their chosen engineers out for services etc to Med for work due to lack I guess of skilled specialists. The one thing that will be your USP in the marine world will be turning up on time on the day you say that you will and having a reliable booking system. You also want to have skills to teach newbies tasks on engines etc they might not have done before. Most marine suppliers are notoriously unreliable sadly in many fields but electronics for example is often problematic.

 

[Tranona]

Echo everything in the last post. Where I am in Poole there are many independent contractors who work in the yards and clubs, some of whom live on board their boats. Most yards/marinas permit this as in post#2 where the contractor has an agreement with the yard and pays a small fee each day they work there. This is fair as the yard will also have either their own services or firms that pay rent for workshops on site. Independents are often cheaper because they are too small to register for VAT. The key thing is to be reliable - quoting accurately for a job and turning up on time. During my recent refit job I have employed an number of independents (one of whom lives on his boat) and all bar one has done exactly what was asked for on time and at agreed cost. The one exception is partly my fault because I ignored warnings as the one previous small job he did for me was fine.

 

[Seastoke]

Well are you thinking small Diesel engines ie raggies ,or mobos as well . Car body specialist isn’t much use on a boat , unless you can fibreglass .

 

[dbs0007]

Well are you thinking small Diesel engines ie raggies ,or mobos as well . Car body specialist isn’t much use on a boat , unless you can fibreglass .

Car body repair lends more to repairing boat more than a mechanical engineer
As we carry out all aspects of repairs in engines, I can strip and rebuild any engine fix repair and think on my toes rebuilding classic cars such as Ferrari, TVR and lotus even aston Martin still use fiberglass and composites on there bodywork
I need to be able to fix repair and weld brass stainless steel and Aluminium
Repair all kinds of electrical systems and even more so now a days with the EV cars and computer systems
So to Answer that question there isn’t much on a boat I can’t fix
But I still happy to learn new things like standing rigging installation sails and masts,
Ya don’t do that on car ?not yet anyway