Marina v Mooring Buoy

[AIDY]

Maybe someone from either Chi, Pompey or poole harbour that keep there boats on a buoy can answer this.

I was just trying to do some sum's and weigh up the pro's and cons of a marina berth v's a mooring buoy in say poole or chi or pompey for a few years time, and was wondering if other's could give me an idea of the extra hidden costs involved and do the savings out weigh the hassle of getting to the boat and potential damage that may ocour from other water users..

I'm thinking of a deep water mooring if poss.
so if you say 1.5Kish for the mooring. 1.5K for a winter berth or lift out and hard standing somewhere, extra insurance for the boat because it's not in a marina, purchase of hard dinghy + outboard and maybe genny for boat. and the cost of parking your car and storing the dinghy (join a sailing club ?).

Do the savings actually add up V's maybe a 5.5K marina berth water / electricity and a walk ashore pontoon, security and a happy SWMBO.

Just pondering at the moment.......

 

[Evadne]

I keep my boat on an allegedly deep water mooring, but with tidal access, for about 2/3 of your costs. The moorings are owned by a boatyard which takes care of the parking and dinghy storage.
The creek is sheltered, and although she grounds if the wind is strong and in the wrong direction around LWS, it isn't a thoroughfare so wash and damage by clouting are rare (i.e. I can't recall it ever happening to me).
If you are after a true deep water mooring then either you use a ferry (e.g. HISC moorings) or you need a substantial dinghy for the days when it is rather choppy.
We don't use electricity, so don't need to plug in to a pontoon. Water and fuel are obtained at our destinations, if available, although I tend to fill up jerry cans with DERV and take them out to the boat for the little we use.
I don't think there are any really nasty hidden costs, what you see is what you get.

 

[fireball]

We are on a deep water mooring - we never ground and do have all states access.

Ours is a club mooring so over winter costs are 5 times that of during the 'summer' ...
The Chi conservancy moorings (A3) are more expensive, but then you don't have to maintain them!
Insurance - I don't think our insurance is any more for being on a swinger - they certainly don't worry if we move into a marina for the winter - but we cannot keep it on the swinger over winter (club rules anyway)
We have a Walkerbay10 and a 2.5hp outboard (2hp was enough and a friend has electric with no problem - so a massive dinghy isn't an issue)
We have a 20w solar panel to keep the batteries topped up - no need for a genny unless you're intending on spending a lot of time on it and using massive amounts of power!
Sometimes it would be nice to be in a marina - but then I've got an additional 4k a year to spend on something else. When we get aboard we tend to move off somewhere else (or just spend one night on the mooring before moving) and it is nice then to visit a marina with the walkashore and shorepower.
SWMBO is happy on the mooring (I believe!) as she can get up in the morning and take in the view (whilst waiting for the kettle to boil for my cuppa!! )

 

[ninky]

we are on a mooring buoy - it does dry out on a really big spring. i've really enjoyed being on the buoy as you feel away from it all and far more peace and quiet. plus a lot less stress leaving and returning to the buoy than a busy marina for the inexperienced. i also like the idea of being more self sufficient than being plugged into shore power and water. haven't found a difference in insurance costs but then i'm in a cheap boat.

 

[ninky]

oh and dinghy cost 160 from ebay (including trailer that we decided not to keep as didn't have a tow bar). storage 50 quid a year.

 

[zaragozo]

I've recently moved from a marina, £3,420 pa, to a mooring in 3 m of water which cost me 'freehold' a one-off £1,600 plus £150 pa to the harbour board. The boat looks better without the cats cradle of mooring ropes and the dozen or so fenders. There's less current which means I don't hit anyone anymore and obviously it's much quicker and easier to cast off and get back again.
Downsides - aches and pains in getting outboard on and off dinghy, wet feet getting onto nearest 'beach', slight worry about leaving said dinghy above high tide mark (everyone else does and no thefts to date), and a slight worry about leaving the boat itself but the mooring is brand new and ultra solid.
Overall I do like the space and privacy and have just bought one of those small and exceptionally light Honda 1kw generators to replace my thirst for shore-power.
A mooring does mean that I will have to winter the boat ashore (I have left it in the water all year on the marina) but I guess it'll encourage me to do more chores....

 

[oldsaltoz]

Back a few years we were on a pile mooring, managed to suffer some minor damage every season from other craft, mostly small sailing dinghies trying to tack their way out or back in.

Hated having to dash down every time a cyclone warning was issued and adding extra lines, just rowing out was a major task. Also hated carting drums of water, fuel and supplies out every trip and a minor repair with only 12 volts available was a right pain in the proverbial.

Have been in marinas for the last few years, full AC power, plenty of water to hose the decks and a short stroll to the bar and a good meal. Cyclone season is almost no bother at all and you can stay on board till the last moment then walk away knowing all is secure without having to fight the conditions in a dinghy.

It does cost more, a lot more in some areas, but being so close to all amenities is a blessing I enjoy, as do the frequent guests visiting.

Ever had a problem that required an engineer or electrician to sort out, then spent days trying to find one that will jump in a dinghy with all his kit, charging by the hour to boot. The alternative is to leave your mooring (if your problem allows it) and find a berth at a cost that he can step aboard from.

Avagoodweekend......

 

[ninky]

Cyclone season is almost no bother at all and you can stay on board till the last moment then walk away knowing all is secure without having to fight the conditions in a dinghy.

don't think we have cyclone season in the uk....
i can see the appeal of a marina in australia but when you live in on a tiny island with a population of over 60 million it's nice to get a sense of space when you can.

 

[Fantasie 19]

The sums must add up otherwise everyone would be in a marina...??

For myself - my mooring fee's are less than £300 a year, but it's not deep water, and that includes family membership of the club I belong to....

 

[photodog]

We went from a mooring with costs about 2500 pounds overall including the winter berth etc...

The downsides for us were pretty simple.... difficult access after a long journey, often at nite. No electricity so difficult to get the batteries up to speed... always aresing about to get water... difficult to provision.... difficult to keep clean as no running water.... and no way we could have a dog....

In the end for us the answer was to go into a marina... though if things got real tight I wouldnt hesitate to go on a mooring again for a couple of years... But the Marina provides all those little extras... like showers... which make it a lot easier if you are travelling a distance to get to the boat... and even if the weather is rubbish, you can go donw for the weekend and still use it as a little get away pad.

 

[PaulR]

we have been on deep;water swinging mooring for - gosh - must now be 20+ years - so far (touch wood) no damage and not aware of any extra insurance - suspect more change of boat being damaged and more wear and tear if in a marina - our mooring includes car parking and water taxi to our boat so we do not use a dinghy at all - re power (lectric) can see the appeal of plug in in a marina but when we want it we go to a marina as a visitor and plug in so overall no great loss - other advantages of the mooring - ease of getting off and on it - no fiddling around with fenders and warps - changing views and you can sit onboard and chill - downsides - yes we do have to lug gear on and off ferry which only runs restricted hours - have to go ashore to get shower at our local club (but in fairness we can tie up to club or boatyard jetty to do so free of charge) overall we recommend it

 

[Shekel]

Spent 18 months in a marina and then moved to a swinging mooring in Chichester. Much happier on the mooring and find it easier to get away if I'm only able to go on my own. Strangely enough since she moved to the mooring I've always been able to rustle up a crew. Electric hasn't been a problem, no big demands for power. She doesn't use a lot of diesel so a couple of gallons in a jerry can occasionally but usually try to fill up whilst away. I get cheap bottled water for tea and coffee rather than use tank water.

I need a bigger tender so that I don't have to wait for flat calm to get out to her but that's all really.

 

[chubby]

Another vote for moorings, the cost difference is not huge but I think a mooring is more enjoyable: easier to leave and pick up, a trip out to the boat feels like being on the water even if I dont go off the mooring. The boatyard runs a launch when we have visitors and a jetty we can go alongside for water, electricity and loading large amounts of gear ( eg begining and end of the summer cruise). The boat lies head to the weather which is better for it than straining at mooring lines. The lack of instant water and electricity doesnt bother me and the occasional visit to a marina on holiday is a treat. The boatyard has storage for the dinghy and car parking. When it is just myself I row out, after all people go rowing at the gym I just do it in the tender. The main thing is it lets me sail single handed: I can pick up the mooring in all sensible winds but getting a long keeler in and out of a marina berth can be tricky. Dont analyse the cost too much, go for what suits your sailing.

 

[bluemoongaffer]

Another vote for a mooring. I'm in Chichester, just by Sparkes Marina. Total cost of about £1,100 per annum gives car parking, use of showers etc for April to end Oct. Easy to come into marina to pick up / drop off friends & family. Not sure about costs over the winter - I take the boat home. I use my inflatable to row out - which is wet when windy but lovely on calm evening after a long sail. Planning to get a bigger dinghy to keep in the marina, which I think is an extra £250 or so.

 

[Elessar]

In Chi Harbour I've been on a swinging mooring, a drying marina and a full access marina.
On the Thames I've been on fore and aft moorings and marinas.

I'd use a mooring if I was skint, but for me the ease of access for maintenance and cleaning makes the marina the best parking space. Use buoys or your anchor when you're on holiday, but keep the boat where it is convenient. Cleaning is the biggie, my boat was never as clean as I like it to be when I wasn't in a marina. More 5hite, no hosepipe, hard to get the household vax out to the boat, when you're hanging off the side to get that stain off some prat goes zooming past, all in all just too difficult.

As for moorings you can't use in the winter, well the best boating is in the winter, taking the boat out is such a waste as far as I'm concerned. 6 weeks out max to do the jobs then back in for me.

I've often seen collisions in marinas, but my boat has only been damaged on a buoy. Again in Chi harbour it was hit 3 times (i was on the buoy for one season) one of which left a hole clean through the boat. No notes left etc. Anecdotal only I know so useless at proving a point, but it goes to form my opinion.

Don't get the point about it being quicker to get off a mooring. From the moment of the car arriving in marina, including parking, carrying stuff, throwing it aboard and getting the boat motoring down the river takes less than 10 minutes (my wife stows the stuff an puts the kettle on whilst I cast off and get us moving, she appears from the companionway just as we exit the river usually) Spose if you have to lock out and it's busy it can be a bore, but if it's busy the lock is usually sociable.

I get Chubby's point that you're "on the boat" once you get in the dinghy, but hey I'm "on the boat" in 10 minutes and I don't have to go back to a landing stage to collect Mrs E and the stuff. (usual rule is she doesn't do dinghies unless it's bikini weather or we've arrived somewhere like herm when her usual reticence is forgotten.)

Drying marinas are a good cost saving if you're retired or can otherwise sail when you like, but if you're working it restricts boat use too much. Off work for 2 days, check, weather ok check. Bugger the tide's out. Anything that wastes good boating time is no good.

So full access marina for me as long as I can afford it.

 

[bedouin]

We have had a variety of moorings and marina berths in Portsmouth and the area over the years. Currently we are on a mooring with Gosport Boatyard - they have a good ferry service out to the boats and so you don't need to have your own dinghy (that reduces the costs and the hassle). As such we don't really notice any significant extra cost over keeping the boat in a marina (we are happy with the boat on the buoy all year if we are not wintering ashore). We do have a solar panel to help keep the batteries charged but no genny.

The only real difference is that we do spend more on visitors berths in marinas, spending probably on average about 5-10 additional nights in the local marinas (for the occasional plug-in or to do jobs for which it is helpful to be able to walk ashore).

The big disadvantage with the buoy is working on the boat, you need to be a lot more organised in terms of having all the tools and bits you need for a task beforehand than if you can just walk down to a chandlery.

 

[mcframe]

Look, I think we did this on the previous thread about Chi!

No, don't do it, swinging moorings are horrible - go for a nice marina in, say Brighton

Your battery will go flat, your boat will get grubby, and you'll probably drown in the dinghy.

Er, year 1 on the mooring, I spent the cost difference on heating, year 2; new sails, year 3; Walker Bay - this year I donno, maybe upgrade the instruments or solar and a fridge...

 

[LadyInBed]

Previous boat was on a swinging mooring in Portland Harbour for sixteen years, in May to Sept, didn't sleep well at home when it is blowing a hooley on the coast, riser shackle failed one year and put the boat on the shore line. You knew when it was too rough to go anywhere as you couldn't launch the dingy to get to the boat. Winter storage was always a problem. Looking back, it was quite expensive for what was on offer.
Current boat on a fore and aft on a river bank so as safe as houses, hence stay in all year, been there nine years now. Dingy and parking in boat yard, launch from slip. Costs low, well under 1k P.A. Very satisfied.
For:
Great when it is too rough to go anywhere, wife likes bird watching, total tranquility over night and I sleep well at home when it is blowing a hooley on the coast.
Against:
One hour twenty to get to sea, mooring lines get mucky when boat is off mooring, swell from inconsiderate mobo**tards that go up the river causing excessive wash, difficult getting off mooring when wind is blowing boat onto bank, leaving and returning is tide height driven, but that is just part of planning.
Other factors that I consider neutral:
Water and fuel filled up when away, batteries kept up by wind gen, power tools run from mains gen.

 

[Bajansailor]

We have never had a boat in a marina - she has always been on a mooring.
I agree with all of the for and against arguments for moorings and marinas posted above - one reason why we do not have a marina berth is 'cos there aren't any!
So we have got used to paddling out to the mooring in the Avon Redcrest.
It is hassle though, especially re carting provisions, fuel, water, tools and people out and back in the dinghy
And when we come ashore, we just put the Redcrest on the roof rack (fully inflated) and take it home (only about 10 miles to drive).

 

[jason -and the arguenauts]

I've used a series of moorings but for the last three years I have been on a pontoon in a marina costing £1400 pa for my 36 footer. Apart from SWMBOs preference, the key issue has been peace of mind in bad weather. In the marina I know that someone will check my ropes and fenders if there is a blow. On a mooring, it has to be me rowing out to the boat.

I guess in the end it depends on how much extra the marina costs you and how much that money matters to you. For me the £1400 extra ( a mooring would be free) is well worth it. When I started sailing, the money would have mattered more - needed for a growing family.