Nothing on the East Coast - Is it fair?

Are you thinking of Essex/Suffolk Coast, or inland Thames/Broads/Fens -

Edit - Ref #42 - Ipswich area is busy, no hidden creeks to anchor in for long, so you will need to find a mooring (or two/three to move between in different places) but swinging moorings near civilisation not expensive in the grand plan. Visit the whole Stour/Orwell/Deben area particularly Woodbridge (has railway station, supermarket, town with cinema and some live aboards), have a good look around, ask people about options. Need to study what is permitted for liveaboard (Planning issues mainly)- and where accepted. Maybe marina with facilities for a couple of months over winter if they are happy to have you. Will need a boat which will sit on the mud comfortably. Sea capable boat preferable. Consider a motor sailer type boat, gives option to sail with reasonable winds - Pick a good looking boat, keep it smart and clean and you will be welcomed anywhere for short visits. Join a local Yacht Club with facilities, showers, washing machine, food service sometimes - and gives access to kindred clubs who welcome visitors from other clubs. There are people on the Liveaboard forum who have lived afloat for many years and travelled afar.

Log on the LIveaboard Link forum and ask more there.
 
Last edited:
The marina in Ipswich is one of the rare marinas that allow liveaboards. I have a friend there who does that. The only other one I know is Ramsgate. Virtually all marinas have rules to stop liveaboards.

My old marina in Chatham did not allow liveaboards as it was a condition of their lease for the basin. When COVID struck, all the facilities were shut, but there were a large number of people remaining on their boats as they had nowhere else to love. At the next berth renewal, every owner had to provide a land address. This resulted in about 32 boats being expelled from the marina.

Check out the terms and conditions of where you would like to be based. Most will have terms like only stay on the boat for 2 weeks continuous in any month, the boat must leave the marina at least twice a year, no washing to be hung on the boat, etc.

If staying on board full time I would recommend considering how you will generate electricity, if not connected to shore power. The next problem will be drinking water. There few places you can more to fill your tank, so you may need to pop into a marina to get water. Being in a marina solves both problems, plus it is easy to walk ashore.
 
PaulRainbow said:
Ramsgate no longer allow liveaboards.
Click to expand...
News to me. They are council run and in the inner harbour it was allowed, but you were charged domestic rates on top of the residential berthing cost, which was higher than the normal leisure berthing cost.

Ipswich marina is run by British Ports. They also run a marina in Lowestoft that allows liveaboards.
 
Last edited:
Concerto said:
News to me. They are council run and in the inner harbour it was allowed, but you were charged domestic rates on top of the residential berthing cost, which was higher than the normal leisure berthing cost.
Click to expand...
Ramsgate stopped taking new liveaboards some time ago. Existing liveaboards were allowed to stay. Looking at some of the manky boats and the mess around them, particularly the ones along the street side, you can't wonder at it. They are their own worst enemies.
Concerto said:
Ipswich marina is run by British Ports. They also run a marina in Lowestoft that allows liveaboards.
Click to expand...
I'm aware of that, my boat is in Ipswich marina, it's Associated British Ports, they operate Ipswich, Lowestoft, Fleetwood and Town Quay Marina, Southampton.
 
Last edited:
PaulRainbow said:
Ramsgate stopped taking new liveaboards some time ago. Existing liveaboards were allowed to stay. Looking at some of the manky boats and the mess around them, particularly the ones along the street side, you can't wonder at it. They are their own worst enemies.
Click to expand...

Exactly this ^.

If you do decide to live aboard in a marina, keep your head down, boat tidy and don’t advertise the fact by having mail etc sent to the marina office.

Sadly without an address banking etc gets tricky. The NatWest were a point blank no on Ship to Shore mail forwarding addresses.
 
Thank you.
Concerto; Paul Rainbow; xyachtdave.
I have read your comments and taking note. A lot of plus’s and minus’s.
But I am certainly getting a little wiser.
Maybe river could be better?
I have a little money but I certainly don’t want to take out a mortgage, to buy a small flat etc.
 
You should try to find a residential berth, so check out where there are houseboats. The idea that this will be cheaper than a flat may not be true. Years ago I remember chatting with a security guy/night watchman for a marina. He lived in a small boat at that marina in a mud berth. His comments that stuck were during the winter everything was permanently damp inside and wooden boats were the warmest, both steel and GRP were very cold.
 
Concerto said:
You should try to find a residential berth, so check out where there are houseboats. The idea that this will be cheaper than a flat may not be true. Years ago I remember chatting with a security guy/night watchman for a marina. He lived in a small boat at that marina in a mud berth. His comments that stuck were during the winter everything was permanently damp inside and wooden boats were the warmest, both steel and GRP were very cold.
Click to expand...
Have you ever lived aboard Roger ?
 
Check out also River/Harbour Authority rules/licences/harbour dues for each area which can cover the majority of the rivers, not just the harbours themselves - As an example Crouch Harbour Authority rules and requirements for Liveaboard Vessels makes interesting reading. Others will have similar.

Also check out Local Authority requirements for Planning Consent, Licencing, Permits etc for 'boat dwellers'.

Think about maintenance costs and re-sale value.

We may be digressing - from your first post are you looking for a boat and mooring type to be able to move around and explore. .

Confirm maybe think about an established location as a base - with a 'residential berth' with 'facilities', where liveaboard already permitted.
 
Last edited:
Just Checked the CHA requirements for liveaboard vessels within the Crouch Harbour area and, I have to say, they seem entirely reasonable to me. A bit surprised that they don't mention the need for an MMO licence for jetties walkways etc. but perhaps they see that as a requirement to obtain the CHA Works Licence which they do list.

Houseboats – crouchharbour.uk

Peter.
 
PaulRainbow said:
Have you ever lived aboard Roger ?
Click to expand...
This year I stayed onboard from mid Feb to June. Going ashore with frost on the deck can be fun - not. Condensation on the hull side and water dripping off the window frames can be a pain. Cooking onboard can create even more moisture in the boat. Keeping the boat warm can take more heat than a properly insulated home. Also your boat will certainly be larger and better equipped than that proposed by the OP, even mine would probably be as well.
 
Concerto said:
This year I stayed onboard from mid Feb to June. Going ashore with frost on the deck can be fun - not. Condensation on the hull side and water dripping off the window frames can be a pain. Cooking onboard can create even more moisture in the boat. Keeping the boat warm can take more heat than a properly insulated home. Also your boat will certainly be larger and better equipped than that proposed by the OP, even mine would probably be as well.
Click to expand...
I've been living aboard full time since 2016, for the first few years on a Westerly Discus (10m, same as the OP proposes). No major issues with condensation and heated, when in the marina, with a cheap 2Kw fan heater.

It does, of course, help to be prepared, it's probably not a good idea to just stick some rotten old wooden boat in a mud berth.

Frost on the deck ? This shows how easy the Discus was to heat, not enough heat loss through the deck to melt the snow :

20210209_095401.jpg
 
PaulRainbow said:
I've been living aboard full time since 2016, for the first few years on a Westerly Discus (10m, same as the OP proposes). No major issues with condensation and heated, when in the marina, with a cheap 2Kw fan heater.

It does, of course, help to be prepared, it's probably not a good idea to just stick some rotten old wooden boat in a mud berth.

Frost on the deck ? This shows how easy the Discus was to heat, not enough heat loss through the deck to melt the snow :

View attachment 202237
Click to expand...
Agree with your thoughts having spent prolonged periods onboard during Winter on my 10m sail boat which ironically was berthed further to the left of your photo.

I am curious that your go to heat source was an electric fan heater, I have one as an emergency backup up but generally use my 4KW Eber diesel heater although I will say it is surprising how much diesel it can consume through a tiny pipe.

Just curious if you had taken something in to consideration I had not thought of?
 
Paulfireblade said:
Agree with your thoughts having spent prolonged periods onboard during Winter on my 10m sail boat which ironically was berthed further to the left of your photo.

I am curious that your go to heat source was an electric fan heater, I have one as an emergency backup up but generally use my 4KW Eber diesel heater although I will say it is surprising how much diesel it can consume through a tiny pipe.

Just curious if you had taken something in to consideration I had not thought of?
Click to expand...
The Eber was used when i first bought the boat, but died during the first Winter, so i used the electric heater as a stop gap. Never got around to replacing the Eber before i sold the boat.
 
Thank you guys for the discussion I am getting to learn about this type of life, your experiences are of much importance.
I have been 3 X on a barge but for holidays in the past although never lived on board.
I appreciate a very different experience.
Yes I do want to explore the canals and rivers but also have a base to stay at.
The cold days in Nov-Feb seem a bit daunting, but a comment about electric heater which did a good job.
If I bought a boat with solar panels would that be able to produce enough for a heater? Or would I need mains supply?
Nigel
 
Canals and rivers is very different to the sea near Ipswich and may need a different type of boat, so you need to make decision or change boats from time to time. Nearest to Ipswich on the canal system is Northampton or London. Maybe try a month or two living on a boat in winter before committing, then start looking for a residential mooring that suits you. That might lead decision on type of boat, Electric for heating will need a mains plug in.
 
Last edited:
nigee said:
Thank you guys for the discussion I am getting to learn about this type of life, your experiences are of much importance.
I have been 3 X on a barge but for holidays in the past although never lived on board.
I appreciate a very different experience.
Yes I do want to explore the canals and rivers but also have a base to stay at.
The cold days in Nov-Feb seem a bit daunting, but a comment about electric heater which did a good job.
If I bought a boat with solar panels would that be able to produce enough for a heater? Or would I need mains supply?
Nigel
Click to expand...
Solar panels won't provide enough to run a heater. You need a fuel based heater such as an Eberspacher (there are many others, often much cheaper!)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Other threads that may be of interest

T
Notices to Mariners - Week 50
Replies
2
Views
828
tillergirl
T

Share this page

Top