Single engine or 2

[bill12]

Just embarking on buying a motor cruiser for the Thames after a lifetime of sailing boats. No intention of going deep sea.
What thoughts are ther regarding single or 2 engines .looking a t Brooms
Bill 12

 

[oldgit]

Single engine more than OK on the Thames, although fuel costs would not be remarkably different.
Cost of normal servicing could be less, but the cost of a couple of gallons and one filter against twice that is going to pale into insignificance against other Thames expences, mooring, insurance, registration fees, not forgetting food and refreshments !.
Easier to manoeuvre with two engines, suspect on most smaller inexpensive Brooms a retrofittted bowthruster would not have made economic sense.
Personally would be looking for best boat my money would buy, be it single or twin.

As for discounting foreign travel ie. below Teddington, lots of narrow boats do go further afield should conditions allow.
Think the most difficult decision is which bit of the river to choose as your base. Many posters on this forum seem to change their marina on a regular basis.

 

[bill12]

Thanks for the info.We would like to base near Reading.

 

[CX54WEK]

I wouldn't get overly hung up over whether the boat has one or two engines. I would just find the right boat for you.

We are quite happy with a single engine but would just as easily have two if the right boat arose.

 

[Chris_d]

As already said not a big deal for the Thames, twins are a nice luxury for manoeuvring but not essential and servicing is obviously double.
If you are looking at Brooms single engine ones in the bigger sizes ( 38, 42, etc..) are generally harder to sell, but the smaller 30, 31, 34's are mostly single engine anyway and great for the Thames. If you are looking at the smaller Brooms I would probably go single as the prop is better protected and you can get into some bankside moorings easier without damaging the prop unlike on a twin setup.

 

[TrueBlue]

As already said not a big deal for the Thames, twins are a nice luxury for manoeuvring but not essential and servicing is obviously double.
If you are looking at Brooms single engine ones in the bigger sizes ( 38, 42, etc..) are generally harder to sell, but the smaller 30, 31, 34's are mostly single engine anyway and great for the Thames. If you are looking at the smaller Brooms I would probably go single as the prop is better protected and you can get into some bankside moorings easier without damaging the prop unlike on a twin setup.

If you intend to moor away from the 'official' moorings, then the above becomes more important as most of these are / can be shallow - specially as you go further upstream.

 

[No Regrets]

Had single and twin engines.

Like the single for ease of maintenance (Twins can be close together!) as well as a difference in cost (You might be surprised when you count up the cost of Oil, Coolant, Impeller, Filters and so on, notwithstanding other labour charges and replacement parts as they fail)

The Twin, even on the upper Thames can be run on one engine, is still surprisingly economical on two, and offers fantastic manoeuvrability, being able to spin around in it's own length, and do things a single never could, even with a bow thruster. And it will do this with a bit of wind and current too (We do get currents on some moorings!) usually...

On balance, a single is best. But either will do the job, albeit differently. The Twin engined Brooms tend to be more Estuary and Costal designs than the single engined River stuff...

 

[bill12]

Thank you all for your opinions.