Narrowboat Hindsight

Boats are not cheap. I read horror stories on the internet daily about people buying boats that were not the sellers to sell. Boats that have gone the day after the new owners have transferred the money. People who buy boat without a hull survey to find it needs over plating. No one is looking out for you in this situation, you have to do your due diligence. Unlike when you buy a new house there is no national register of boats. This means it is up to you to make sure that the person selling the boat is actually the legal owner and also that there is no finance owed on the boat. I have to admit I found this a little overwhelming, which is why I bought through a broker. Although legally I'm not sure that you are any better off this way, but the seller has to identify themselves and sign paperwork to confirm the above. The reason you need to be sure there is no loan or mortgage attached to the boat is because you become liable for the repayments if you buy the boat. I'm not sure ...

There are a few different types of boat you will pass on the UK canal system. Narrowboats, widebeams, barges and GRPs (glass reenforced plastic). I would have loved the space that a widebeam provided, but soon learnt you are limited as to where you can go in one, as with barges. They are too wide for much of the UK canal system, which was built for narrowboats. Admittedly I didn't even consider a GRP, not sure why, but there you go,  I didn't. I have seen some lovely looking ones on the canal. They are easier to turn around as they are not so long, which has its appeal as finding a place to turn a narrowboat is not always easy - that is another blog in itself. Narrowboats are 6 feet 10 inches wide and made of steel (older ones can be wooden). Now on to size. I choose a 46 foot narrowboat. It works for myself and my greyhound. I have a bedroom, bathroom with shower, galley (kitchen) and saloon to chill in. For me I felt this would be easier to control solo, I have no idea if tha...

Before I start the swan popped his head in, so I felt he deserved to be featured.... It all begins with how do I buy a narrowboat. I felt completely lost and overwhelmed. The internet helped me massively, although I never quite go about things the way I should.  At first I spent ages working out what layout I thought would work best for myself and my greyhound (Jack). I came to the conclusion that would be a semi trad. I will do a later post with an explanation of different types of boats and layouts. Also after reading a lot about solo cruising I felt a 46 foot narrowboat would work best for me. Big enough for one person and a dog. Next I decided I wanted a boat that was fairly ready for me to move into, so I listed the things I wanted it to include and tried to get as close to this as possible. Things I felt I needed were.... Multifuel stove Washing machine Fridge Gas hob, oven and grill Diesel heater for water and radiators Calorifier Solar Inverter I then looked at loads of boa...