Please critique my plan: want to buy a boat to live on; I'm clueless about boats

[more]

Originally Posted by Freeeeedom

Oh, that's amazing. I thought that a new boat would lose a lot of its value as soon as I buy it, as is the case with cars. That really expands the range of what I can afford a lot.

this boat is paid 2020 181 000 € 1 payment and delivery time be 30 days +-

https://www.yachtworld.com/yacht/202...er-46-7383425/

one lucky my neighbor buy in some time show boat full equipment for 185000€ without tax of course.

[Rockinar]

If you quickly grow tired of living in large luxury places, I can only imagine how fast you will get tired of living in cramped tight places, using a glorified bucket for a toilet and spending your days doing repairs and maintenance.

I dont think its for you.

[Freeeeedom]

A quick followup question: Would it make sense to do the course and/or charter in Croatia or Greece in early February? Or should I wait till spring?

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by ranger42c

Training is even better if you include how to FIX a boat. That'd mean plumbing, electrics, engines, potentially ACs, canvas, etc... because you will usually need to repair something or other EVERY DAY. Even if you seldom move the boat.

Living at anchor adds several layers of work to the idea.

Note that I said EVERY DAY! (It's hyperbole, but not by much.)

Originally Posted by Freeeeedom

Oh, I didn't realize I could get structured training on that. I thought I would have to wait for things to break and then learn by doing or trying to do. Since you referred to ASA, I don't suppose you know European schools that might provide such training?

Ohhh... that definitely sounds more frequent than what I assumed. That is... sobering. Can you please elaborate why standing at anchor adds complexity?

Sorry, don't know the European ASA equivalents... although I think some others may have answered that.

Maintenance/repair training usually does best with two different, complementary approaches: formal field training (electricity, for example) and then a combo of manufacturer support (which varies from good to sucks) and hands-on relevant to the specific system that broke today.

Lets say a bilge pump craps out. How do you fix it without frying yourself? And how does electricity flow, on your specific boat. AC charges batteries. Batteries supply DC to bilge pump. Float switch controls DC flow. The problem could be electrical, or mechanical. Formal electrical training -- at least to a certain extent -- helps a lot (especially with that frying part). The specifics about that pump and that float switch come into play. Plus all the wiring in the whole damn boat (much of it buried where you can't easily trace it). OK, you're on your own. Fix it. Without frying yourself or burning down the boat.



That of course is just one example. But I just counted the folders where I have our systems docs stored: 35 manufacturers, and this boat is new to us so I don't have them all yet. Engines, Faucets. Pumps, ACs, fridges, freezer, electronics, etc. You'll gradually want to become familiar with all of your systems... and you'll benefit from advance research to drag down owner's/operator's/installation manuals and so forth.

At anchor: Well, now you might need parts to fix something like the bilge pump system. Dinghy yourself into harbor, schlepp yourself down to the chandler's, (or several, since the first may not have what you need), come back, find out you need yet another part...

Oh, wait. You need that dinghy first. And possibly an engine. How to carry/lift/launch/recover it? (Davits?) Needs fuel if you add an engine. And periodic maintenance...

And you need freshwater brought aboard periodically. And you need to offload garbage periodically. And you might need heat, which in turn needs fuel of some sort. You might need some electricity (especially for the bilge pumps but also for your Internet access), so you install solar and/or run your generator to charge your batteries...

And you need to empty your holding tank periodically. (Probably after you repair the toilet and sanitation system.) I dunno what it's like over there; here that means a trip offshore or a trip to a local pump-out facility.

Much of that is just easier when berthed at a decent marina.

Which adds the slip cost, electricity cost, etc... but also cuts down on some of the daily work you might have to do if at anchor all the time. IOW, might be a fair trade.

-Chris

[ranger58sb]

And BTW, I'm NOT trying to talk you out of the whole boat idea.

Just think you're better served with eyes wide open.

-Chris

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by GordMay

I’d never have thought to seek an American Sailing Association [ASA] sailing school, in Europe.
Scroll down to “Take an ASA Course in Europe” ➥ https://asa.com/news/2021/06/01/chartering-in-europe/
IPC ➥ https://asa.com/ipc-application/

Good catch. Seems ASA does have courses in Europe. I was actually thinking about RYA but had a short circuit in the brain.

I would guess RYA is better known in Europe and a better choice because of that.

[Freeeeedom]

Originally Posted by ranger42c

And BTW, I'm NOT trying to talk you out of the whole boat idea.

Just think you're better served with eyes wide open.

Absolutely. I think what you are saying is very helpful. Especially since it might not occur to me as long as I keep chartering but I should be aware of those issues and consider them hard before switching from chartering to owning (if I ever get that far).

[PirateFoxy]

I don’t know what the RV market is like in Europe, but in the US you can buy a used RV for not a huge amount (relative to a boat) and give some of these issues a ‘test drive’ without needing to pick up so many specialized skills first, assuming you can already drive. And depending where you are you can quite successfully avoid being around tons of people by not going to popular campsites, etc. But you’ll get some idea of size (though RVs have more room than a boat of similar length due to not being hull-shaped) and the stuff like dealing w a water pump and unusual plumbing and having to actually think about your power use and all of those various issues.

You do have to treat it like a place you are actually living, though, not a camping vacation. We’ve spent more than a month at a time in ours, driving here and there as we feel like it.

[Anders]

Originally Posted by Freeeeedom

A quick followup question: Would it make sense to do the course and/or charter in Croatia or Greece in early February? Or should I wait till spring?

You will not find any charter company operating in Greece in February. May would be ideal.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Freeeeedom

A quick followup question: Would it make sense to do the course and/or charter in Croatia or Greece in early February? Or should I wait till spring?

Too early , April is best month

[Anders]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

I wouldn’t but a boat to get away from people by the way. Winter time will force you into marinas and you’ll be in close proximity to many people.

Plenty of spots to hide from the winter weather without going to marinas specially in Greece.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Anders

Plenty of spots to hide from the winter weather without going to marinas specially in Greece.

Not really , you need to be near food sources etc. Most liveaboards here in the Ionian end up in marinas of one sort or another over the key winter months

[Anders]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

Not really , you need to be near food sources etc. Most liveaboards here in the Ionian end up in marinas of one sort or another over the key winter months

I've overwintered twice in the Ionian but not been in a marina even for a night and many others have done the same.
Many of the islands have shops and often a boat to the mainland.

[Freeeeedom]

After some more reading, here is my plan in more detail:


1. Do a week-long charter with a skipper patient enough to tutor us



That way we will qualify to skip RYA Competent Crew (100 nm and 5 days on water) which seems to be a prerequisite for RYA Day Skipper. An alternative would be to take a RYA Competent Crew course but it is just as expensive in terms of time (5 days)


If we decide to do it as early as February or March, we would go somewhere warm, perhaps Africa so that we avoid jet lag which I hate. Any recommended locations?


2. Study from books and do RYA Day Skipper theory online and also whatever radio training we need.



3. Do a 5-day practical course to get tidal RYA Day Skipper. Perhaps pay extra so that it's only the two of us and the instructor onboard, if that's possible. In another thread I saw recommendation of schools in UK or Gibraltar, although that thread was old. Plenty of time before we get there so I will do a more thorough research by then.


After that I think we should be able to bareboat all the boats we might be interested in? That is monohull sail and no sail, catamaran sail and no sail, trawler.


4. Do bareboat charters, 1 week long. Perhaps hire a skipper for the first day to refresh our memory and practise docking, as that sounds like a tricky part. We would do our best to simulate our liveaboard lifestyle on those boats, i.e., we would keep working 9-to-5 from them.


The idea with flotilla vacation sounds great but I'm pretty sure we would not be able to work then, so it would cost a lot of precious free time.


5. Once we figure out somewhat what kind of boat we want, do longer charters (1 month sounds about right) on this type of boat.


6. Buy a boat! Move it and ourselves to the same city.


7. Gradually shift our main place of residence to the boat: Spend longer and longer periods of time living on it.


8. Move permanently aboard.

[more]

Originally Posted by Freeeeedom

After some more reading, here is my plan in more detail:

do RYA Day Skipper and also whatever radio training we need.



Do a 5-day practical course to get tidal RYA Day Skipper. .

this RYA skipper is totally stupid.
simply come in Croatia and make skipper C category course(with radio of corse)
and this licence alow you sailing all world including Antartica,Artic yacht 30 Gross register tonnage. after this finish

simply search Boat leader licence C cat
after finish course
pick advance sailing
https://ultra-sailing.hr/ultra-sailing-school

also you can ask can ultra sailing prepare you to Boat leader licence C cat

or

https://anasail.com/en/