BLUEMOMENT

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We do not aspire to a Bav 39 or indeed any AWB; we are looking at an older boat at around 30ft. The initial outlay would be a maximum of £12,000 and total annual costs would be around £3,000. Small boats have never been cheaper and we are familiar with the area having lived aboard on our own boat in the Canaries for seven months. Canarian marinas do not (with a few exceptions) charge Spanish prices. San Sebastian was E11 a night when we were last there, with substantial discounts for stays of a month or longer. Some (eg Graciosa) are ridiculously cheap - we paid just E2.81 a night when we were there in 2007.

The paying in Euros for a boat argument is not necesarily relevant as if it comes to pass we may well l buy the boat here and sail it down there. On the other hand, the Canaries are full of old boats rotting away because people made it that far then the dream was broken and the boat abandoned, so there are bargains to be had.

40grand? I bet webby can get three boats for that...

Nick wrote:.
The initial outlay would be a maximum of £12,000 and total annual costs would be around £3,000.
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Canaries are full of old boats rotting away because people made it that far then the dream was broken and the boat abandoned, so there are bargains to be had.

I think you may be surprised at the cost of what's available
http://www.sonrisayachting.com/56/en/Sa ... s_for_sale" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Prices in The Canaries have rocketed in the last couple of years. If you're budgeting on €3,300 (assume £1=€1.1)
then you're hoping for marina fees, insurance and maintenance of less than €65 a week.
I still think chartering takes all the hassle away. It means you can sample different yachts. It means you're not tied to one particular country each year. Financially it means no capital outlay and no hassle with declining forex.

I think you may be surprised at the cost of what's available

No. Most of those boats are a long way away from the type and age of vessel I am looking for, and most of them are not in the Canaries. The only boat on that list I looked at (about a month ago I think) was the steel Van Der Stadt 34, which was quite reasonably priced but a litle more than I wanted to spend. I would not be going through a broker. In any event, there is every possibility that we would buy the boat nearer home and sail it down there.

I do know a bit about Canaries marinas - try typing canaries marinas into Google and see what comes up. Yes, it's my website.

Matt, could you possibly take the time to find out how much it would be for a 9m monohull for 6 months in Las Palmas, seeing as you are there? Thanks

Nick wrote:Van Der Stadt 34

I've sailed a Steel Van Der Stadt designed 36 footer a few times.

Downwind in 25-30 knots of wind and a big surfing sea it just wallowed slowly along in an ungainly fashion. Any plastic boat of similar size would have lifted up its skirts and surfed easily covering the ground miles faster.

I'm sure I read somewhere that the weight of steel makes it unsuitable for boats much under 45 feet.

Obviously, it had a million other advantages to compensate.

jim.r wrote:

claymore wrote:There was also a strong body of opinion that suggested that you were better buying a new one and that there was a degree of false economy in going for a reconditioned one as there seem to be reliabilty issues surrounding that approach

A friend of mine went the false economy route and ended up with the interior of the boat covered in soot, in fact when Claysie went ashore in Oban he was nearly arrested for looking like a golliwog.

twart

I decided against any type of blown air heater due to the noise, repairs issues, power consumption and cost.

Instead I got a friend to bring me back a Dickinson stove from Canada where they are as cheap as chips- here the thieving importer prices them in Eberspacher territory ( tried to discuss this at a boat show with him- he ran off the stand when some other punters had a go about the price he was charging..)

It is one of the best boatie bits I've ever bought- although it is crying out for a service after 12 years.

wully wrote:Instead I got a friend to bring me back a Dickinson stove from Canada where they are as cheap as chips-

Just checked their website, and the cheapest is US$971.10, which works out about £585, which is not exactly cheap in my book. I can buy a lot of thermal high-heeled drawers for that!

Nick, our Air Top 3500 Webasto is now 5 seasons old. I havent had any issues with it at all. I did pull it to bits once, but nothing interesting materialised, so I put it back together and decided not to look again until it goes pop.
I change dthe original manual temp control for a timer, which was 27 quid off Eberbasto on Ebay. Nice bloke.

Doesn't seem to use noticeable amounts of diesel, and lights flicker for a minute while it is lighting up, but then settles back. Fan goes up to full speed for a while, and then cycles.

I usually use the manual instant 120 minute setting - more than enough for us. Just press the button again to stop it. Stopping takes about 3 or 4 minutes as it winds down and cools off.

Wiring diagrams are done for European Automotive regs, and therefore the unit notations on the diagram need deciphering. If you ever need to do that, let me know, I have Ford Light Truck Development Electrical Engineering as mates in my phone.

Just my 2p.

Hm, so far in this thread nick is already up for a few hundred quids worth of heater, a 12grand boat and a mooring in Las Palmas. I will try find how mooch that wd be termorrer...

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'sokay Matt, I emailed them.

Fairwinds would be E300 per month, so it's gone up a bit since we were there last but not too much.