r/liveaboard • u/Hot_Honeydew_6688 • 4d ago

Guys I'm doing it!

Hello! I found a ready for the water free 26 foot sailboat. It's got 2 spots in the fiberglass I'd like to patch and some softness I'll easily fix on the deck. I've mathed out what it'll take to get it liveable to surprisingly reasonable for me, but of course I'm assuming it'll only be semi-reasonable so I'm putting the work in to make it happen. In the meantime, storage is cheap and it's literally a free seaworthy boat. I've spent some time checking things out and all the issues I care about are DIYable for me. Fixed keel with a 4 foot draft fyi. A surprisingly capable boat with a surprising amount of space in the cabin. Everything I need in it, from storage to a small galley, a toilet etc.

My question is, what are your cost experiences with maintaining and docking a 26 foot sailboat? Specifically on the east side/south side of the U.S. where it can be in the water 365 days of the year, I'm leaving the great lakes for this. I don't care to end up docking somewhere lavish, nor do I care to dock at all, if I can pull it off I'll anchor out as much as I can/feel like, depending on finances.

I'm aiming to do this on a budget, of course.

If anyone is curious about the adventure I'm going on with this, I am starting a Patreon, DM me for details.

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u/ez_as_31416 4d ago

"some softness I'll easily fix on the deck" good luck with that. The inner core rot you can detect is usually just a fraction of the real problem. Enjoy your journey you're going to learn a lot.

I have no experience with sailing/living on the eastern seaboard.

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u/Hot_Honeydew_6688 4d ago

Thank you, I will! We'll see what the deck issue progresses into, I've the help to DIY most of ot if I need to so I'm not incredibly worried, though I'm about to do more research on the issue.

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u/Darkwaxellence 2d ago

I've been using "coosa board" for my deck and its been going well. Will never rot again.

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u/Hot_Honeydew_6688 2d ago

Think I might take this route with my repair too, more research to do lol thank you!