Floating house

[billconner]

We own some property on a small river with access to Lake Ontario. We have thought about building a cabin or summer house among other options but have also looked at a floating house or canal boat or similar. We wish we could find a UK style narrow boat but not in US. The canal boats for rent on the Erie Canal would be perfect - 40' or so and 12' wide steel hulls.

Do you think a dock and floating house/canal boat make sense over a cabin? Any floating house, house boat dwellers here?

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

With rivers you have to consider changes in water level. Some regularly fluxuate by 10 ft or more from low to high.

 

[billconner]

This is at Lake Ontario level which varies much less, like a foot or two at extremes.

 

[Jeff Ivers]

Does the lake freeze? I would think that if it ever freezes, that would create some unusual stresses on the hull design that might not be factored into the design of a hull on a boat that is intended for use in navigable waters (not-frozen). Assuming you can acquire a suitable hull, one would need to design the cabin to include insulation from the hull if you plan to leave it in the water year-around. What about water, power and sewage?

 

[dcg9381]

Ever owned a boat? How about an RV? A floating house is both!
Around here there are "aged houseboat" options in the <$100k range - but costs of power and docking are substantial.
Up that far north, one concern is keeping all of this winterized all the time...

 

[billconner]

Didn't freeze this year but has. Maybe bubblers or maybe pull it out for winter.

Carry water - installing drive now - not many feet. Look at rain collection.

Generator, solar, or maybe battery packs. Jackery or similar. Road is 1250' for power grid.

Composting or incinerating toilet (Cinderella)

Pellet stove for heat. I'd prefer coal but hard for weekender. Could do wood - plenty on land close to river.

I think of this for a night or two, a week at most, and it is 15 minutes from home.

 

[billconner]

I looked at a 36' houseboat, $5000, but seemed too snug. I'm looking for a hull I can build out. Leaving in the river or pulling out in winter to be considered.

 

[nadogail]

The two happiest days in a boat owners life are the day when he buys his boat and the day when he sells it to somebody else.

 

[billconner]

And something about a hole in the water to pour money into. But deleting motors, sails, navigation, etc. - basically a big raft - should alter that some

 

[duneslider]

My opinion is a cabin. I think you will be happier with it long term.

 

[PoorUB]

My opinion is a cabin. I think you will be happier with it long term.

And in twenty years it will be worth far more than a boat!

 

[Renegade1LI]

There are some great you tube videos on this with lots of good info as we looked into this briefly.

 

[billconner]

The codes here make a cabin expensive: energy code, septic system, etc. An old trailer or RV, enough to claim it's a vehicle and not a building, is a possibility. Quite a few in the river, I suspect for that reason. Just seemed a boat without motors would be a lot less expensive. Or a boat on land. Lots of old boats around here.

 

[coldh2o]

How about this?

https://www.thestar.com/local-parry...container-in-port-severn-but-is-it-legal.html

 

[Stuart in MN]

There are a couple small communities of floating houses along the Mississippi River near La Crosse, Wisconsin (the parents of one of my college roommates owned one years ago.) They were basically one room cabins built on wood platforms, supported by plastic 55 gallon drums. They were moored at the four corners to large pipes driven into the river bed, so they could go up and down with the river level. I'm not sure what was done in the winter, if they had bubblers underneath to keep the water open or what. No running water or sewer on board, although they did have electrical.

I do remember it was a very pleasant place to visit, sleeping on the river as it gently moved up and down was relaxing. There may be code issues when building something like that today, although a regular houseboat would probably be okay for long term mooring. Still, that's a question worth asking before getting too far into it.

 

[ZRX61]

We own some property on a small river with access to Lake Ontario. We have thought about building a cabin or summer house among other options but have also looked at a floating house or canal boat or similar. We wish we could find a UK style narrow boat but not in US. The canal boats for rent on the Erie Canal would be perfect - 40' or so and 12' wide steel hulls.

Do you think a dock and floating house/canal boat make sense over a cabin? Any floating house, house boat dwellers here?

They're welded steel hulls..... can ya weld?

 

[kaymccampbell]

I spent 4 years living on a boat full time. It was a 24' sedan cruiser. So very compact. Basically my whole life in 120 sqft. In the winter, 70 sqft. It does force you to rethink possessions and acceptable levels of cleanliness.

I know this is only your summer camp. Why not just a small dead cruiser to try it out? Something you can chuck at the end of a season or two with no regrets.

 

[billconner]

They're welded steel hulls..... can ya weld?

Well I have, many years ago. Basic stick welding. Farmer welds. Don't think I'm up to it today, just handling the pieces, but there is a welding place near me that could do it. They do barges I discovered, and this is a major boating area.

 

[ZRX61]

A UK style narrow boat would stand out in the US, I;m not even sure there are any. There's all sorts of plans/blueprints online.

57' Avoncliff Narrow Boat Plans

57' Avoncliff Narrow Boat Plans

duckworks.com

 

[billconner]

A UK style narrow boat would stand out in the US, I;m not even sure there are any. There's all sorts of plans/blueprints online.

57' Avoncliff Narrow Boat Plans

57' Avoncliff Narrow Boat Plans

duckworks.com

As far as I can tell, not one.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I think I would choose the cabin on land rather than water. I think every issue would be compounded when it's on the water.

How about starting with 2 twenty foot shipping containers stacked ?

 

[billconner]

I'd have to start with septic system with pump to lift away from river if I want indoor plumbing of any kind, otherwise it's an outhouse and 5 gallon jugs of water. And pump means 1/5 mile of electric feeder.

I'd probably build with rough sawn from local Amish mill. (Though I've become interested in quonset hut houses recently.)

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... I lived in Chaumont for quite a few years, had 2 houses on the water, just inside the bridge on the Chaumont river,....
One as a rental, 'n one for myself,....
As you might have figured out, once you've got a place on the water, old friends start showin' up, like they're long lost buds,.....
In order to put up house guests, I bought a 12x 34' houseboat,....
In essence, another 3 bedroom house, that I didn't have to pay taxes on,....
Then I started buildin' floatin' docks, for more tax free sq. footage,....

 

[CraigStu]

We lived on a 41ft sailboat for 2 years in Md. Was a lot of fun and also a lot of dang this is hard. I like the idea of a boat of some type but I think I would want to limit myself to $ that I can afford to lose. A functioning boat has some value and unless it is something way out of the ordinary, the value is reasonably fixed w/ listings kind of like Kelly Blue Book for cars. But when you get to a non functioning boat, a home built boat, or similar, it's value can easily be zero. For me the single most important concern would be a septic system. No way would I be interested in a place that I can't take a shower or wash the dishes. We also have had 22 and 31 ft boats. The 22 had a chemical toilet that I carried the tank home and dumped into our toilet. Not fun. The 31 had to be pumped out so that required a stop at a marina dock that had that capability. So for me, if you can rig a septic system that gives you a normal usage, a boat or similar would be a possibility. Otherwise a land cabin would be my goal.

 

[billconner]

Just to be clear, maybe a night or two, 15 minutes from house.

I would have gone with a tent (glamping style - big - on a platform) and outhouse. Thought about an outdoor shower. My wife wanted more refined "amenities" and suggested the boat.

 

[BombShelter]

The old fishing boats on Lake Michigan would be perfect, the boat inside is usually open space with a nice steel flat top deck. I always wanted to grab one and convert it, they used to be found sitting on shore at the small marinas waiting for a new home. This looks like one that's still in use and a little bigger than the typical beached ones I see but the same basic design.

Commercial boats for sale - boats.com

View a wide selection of Commercial boats for sale in your area, explore detailed information & find your next boat on boats.com. #everythingboats

www.boats.com

There's a ton of websites with photos, here's some Pinterest Photos.

Fish Tugs Of The Greatest Lake | Great lakes ships, Lake michigan lighthouses, Great lakes

Oct 9, 2015 - This Pin was discovered by Edward Wittrock. Discover (and save!) your own Pins on Pinterest

www.pinterest.com

 

[billconner]

I've looked for tugs, fishing boats, and barges. Found a ferry that looked promising.

(Also to avoid the "building" issues looked for railroad cars, fron cabooses and box cars to passenger cars. Wow, do they fetch high prices.)

 

[dcg9381]

Carry water - installing drive now - not many feet. Look at rain collection.

Generator, solar, or maybe battery packs. Jackery or similar. Road is 1250' for power grid.

Composting or incinerating toilet (Cinderella)

Pellet stove for heat. I'd prefer coal but hard for weekender. Could do wood - plenty on land close to river.

I think of this for a night or two, a week at most, and it is 15 minutes from home.

I do rain collection, but I'm in Texas. Have neighbors that haul water. It'd be problematic up north because water freezes.

And remember, what you flush down, you've got to pump out. I like the composting toilet idea. But if you own the land, a septic system and well may be a more effective option. Septic systems can be entirely gravity feed (no power at all). A well can be powered up with a generator.

Solar / battery - these are great "options" but the energy impact if used for heating is very high. You really can't heat a 30' boat with battery/solar power - there are better options (propane). I dunno about the reality of setting up a boat for a pellet or other type stove, seems like that would be problematic.

I think the main issue you'll run into is winterization, unless you're bringing your water and sewer options with you.

 

[billconner]

I don't think gravity septic is feasible because if bedrock outcroppings and steep slope up.

Thinking about rainwater collection - lots of rainfall -40" a year. River drains too much agricultural land to be useful.

Stoves - wood or probably pellet - would be my main heat choice - either on land or on water.

Trailers seem popular along the river - avoids 50' set back, taxes, building codes, etc. Still have septic, water, other utilities to contend with.

At the moment leaning towards tent and outhouse. Probably a storage shed too - just at the 150 sf limit of requiring a permit - canoes and gear.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Just to be clear, maybe a night or two, 15 minutes from house.

I would have gone with a tent (glamping style - big - on a platform) and outhouse. Thought about an outdoor shower. My wife wanted more refined "amenities" and suggested the boat.

A night or two ? A month, week, summer ?

Maybe consider a pre-fab shed if it's a rare occasion that you're staying. However, seeing some of your previous posts, i think you might be capable of building such yourself.

 

[billconner]

I spent 4 years living on a boat full time. It was a 24' sedan cruiser. So very compact. Basically my whole life in 120 sqft. In the winter, 70 sqft. It does force you to rethink possessions and acceptable levels of cleanliness.

I know this is only your summer camp. Why not just a small dead cruiser to try it out? Something you can chuck at the end of a season or two with no regrets.

This is helpful. I was thinking about twice that size - 8x50 or 12x40. I think having a house 15 minutes away and a car at the dock ameliorates that compactness.

CraigStu also. Good insights.

Stuart in MN - I like that floating movement. Kind of same as tenting near a waterfall.

Bondo - was one of those on the market in 2018 or 2019? Sounds slightly familiar. We searched the web sites for months, made three trips to looked at more than 30 houses and properties. Spent a long go time on my that big foreclosed one on south side not far upstream of bridge.

 

[jives]

To be clear, there is no interest in actually motoring the boat up and down the river to the lake; just having it float there as a campsite. Seems like a maintenance nightmare, as opposed to say, a regular travel trailer. If you wanted to keep the trailer on the land and keep it protected, build a pole barn garage (roof only or enclosed) for the trailer.

 

[billconner]

My sense is the steel hulled ones are not so difficult to maintain. A lot seem to be built on a barge hull, and move only when towed (or pushed I guess).

I haven't sensed many regrets from those that have lived on a boat, and those seemed full time.

 

[fitter30]

Flipping channels just the other day looked at two shows both professionally built. One used styrofoam blocks with welded rebar holding them together then cement covering. The other steel barge. Looked at floating houses in Oregon through a reality company and listed some costs.

 

[rsanter]

The codes here make a cabin expensive: energy code, septic system, etc. An old trailer or RV, enough to claim it's a vehicle and not a building, is a possibility. Quite a few in the river, I suspect for that reason. Just seemed a boat without motors would be a lot less expensive. Or a boat on land. Lots of old boats around here.

to me this is the only reason to do a floating house over a cabin

 

[Bricol]

People have managed to sail narrow boats over the North Sea into Holland etc.

Others have managed to row small boats over the Atlantic.

So maybe you could sail one over to the USA? I wouldn't be anywhere the front of the line for crew though Long-isg, narrow, flat bottomed boat over a bit ocean with a single cylinder diesel for (slow) power would not be my first choice

 

[vavet]

Do you know this guy in Florida who is trying avoid property taxes?

Lawyers Argue Millionaire's Floating House Is Actually A Boat As City Officials Hit Him With Property Tax Bill - Jalopnik

What appears to be a floating home in Miami’s Biscayne Bay, isn’t actually a house. At least that’s how lawyers representing the millionaire that owns it argues. County officials are trying to hit the houseboat with a property tax bill, however to the county, it’s not an actual boat.

jalopnik.com

 

[billconner]

Somewhere I read you can't stay on a docked boat for more than 6 days, but lost that reference. I'll have to search again for that. Wouldn't be a problem for me with house near.

 

[jives]

Just saw this advertised in FBM just down the road from you in Sodus Pt. $49K That would be cool to camp in. . . .

 

[sjvicker]

My recommendation, if your code allows is to build out some container cabins. I'd start with a 40' for living/kitchen/bathroom and a 20' for the bedroom and you can scale up from there.

You can put in doors and windows without welding. It's more expensive but its an option https://instacontainermodification.com/products/view/6066-Insta-3x4-Window?p=1

You can do the same composting toilet or incinerator toilet you planned for a boat and dump gray water on the ground

And for water check out RPS solar pumps. It seems like you're in a perfect situation to pump from the river up to a holding tank then use a 12v RV pump to power a camplux style water heater.