i have been living on my boat for the past two months and will continue living aboard thru winter. i wonder if any one out there is familiar with living on the hudson in nyc. have you any advice? i lived in one when i was in the pacific but think this is not the same. i have considered putting up insulation since the heat seems to rise and leak out somewhere, also would it be alright if i used my sinks in the wimter?
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JUST a Curious Question...
ERIC...are you living on a ODAY 25?? Isnt it kinda cramped?? Heating shouldnt be a PROBLEM at all...just watch the "O2" levels... Happy Sailing...
ERIC...are you living on a ODAY 25?? Isnt it kinda cramped?? Heating shouldnt be a PROBLEM at all...just watch the "O2" levels... Happy Sailing...
Electric heat
Use electric heat. It is safe and dry. The type I use is the oil filled heaters. Safe gets nice and cosy. Your biggest prob will be condensation. Get a good DEhumidifier. Keep a small fan going to circulate the air. turn over bedding and matress to avoid mould. allthebest doug
Use electric heat. It is safe and dry. The type I use is the oil filled heaters. Safe gets nice and cosy. Your biggest prob will be condensation. Get a good DEhumidifier. Keep a small fan going to circulate the air. turn over bedding and matress to avoid mould. allthebest doug
Holding tanks
How are you keeping the holding tanks from freezing? do you maintain heat in those areas? can you keep the water lines from freezing? thats the answer to your "can I use water" You are a brave soul and a trooper, by the time Jan & Feb roll around that will be the acid test. I lived on a boat in NY 20 yrs ago from April to November and rented a room for the winter months it made life much easier.
How are you keeping the holding tanks from freezing? do you maintain heat in those areas? can you keep the water lines from freezing? thats the answer to your "can I use water" You are a brave soul and a trooper, by the time Jan & Feb roll around that will be the acid test. I lived on a boat in NY 20 yrs ago from April to November and rented a room for the winter months it made life much easier.
hudson freezes
lately the hudson was freezing over for long periods of time during the dead of winter. The ferries running between NJ and NYC couldn't even make it over. I dont think the insulation of the boat will be sufficient - any heat that you pump through your heater will turn into water or escape.
lately the hudson was freezing over for long periods of time during the dead of winter. The ferries running between NJ and NYC couldn't even make it over. I dont think the insulation of the boat will be sufficient - any heat that you pump through your heater will turn into water or escape.
There are other issues too...
Will you even be able to find water, much less use the sinks? 'Cuz many marinas turn off water to the docks in hard freeze conditions. I suppose you could bring it to the boat in jerry cans, but that could be a real challenge when the docks are icy--which they're likely to be a good bit of the time. And what about pumping out your holding tank? Most pumpouts are closed in the winter in your neck of the woods. And since the Hudson is "no discharge," flushing directly overboard or dumping the tank when it gets full is illegal. If you can solve those problem, heating the cabin should keep the plumbing and anything else on the boat from freezing.
Will you even be able to find water, much less use the sinks? 'Cuz many marinas turn off water to the docks in hard freeze conditions. I suppose you could bring it to the boat in jerry cans, but that could be a real challenge when the docks are icy--which they're likely to be a good bit of the time. And what about pumping out your holding tank? Most pumpouts are closed in the winter in your neck of the woods. And since the Hudson is "no discharge," flushing directly overboard or dumping the tank when it gets full is illegal. If you can solve those problem, heating the cabin should keep the plumbing and anything else on the boat from freezing.
How's it going
So, a some snow Thanksgiving morning? Probably just enough to get the docks a little slippery. When the ice floes jamming the Hudson below the GWB get to be the size of basketball courts, THEN, it'll be getting cold. When it does get cold, (it hasn't yet, really, despite the snow) another thing to watch out for is your seacocks. If a pipe freezes and bursts in a house it makes a mess and you turn off the water, call a plumber and clean it up. If one of your boat hoses freezes and bursts, you sink if the seacock is open. You may want to leave all your seacocks shut unless you're actually using them. This may mean NOT leaving the automatic bilge pump on when you're off the boat, for example. What if the line were to freeze up between cycles, and split the hose? Even if the hose didn't burst, the blockage might burn out your bilge pump motor. Seacocks are also designed to withstand the pressure if any water contained in them were to freeze, Now is a little late, but you may want to make sure you have seacocks on your through-hull fittings, and not gate valves. This, among other things, is why most boats in the Northeast get hauled out in the Winter. You'll also need a shovel for clearing the cockpit of snow -- you don't want melting snow or slush to freeze and crack the scuppers and make you sink that way, either.
So, a some snow Thanksgiving morning? Probably just enough to get the docks a little slippery. When the ice floes jamming the Hudson below the GWB get to be the size of basketball courts, THEN, it'll be getting cold. When it does get cold, (it hasn't yet, really, despite the snow) another thing to watch out for is your seacocks. If a pipe freezes and bursts in a house it makes a mess and you turn off the water, call a plumber and clean it up. If one of your boat hoses freezes and bursts, you sink if the seacock is open. You may want to leave all your seacocks shut unless you're actually using them. This may mean NOT leaving the automatic bilge pump on when you're off the boat, for example. What if the line were to freeze up between cycles, and split the hose? Even if the hose didn't burst, the blockage might burn out your bilge pump motor. Seacocks are also designed to withstand the pressure if any water contained in them were to freeze, Now is a little late, but you may want to make sure you have seacocks on your through-hull fittings, and not gate valves. This, among other things, is why most boats in the Northeast get hauled out in the Winter. You'll also need a shovel for clearing the cockpit of snow -- you don't want melting snow or slush to freeze and crack the scuppers and make you sink that way, either.
Water temp
I can't say about the temperature of the water in the lower Hudson but here in the chesapeake bay the water under the ice is about 34 degrees F. in January. You definitely need a deicer hung under your boat and kept running. That will keep your bilge from freezing, a big dust pan makes a good snow shovel and solar panels need to be cleared also. A few people live aboard on the upper chesapeake year round but they are hardier than I. I have seen boats frozen in solid in six inches of fresh water ice and not suffer hull damage. I don't know about other damage that may have occured inside.
I can't say about the temperature of the water in the lower Hudson but here in the chesapeake bay the water under the ice is about 34 degrees F. in January. You definitely need a deicer hung under your boat and kept running. That will keep your bilge from freezing, a big dust pan makes a good snow shovel and solar panels need to be cleared also. A few people live aboard on the upper chesapeake year round but they are hardier than I. I have seen boats frozen in solid in six inches of fresh water ice and not suffer hull damage. I don't know about other damage that may have occured inside.
You'll be hauling in WATER for USE....
Unless you can keep the CABIN above FREEZING when you're away from the BOAT...everything inside will freeze SOLID. The need for water in daily nutrition, hygiene, cooking, etc. will likely be a problem. OH WELL...no need for a Refrig. (maybe that would be some sort of off set). HEY...DONT LET US DISCOURAGE YA...FOLKS DO WELL in IGLOOs WAY UP NORTH....
Unless you can keep the CABIN above FREEZING when you're away from the BOAT...everything inside will freeze SOLID. The need for water in daily nutrition, hygiene, cooking, etc. will likely be a problem. OH WELL...no need for a Refrig. (maybe that would be some sort of off set). HEY...DONT LET US DISCOURAGE YA...FOLKS DO WELL in IGLOOs WAY UP NORTH....
Keep us posted
Hey Eric, This may be an intersting forum by itself. How about keeping us posted on your experiences while living on the Hudson during the winter?
Hey Eric, This may be an intersting forum by itself. How about keeping us posted on your experiences while living on the Hudson during the winter?
Sailors livaboard in Toronto, whynot NYC
Folks there are a great number of sailors living aboard during the winter in Toronto. Not sure I'd like to do it, but if you into it....
If you would like to read about one such couple who liveaboard their Niagara 35 in Toronto, click on the link: http://www.searoom.com/silverheels/silverheels01a.htm Have a good winter Eric, and stay warm!! Eric
Folks there are a great number of sailors living aboard during the winter in Toronto. Not sure I'd like to do it, but if you into it....
If you would like to read about one such couple who liveaboard their Niagara 35 in Toronto, click on the link: http://www.searoom.com/silverheels/silverheels01a.htm Have a good winter Eric, and stay warm!! Eric
Boston too..
there have been several stories from liveaboards in Boston Harbor. It's not that bad. I've done it in Annapolis with snow and ice on the decks. Like everything, it has its +/-. Emjoy. Makes for great story telling later.
there have been several stories from liveaboards in Boston Harbor. It's not that bad. I've done it in Annapolis with snow and ice on the decks. Like everything, it has its +/-. Emjoy. Makes for great story telling later.
We lived in Philly last winter....
We lived in Philly last winter, and it was hard at times, but not that bad. The marina we are in has a bubbler system to prevent freezing, but it didn't work. Only 2-3 boats had the little electric motor with propellor, and those worked well. So we ended up having about a foot thick of ice around our boat. I would routinely go around the boat and break up the ice and shove it under the ice away from our boat. The good thing is, when it freezes, the water is dead calm, so no rocking. We used 2 1500 watt electric heaters. Most of the time we only had one on, but when it got really cold we would turn the other one on. Condensation was not a problem for us, because the little electric heater with the fan would dry the boat out. In fact it would be too dry, and we would get sore throats. The only problem is if the electric goes out, then you loose your heat. For this, I bought one of those propane heaters that take the 1lb. tanks, and kept it in my car trunk. I never had to use it, but it was there just in case. I returned it after winter. WE also had an electric blanket. We would turn that on a half hour before bed, and it would be nice and warm when we went to bed. I did add insulation to the quarter berth, because the heat was not getting back there. If I were to live on the boat during winter again, I would add insulation to the ceiling and walls, because most of the heat just goes right out, considering the boat is just plastic. BY the way our boat is 27ft pacific seacraft. If you leave the heat on all the time, then you shouldn't have a problem with using the water system on your boat. I would winterize the engine though. And leave any doors or places that have plumbing open to let the heat in. One big problem is, that the water on our side of the dock was shut off. The other side was heated, so I would have to hook up the water on that side and fill our tanks. BUt when it got really cold even the heated faucets froze, so I bought a 5 gallon plastic water bag from wal mart and would make a few trips to the bathroom and back to fill up our water. It was a pain in the A**. But it was only for a month or two. This year I took the boat out of the water, because I need to do some work on the bottom, and we won't have to live on the boat in the winter. Good luck.
We lived in Philly last winter, and it was hard at times, but not that bad. The marina we are in has a bubbler system to prevent freezing, but it didn't work. Only 2-3 boats had the little electric motor with propellor, and those worked well. So we ended up having about a foot thick of ice around our boat. I would routinely go around the boat and break up the ice and shove it under the ice away from our boat. The good thing is, when it freezes, the water is dead calm, so no rocking. We used 2 1500 watt electric heaters. Most of the time we only had one on, but when it got really cold we would turn the other one on. Condensation was not a problem for us, because the little electric heater with the fan would dry the boat out. In fact it would be too dry, and we would get sore throats. The only problem is if the electric goes out, then you loose your heat. For this, I bought one of those propane heaters that take the 1lb. tanks, and kept it in my car trunk. I never had to use it, but it was there just in case. I returned it after winter. WE also had an electric blanket. We would turn that on a half hour before bed, and it would be nice and warm when we went to bed. I did add insulation to the quarter berth, because the heat was not getting back there. If I were to live on the boat during winter again, I would add insulation to the ceiling and walls, because most of the heat just goes right out, considering the boat is just plastic. BY the way our boat is 27ft pacific seacraft. If you leave the heat on all the time, then you shouldn't have a problem with using the water system on your boat. I would winterize the engine though. And leave any doors or places that have plumbing open to let the heat in. One big problem is, that the water on our side of the dock was shut off. The other side was heated, so I would have to hook up the water on that side and fill our tanks. BUt when it got really cold even the heated faucets froze, so I bought a 5 gallon plastic water bag from wal mart and would make a few trips to the bathroom and back to fill up our water. It was a pain in the A**. But it was only for a month or two. This year I took the boat out of the water, because I need to do some work on the bottom, and we won't have to live on the boat in the winter. Good luck.
I have visited people in January in Philly.
They were fine on 34' boat. But they used shower/head in the dock. They had no problems with insulation. BTW, where are you located? is it 79th street marina? Do you have a slip or a mooring? What do they provide?
They were fine on 34' boat. But they used shower/head in the dock. They had no problems with insulation. BTW, where are you located? is it 79th street marina? Do you have a slip or a mooring? What do they provide?
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