Retirement Houseboat or Floating Home

Discussion in 'Boat Design' started by Greenseas2, Aug 25, 2008.

  1. brian eiland
    Joined: Jun 2002
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    Location: St Augustine Fl, Thailand

    brian eiland Senior Member

    Wanted to bring this subject up again as I have just made a few other links from other forums to these photos of the neat little push boats from Thailand
     
  2. CDBarry
    Joined: Nov 2002
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    Location: Maryland

    CDBarry Senior Member

    I used to walk by a fellow who was living on a narrowboat in Little Venice every morning when I walked to work near Paddington station. He was having his cuppa on the deck and waved as I wennt over the bridge.

    Narrowboats are less than 7 feet wide, so it is possible to live nicely on a long term basis in something that narrow. (However our row house was only 15 feet wide.)

    So if it's good enough for Richard Branson, it's good enough for me.
     
  3. Pericles
    Joined: Sep 2006
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    Location: Heights of High Wycombe, not far from River Thames

    Pericles Senior Member

    I've spent July & August living in a Freeman 22 Mark 2 on the Thames, cruising between Cookham & Henley-on-Thames, although I have been up as far as Oxford. Most nights, I'll moor up at the Bounty. It's fabulous.

    http://thebountypub.com/

    I shall return to land at the end of September, as there's no heating on board. :)

    I've seen dozens of narrowboats & quite a few widebeams, with year round residents, voyaging up & down the non-tidal Thames. Some occupants moor up for days at a time & pass through the locks after the lock keepers have gone home, as they might not be registered! :mad::mad:

    However, the majority are legitimate & have berths in marinas where some may be residential.

    http://www.aqualinemarine.co.uk/widebeam-wide-choice-of-layouts/

    If I were to consider building some form of house boat, I'd build the superstructure with SIPS.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structural_insulated_panel
     
  4. brian eiland
    Joined: Jun 2002
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    Location: St Augustine Fl, Thailand

    brian eiland Senior Member

    Nice tie up you have there at the pub.

    (you mean the alcohol doesn't provide an anti-freeze effect :rolleyes:;)
     
  5. Rurudyne
    Joined: Mar 2014
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    Location: North Texas

    Rurudyne Senior Member

    I still get a kick out of Texas law:

    Here in Texas you don't have to register any human powered vehicle no matter the length, which in theory would even include the big houseboats of yesteryear driven by a number of large men and poles. In practice, I suppose, for a smaller craft someone might need to install a prop or paddlewheel attached to a couple recumbent seats since that would be obviously for HPV purposes (law doesn't specify it has to be very effective propulsion ;).
     
  6. PAR
    Joined: Nov 2003
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    Location: Eustis, FL

    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    A houseboat that requires a push boat to move around would be exempt, in Texas? Seems someone at city hall would have figured they're losing a fair bit of revenue by now.
     
  7. Rurudyne
    Joined: Mar 2014
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    Location: North Texas

    Rurudyne Senior Member

    No, but if it's a "human powered vehicle" it's exempt no matter the length. The law says nothing about if the propulsion needs to be genuinely effective, though. If you can demonstrate some mobility it'd be a HPV being the thought. Not hard to do on a lake.

    Using pole-men, or being actually set up to use pole-men, would quite possibly qualify since there's no list of what is or isn't a valid HPV.

    Also: I'm quite friendly to people not paying any tax they're not required to pay. I'd love it if I could convince the Texas legislature that sales tax should only apply to the first retail sale (or equivalent) of something. Maybe sell it to them as a way to help us clean all the old junk out of our garages by getting folks from neighboring States to come looking for sales-tax free bargains. ;)
     
  8. Tiny Turnip
    Joined: Mar 2008
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    Location: Huddersfield, UK

    Tiny Turnip Senior Member

    That sounds like a fabulous summer, Pericles. And the Bounty - my life! A waterside pub at Bourne End, with a full menu of main courses at a tenner! Just about every other pub in the country has one token 10 quid dinner, and everything else is nudging toward 20!
     
  9. myark
    Joined: Oct 2012
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    Location: Thailand

    myark Senior Member


    Pictured is the old design Myark folding trailer barge that solve the problem you mention, for example in New Zealand you are not allowed house boats on lakes, rivers and harbors because they are permanent.
    Myark folding trailer barges are not permanent and can be towed by any car or mobile home as they weigh under 2000 kg and are launched anywhere, especially remote regions.
    I have new design Myark folding trailer barges far superior, wider unfolded longer and lighter but still legally road worthy that suits a mobile home or bus house conversions.
     

    Attached Files:

  10. brian eiland
    Joined: Jun 2002
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    Location: St Augustine Fl, Thailand

    brian eiland Senior Member

    Hi Myark,
    Just a thought that ran thru my mind,...are you familiar with the torsion bar axles that many European trailers utilize?

    They allow for larger wheels to be utilized while still keeping the axle height low. And they might be attached to the barge load via a cradle arrangement.

    One negative might be they operate in a more 'independent suspension' manner,...something you might not want on that tall thin load.

    I do like your folding trailer barge idea.
     
  11. myark
    Joined: Oct 2012
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    Location: Thailand

    myark Senior Member

    Hi Brian

    I have designed torsions made from titanium for the future folding Myark trailer barges which the folding is different and not as high and lighter.
    I have been using torsions suspension from the start of my venture and are a brilliant suspension system that can easily be removed or rotated upwards so torsion can stay on but can rise above the water line.

    Attached are some pictures with one actual design folding Myark trailer barge that has torsions suspension attached, also a picture of the titanium torsions that I manufactured so the rubber cords can be DIY replaced as they cost $2 each rubber cord.

    They very light and strong.
     
  12. brian eiland
    Joined: Jun 2002
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    Location: St Augustine Fl, Thailand

    brian eiland Senior Member

    Was wondering what the front wheel arrangement was on the first photo of that previous posting?
     
  13. myark
    Joined: Oct 2012
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    Location: Thailand

    myark Senior Member

    I will replay an answer later as I am about to leave my apartment to go to the EDM wire cutting factory to begin designing and cut a new multi tool idea for the next kick starter project that is suited for the marine market.
     
  14. myark
    Joined: Oct 2012
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    Location: Thailand

    myark Senior Member

    The trailer system was a proto type only and placed wheels in the front because of the over 10.m towing length law, also the weight was under 2000 kg and legally in New Zealand you do not need to be braked if under 2000kg.
    The front wheel system allows a folding mechanism as well as another in the back wheels that allowed a 5 X 1 hand boat winch to easily unfold structure although I used a small electric winch.
    The Myark folding trailer barge is towed open or shut and the wheels floated of when in water.
    I did not have suspension as at that time I was more worried about the load in water such as I wanted to carry al least 13 ton on deck which shows I had easily achieved structure strength for such a load even though the deck was made in 4 mm tread plate which I wanted to prove this can be done with 13 ton driven on top and no damage what so ever.
    The method was very simple which is I placed 60mm X 4mm stringers 75mm apart with 4mm cross members 800mm apart
    Over all I was happy with the effort which was only a proto type as the future designs are superior with a new torsion system suspension and another way of folding so when traveling on road there is room for cargo to go on top of trailer deck.
    The new design Myark folding trailer barges are lighter, can also be made to be longer and still legally able to be towed which allows house buses to be driven on top and are easily braked if wanted although in New Zealand under a 2000kg trailer does not need to be braked especially if towed by a house truck.
     

    Attached Files:


  15. brian eiland
    Joined: Jun 2002
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    Location: St Augustine Fl, Thailand

    brian eiland Senior Member

    Pretty impressive work.

    Was that shop photo in NZ, China, or Thailand?
     
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