You could earn a few Bob working as a Michael Caine voiceover man?

Excellent video dad for those considering living on a boat! Very eye opening. Well done and I’m very proud of you xx

Vince - Really interesting to see how you have managed to keep costs down. When I was a newly divorced single 44 year old which was too many years ago now, my cost for things to do with me (apart from rent) went way down. Stunning to think it, but as I was looking after just me, I was in charge of my costs with no other family members to account for. Taking control of these finances was only intimidating for the first "Go Round". After that, none of it was scary. This is why understanding that first year's numbers is so important. As for the boat, I think you are going to need to draw from savings for that blacking. No more solar or battery costs in year 2, so that can go towards it. Anyone who has never had a boat, doesn't realize this is a recurring cost as is having those Marine Diesels serviced properly once a year if you are continuously cruising and I don't mean just changing the fluids and filters. I am sure you know that already. There is one thing, I wished we had as an extra when I had access to a boat. It was an extra plank for when you set up 'just too far' from a solid bank so can't jump it or are carrying bags of that food shopping. We got two scaffolding planks to go with the one on the boat. Best safety equipment ever!!! You don't want to go in the drink let alone when carrying that weekly food order. By the way, canal water can be truly awful stuff... Don't ask me how I know! HAHAHAHAHAHA. You are right about that number you ended up with. If you add some personal expenses (life insurance, some kind of off the boat entertainment, that new camera and mic set up for KZfaq videos, a train trip now and again to see relatives are all good examples), being a narrow boater is an outstandingly effective use of ones money, no matter how you look at it. I have said this before, if I ever had to return to the UK, I'd be on the cut too. Good luck for next years finances video. I expect things will be spent on different things and there will be some things you didn't bargain for in the mix as well. Looking forward to the next video, from one of your ex-pat viewers...

I just forget to keep a record of everything I spend money on, you jogged my memory a bit LOL I have a CRT leisure mooring it has got electric hook up too which is really cheap, and a it is a locked mooring, I lived on the road for over 25 years and boat life is much cheaper, nicer, slower and well I can just go off for how ever long I want but it is nice having a place to come back to. It is something to think about, it really is cheaper and there are some lovely places too, if moving around all the time and not having electric hook up 24/7 is costing you much more in fuel / coal etc it is worth a think. I reckon my heating / electrics costs me around 100 a year at most. Mooring 22 quid a week. I do have solar to keep batteries topped up. My son lives on his boat (was my my first boat) 500 yards away, he loves boat life too, has been all over the north, lost reverse half way up the wigan flite, made it though, then i had to pay to get him on a lorry and over to me so we could fix it, that cost a bit. We will be going off together for a bit soon, change of scenery is needed.

Hi Vince. Just want to say thanks so much for sharing your journey with us. I found your video fascinating. Thanks so much for including everything. Smarty so unlimited Internet sims for £20. No contract. They're on the 3 network. I've used them for over a year and they're great. Anyway thanks again. Mat

Very useful information there Vince. I've always wondered how long I could live on a boat for on my savings, turns out about two and a half weeks!

Loved the video, no verbal fluff, straight to the point, very informative...magic! Well done and I hope all goes well for you in the future!

Good video mate If you were living on land you would still need food heating mobile phone, but no rent or mortgage rates car ect must be a lot cheaper way to live that’s for sure and think of your gym membership you have saved now doing all those locks 👍🏻🤪

thnx informative and straight to the point unlike many other vids on same subject i have viewed best wishes

I agree that one of the best investments you can do if you’re a live aboard is fitting solar panels. It’s almost criminal to see & hear diesel engines running to charge batteries when moored up (during the summer months anyway). The other best thing I did was to buy a 12v adaptor for my laptop so that I didn’t have to run my inverter at night, especially in the winter. Good informative video Vince. Will you have to go back to work at some point or is this sustainable for you? All the best.

I've been around boats all my life ive never lived on themive had 15 vessels but iam now saving to buy a bigger boat to live on it as we want all the modern ways of live but on water great video first time ive seen this channel

That was interesting. I had no idea all that money was involved to live on a narrow boat

Thanks for that so Formative and now we know the cost which is cheaper than living in a house and actually a very cheap way of living thank you

Good idea to tally up the costs, probably still cheaper than and actual physical address on land. But you do need some sort of income to maintain this lifestyle. Hope you can continue on the narrowboat.

👍 good one m8. Seems considerably cheaper on a narrow compared to land locked living. And your staying active physically and mentally with this lifestyle.

thats about 60% less than I pay to live in somebody else's house before bills, council tax and food, think I might buy a boat 👍

recently retired and thinking seriously about selling up and buying a narrow boat. The solar panels are a definite plus and fitting them yourself was very sensible. This is a really good breakdown and very very helpful, thank you. If I get a boat I will buy some panels and come looking for you :)

Great video mate. Sooo jealous of the way you live. I know I shouldn't wish my life away but I am counting down my retirement to the day. 3 years and 10 months left and hopefully I see you on the canal somewhere. Wish You health bro.

Great vlog showing your costs for the year and it was nice to see you face to face. I hope you were happy about the outcome and will continue to be a continuous cruiser. I’m sure your honesty will help others starting out on the same path. Take care, stay safe and say hello to Claire and your mum.

When and if I retire, my Mrs wants us to move to the UK and do what you are doing! That was interesting, young fella! Thank you.

I love your honesty view on things, keeping it real and that shows your integrity:) I wish you every happiness on your lovely boat :)

Just come across this video. Nice one, found it very interesting. We've (my Dear Wife and I) have been living onboard for 12 years now and this video is a good eye opener for anyone thinking of a Lifestyle afloat. 👍

Excellent straight talking, informative video, many thanks.

Ok, I’m all caught up now (bit disappointed at that lol) and found your cost breakdown really interesting. Looking forward to the next one 😉

Loved the comment about TV Vince, I remember our chats!!!. Pity you got stuck in BS for 5 months, I think you would have had a great time if not!. Take care. Jeff.

Thanks for that Vince - I know you've improved my quality of life with your videos so I hope you can keep going well into the future!

I've enjoyed your first year too Vince! Happy cruising.

Hey dude. I lived on a narrow boat for 4 years. I was buying it from a friend a bit each month. The engine, a 1.5 bmc wasn't in great condition when I moved onboard. One day the engine seized due to the oil pump failing. I was on minimum wage and replacing the engine was going to be impossible unless I could pay in installments. someone pointed me in the direction of a guy who agreed to fit a reconditioned engine. Problem was to that he couldn't get the engine for about 3 weeks. I was moored down the Aylesbury arm & had been stuck there due to it being iced over, then the CART decided to rebuild part of the bank & close one of the locks. I contacted the local inspector and explained that I was stuck & he assured me I didn't need to worry. Never the less I still kept getting nasty notices stuck on my boat. The day before the guy was due to sort my engine out he called to say that he'd changed his mind. I ended up having to give the boat back to my mate before the CART came and took it away. I ended up living in my car for 2 years. The feeling of freedom when I got the boat was amazing, but because of being bullied by the CART it soon became a nightmare. I wish you all the luck mate. ✌️

Great video mate, very informative and honest… I have no idea why someone would label this click bait… its clearly not! Cheers and enjoy

2x360 watt LG solar panels fitted £2000 17.5 hours labour.. You learn your lesson quickly on the canal everything is very expensive..... And everybody is out too charge as much as they can..

Good information for anyone wanting to do what you've done. Always best to count the cost. I hope can stay out for as long as you are happy to do so. See you next time. Love Babs. XXX

At last a narrow boater that has given a true account of expenses of living on a narrow boat. It's not that cheap to live on the canal and what your describing that is if everything goes to plan. There are also many hidden things that can potentially cost many more pounds that if you don't have the skills to fix will end up costing hundreds IE welding repairs,Engine rebuilds,and as mentioned battery bank replacement.all things that can catch the unsuspecting boater by surprise. People that want to live on a narrow boat should do so because they enjoy the way of life not because they think it's a cheap alternative to bricks and mortar. In my opinion these sort of people are on the canal for the wrong reasons.Then there's the cost of the boat itself.Unless you want to live in 50ft of eyesore a boat on average is between £60,000 and £70,0000 for something half decent.Not so cheap when you add it all up.

I don't own or live on a boat, but like the idea of doing so, having spent alot of time on friends boats. I commend you for breaking down the costs, as that's an important fact. Good luck to you on the boat, and may you spend along time doing so too , Oh and before I forget if you ever visit the Midlands/Derbyshire, and able to get the use of transport, I manage a Transport/Logistic yard and can supply you with as much wood to burn as you want at no cost, as we accumulate masses of the stuff:)

Hope you can keep going you make me smile with your down to earth vlog 🙂

Just a mention on the Lithum front. They are actually a lot cheaper than you might imagine. The lifetime cost of power from a reasonable AGM treated perfectly is about 30p per KWh, a Lithium treated as harshly as you can is 18p per kWh and, treated more realistically is 11p per kWh. If you do engine running in the winter for charge, as I imagine you must, then the engine running time can be more that halved and you don’t need all the gear the companies that make it say you do. Choose the correct battery and you don’t need any of it If installed right. I find £20 a week more than covers food but I use Lidl and Aldi and have an electric bike (charged from solar) investment in more solar and better batteries would mean you can pretty much cook all summer on electric. I use about 1.5 bottles of gas a year and I Never eat out and eat food that needs to be cooked rather than just heated up. I’ve found investing in energy saving tech has really paid off. Repayment time can be in months rather than years.

Love the vlog. Looking forward to Berkhamsted. It is a lovely spot. Waitrose right next to the canal and brilliant Indian restaurant (Verandah), but that’s not going to keep the cost down. Recommend the Rising Sun pub, once again right on the cut. Enjoy and keep on vlogging! Best wishes, Bill.

Loved this Vin, it’s great to see a proper down to earth and real costings of boat life and it was so nice to see your lovely face 😃 keep them coming 😃

Mate , I hope you have a long happy life on the canal, nothing in life worth having is cheap it's all about happiness and quality of life.

Hi Vince, I did a costing exercise a while back, before we got too old etc: When balanced against the usual expenses such as council tax, gas and electricity, house maintenance, car running costs and all those parasitic bills that come with bricks and mortar, the cost of life afloat became attractive and attainable. Only one or two unfortunate events (and the passage of time) have prevented the likelihood of us ever sharing a Lock with you! Keep on cruising mate, and remember "the world is your lobster my son!"

Interesting. You’d be hard pushed to live that cheaply in a house, so seems like a good deal. Thanks again Vince.

For getting warm for cheap...CCk on Chinese Diesel heater! Very small very powerful and you can run it for 10hr/liter.Nice and clean

Thanks for sharing Vince. Good honest info👍

Really interesting video to see the break down! Enjoyed it xx

Thank you for sharing that information. Most interesting I think it is a fabulous way live. I hope you can continue for many years. Love your down to earth approach to life. Good on you Vince.

Fantastic video, just what I was looking for, thank you 😊

Hi Vince, Great vlog as usual, most informative, thanks. I’m sure a few of the costs will reduce as you won’t need to purchase solar panels and batteries for a good few years. 🔆🔆🔆

Interesting! Thanks. Some of those items are one-off eg solar kit. Some items will last several years eg batteries (Keep those receipts!) Blacking is needed every 3 to 4 years. The rest are your consumables which vary a little depending on how much you're on the move and how the weather is over the year. You should find the solar saves you some diesel, so don't moor under trees! And then there' s the beer ...Good luck!

Cheers for the information

Good video👍. I live now for 10 years on a small sailing boat and i love it and it saves me a lot of 💰.

Cut your broadband deal £25 a month with Talk Talk, Nice vlog good luck.

Thoroughly enjoyed following your journey this year

Thank you for the VINCE :-) - I have yet to purchase a narrowboat and will be a permanent cruiser, so the info you have given helps me a lot - thank you mate, and good luck :-)

That was interesting and informative. I’ll hopefully get to have the narrowboat lifestyle soon. Your videos have been very good and informative. Thank you. Keep up the good work.

The next time you change your house batteries, strongly consider lithium-ion ones. You will also need to get a DC to DC battery charger to protect your alternator. If you think solar power is great, wait until you experience lithium batteries and solar!

Do a few "experience" days, at £200/day, should keep you topped up.

Thanks for the honesty well done on your adventure in life many more will join this way of life as time moves on.

Thankyou for sharing all those costs. Currently I'm not a narrow boater but hope to be in the future , so I'd better start saving. Its good to know its achievable thankyou.

Very Interesting Vince - see you on the next one 👍

Hi Vince very economical year. Keep at it .

Great info

Great Video Vince, Was only just talking about the costs to a few mates today in the pub!!

I was pleasantly surprised to see how much you spent on diesel considering that you are a continuous cruiser! How wonderful! I was sure that it was going to be much more! This makes it a real possibility now! Thank you so much!

Hi Vince. You done really well keeping tabs on all your expenses, and it reminded me thats what I should be doing. Your second year should be cheaper for you hopefully. Stay safe. Love Mum xxx

Excellent Information! Thx

Very informative thanks

The jobsworths have taken over the cut. I had the best of it. Too old to care now.

That is an awesome expense list. Well done you!

I'm about to embark on this so this was very useful. My rent on its own is 2 grand more than your full cost and that is without utilities and shopping and extra costs .... defo worth doing

thanks for sharing,

good vid on the cut keep; it cranked on the cut stay safe lee

Great info! 👍👊😎

Great video, very encouraging figures, stay safe, John (Thailand)

Excellent video. The little incidentals certainly add up. However, it’s still cheaper than living in bricks & mortar. The only downside to buying a a boat is the fact that of depreciation of the actual boat.

It was good to see you on the vlog as well Vince. XXX

That was really interesting mate. . . You easily forget all the bits and pieces that make up a years cruising . I'm sure it's all worth it as cruising seems to really agree with you plus I'm sure Mum and Claire enjoyed it too. Take care Vince and see you next time mate

Thankyou!..

Thats worth doing, a great insight

I"ve really enjoyed this video. Found it to be very interesting and enjoyable Where could you do all the things you do and visit all the beautiful places for that much Oh my God, to be able to live your enviable lifestyle on the canals for that little money is amazing! I rented a canal boat for a two weeks a few years ago and spent more than that FOR JUST TWO WEEKS. ( flights, accommodations and car rentals were expensive.)

Hi Vince. Really interesting Vlog. Thank you. Take Care.

very informative and on point just want to mention that the batteries and solar panels are more of a one off purchase and then go into the maintenance category. purely boat costs with the figures you provided come out to £2973.10 for anyone interested. thanks again :)

Hi Vince, thank you so much for these figures, they have been such a great help to me not really knowing what it was going to cost me to live on a boat. I have started looking for my first ever boat now, something like yours around 50 to 55 feet long max. I saw one advertised and it looked ideal, but I did not move fast enough as it was sold within 3 or 4 days.

That’s not bad for the year. That would be about 1/3 of my retirement money per year, maybe I should get a boat, sounds like a good life to me. Enjoyed the video and have fun!

Great video. Really informative 👌🏻

Great video, next year you won't have the battery replacement and solar PV panels so maybe add that money to your £1000 maintenance costs to help with the hull blacking and sacrificial anode costs, gives you about £1600 to spend. I'd also allow a depreciation cost for the boat in your figures, say a boat lasts 40 years and your boats 20 years old valued at £20k, you'd allow £1000 depreciation cost to be set aside per year.

Thanks for putting up an honest cost list for living on a narrow boat for a year. Most other narrow boat channels near want to mention the attual cost.

I like this type of vlog, especially as I am thinking of getting a boat. Fingers crossed that you can continue boating, as you love the way of life and deserve it too!! Keep positive mate 😊

Thank you one of the best costs videos on utube. I am picking up that it is important to buy a decent boat to start with, buying is a minefield everyone with a knackered boat is trying go take advantage of the current high prices to sell and buy a better one, leaves a lot of poor quality boats with smart paint jobs on the market and a lot of unscrupulous boat brokerages touting them to newbies

I don't know if it's an age thing but I have to agree about the quality of television lucky that there's alternatives, Narrowboat Cruising and Lifestyle for instance! 😀

The cost of living in a house has shot right up! I wish you luck x

Another great vlog .great shirt

Your a top bloke...wish I had your life

Really informative video really liked this one helps out a lot 👍

Great Video

Good vlog matey...very informative...can't live that lifestyle anywhere in this country for 10k a year...Looking forward to Berko got a good Waitrose there ...Did you include the sunglasses in your annual statement ?? Love it...keep it coming , and look forward to "30" Take care and all the best from "(jealous from welwyn garden city)"

I reckon I spend around the same too Vince. Its hard to judge as there are fewer people to compare to, but you always hear of boaters who tell you they got their gas for 2 quid with free tank of diesel. Odd you never find those places! What you can't factor, on a list like that, is the quality of life and the fact you are living it. All the best. Rob

Nice presentation.

Really great video 📹 . I've subbed. Good luck 👍

Hello mate. Might surprise you to hear that my 57 foot narrowboat cost me £550 to be blacked. Had it done at The Boatyard at Hilperton on the K&A. They had a floating dry dock which helps keep the costs down.

Hi Vince, great breakdown on living cost etc, but I didn't see anything for Pump outs of Toilet expenses on list. 😎😏👌

Hello fella, it’s Pat on captain Spaulding! Good effort fella….I haven’t kept count, as it’s way less than what I’ve spent on my divorce lawyers!😂 I’m stuck at Tottenham, as my gearbox shat itself!😩