Living on a canal boat with children

[Jammydodger23]

Has any one got experience of living on a canal boat with children. I am seriously considering making this move.

No way would I do this!

We lived on a narrowboat til our eldest was 1. It was incredibly snug and warm - stove with back boiler to radiators - far more comfortable than a lot of my friends' houses. Ds was walking at 10 months and I did find it nerve-wracking, but in reality boat children learn about the water in the same way as toddlers learn about all hazards like stairs, cars etc. We still have friends with boat children and I don't know of any who have fallen in - on the whole they've got a lot more sense and awareness around water than children (and adults) who live on land.
I did struggle with the lack of space and privacy - from each other and also from the nosy public (we mostly moored on the towpath). It doesn't have to be expensive although it depends where in the country you are and what sort of facilities you feel you need. There's a really friendly Facebook Boat Families group where people will be happy to answer specific questions, and there may be someone near you who would be happy to meet up and show you their boat.

We do!

Lived aboard for 7 years now and had two children in that time. They’re now 3 and 4. Our boat is a widebeam 60 footer and there’s enough room for hubby, me, two kids, a cat and two guinea pigs...
It’s a fab way of life and cheaper than a house (though perhaps not as cheap as some think). We see loads of wildlife that most people will never get to see.

You get a lot of judginess from the ‘id NEVER do that’ brigade but honestly, most have never set foot on a boat and have no idea what they’re talking about. It’s a pity that people’s misconceptions about boating are so ingrained in people who have no experience of it. People always compliment the warmth on our boat and we always get told how lucky the children are to see the world around them and be surrounded by nature. People love coming over and spending time on board and always leave having changed their view on boat life.

Just as in a house, a sufficient amount of good old common sense is all you need. Just as you wouldn’t let your children play next to a road without supervision, you wouldn’t let them play next to a river without supervision either. Living aboard is not any more dangerous than living in a house, the dangers are just different.

Listen to WildRosesGrow - it's not a cheap or easy option (and there's a LOT to think about logistically day to day, more so than a house).

However... I mostly grew up on my dad's narrowboat and it was the most incredible, interesting, educational and freeing upbringing I could have asked for.

I knew a couple moored near our boat who were bringing up their three very young kids on their gorgeous wide beam and they'd done some really clever stuff with space and kitted it out with all mod cons and it was more roomy than you'd imagine five people in a 60ft space to be!

We live on one, it is great but you have to be suited to it. We have two kids, 1 and 3. It has everything you need and plenty of extras, the heating is amazing much warmer than our house ever was and there isn't any damp. If you are moored up where you can connect to electricity you can have any appliance you want. Most of the negatives come from people who haven't a clue but just don't expect it to be cheap if you want a boat that is well equipped and it helps to be practically minded and able to do your own repairs but you can learn that as you go along. Where are you thinking of mooring? Some places are a lot busier than others. If you want any advice please ask, only to happy to help

It sounds like hell to me but I do know a family who have managed!

We've got friends that live on moored boats and in laws who live in a caravan. The boat friends seem happier but had a panic when their son started walking. I couldn't do it!

I recommend reading the Narrow Margins book series by Marie Browne, really insightful.

Don't forget that if you live on a boat you have to generate your own power (unless you are on a hook up. These are not generally available on a towpath), fill up your water tanks, empty your own sewage and tote and carry your own gas bottles. Residential moorings are few and far between and generally very expensive. You are not allowed to moor for longer than two weeks in any one spot if you don't have your own mooring, you also have to keep moving on, so no hanging around in one area, or you are likely to have your licence revoked. You can have as many home comforts you like, washing machine included, but then of course you have to calculate whether you have the power to run it, or run your engine while it is on. You can have very good generators, but they are very expensive. A top spec wide beam with all mod cons will cost you in excess of 100k, sometimes well in excess. You need to be mechanically literate, unless you have a large pot of money to pay someone to fix things that go wrong (and they will). Your boat will need to come out of the water every two years for blacking, and you have to have a bss cert (like an m.o.t.) in order to get your licence and insurance.
If you are looking for an easy or cheap lifestyle, a boat is not the answer. Muddy towpaths, lack of security and the potential for very large bills are always present. We had to replace the engine on our narrowboat (which was just used for fun, not living on) and it was 8k.
You cannot rent a narrow boat (other than from a holiday company). The majority of rentals are against CRT regulations as rentals require a much more stringent bss certificate which the majority of casual landlords do not bother with. The rental laws also do not apply to boats in these circumstances, so things like gas and electricity safety do not have to be followed.
If you think you still might like it, I suggest you hire a boat from a reputable holiday company in winter for a week or two, and see how you get on.
By the way, our boat was always warm and dry as we had central heating and a multi fuel stove. These are pretty standard in most boats now. Boating may be a lot of things, but certainly not cold inside!

I lived alone on a narrowboat, then on a trad pair with my partner and my son was born while we lived aboard. Always CC, had a borrowed mooring for a brief spell while I was pregnant.

Now back on land- as a single parent- not because of the boat or the baby- and miss the water horribly. Couldn't find a boat suitable for DS and I at the right price unfortunately, so saving to build from new.

The one thing I would say from your OP is that your wish for all mod cons in a house, on a boat, leads me to think you are not cut out for boat life, and its myriad inconveniences. Elsan toilets, faulty boilers, missed coal boats, no rubbish disposal, constant maintenance, engine repairs, tangled props, rust, rust, rust.... its not an easy life if you're not INTO it.

But it's magnificent, if you are.

sobs quietly, clicks onto apollo duck just in case

Oh yeah btw- the canal river trust are not very open to making life easy for liveaboard families. Just worth knowing.

I knew quite a few familys that were river gypsies and they're children all had really lovely lifes,they did all homeschool though so were able to move around quite a bit and it was how the parents had been raised so it wasn't anything out of the ordinary for them.

One of my siblings lived on a narrow boat for a few years with two of his (at the time)very young children and they all loved it and managed very well.

I think alot of it all depends on who you are as a person and how your children would feel about it.

Dutch barge is better as wider - more like room size wide giving you more living space. But do factor in license, mooring fees and maintenance. generally you need to run engines for battery charging and sometimes heating systems so cost of fuel and maintenance on the engine is a must. In a well insulated and heated boat can be comfortable but remember canals towpaths are generally muddy in winter, you have schooling to think of so need to have permie moorings or you are on a two week max (sometimes shorter) change all the time and you can't just move 100yds you have to be cont cruising etc so can be tricky.

We live near the canal but haven't seen any families only couples live aboard

I really appreciate all your comments, and can see there are a number of you that have done this for themselves.
when I say the boat has to ha e all the modern conveniences, I mean a washing machine fridge freezer and central heating.
I am fully aware of the toilet issue, and would probably go for the cassette type with spare cassettes. Don’t much fancy a whole tank of poo under the bed.
The whole living on a boat is one of my “bucket list” things and didn’t think I would ever have the chance. It’s all because I cough my wife having an affair a few weeks ago, and am beginning divorce proceedings that has give me the kick up the bum to do this.
I have a few friends on boats, lots of couples, but their children are grown up, and flown the coupe.

Toilets - a popular topic for narrowboat dwellers, google some of the articles from the boat magazines. We originally had a cassette toilet and changed it for a pump out.

If you don't like the idea of having a 'whole tank of poo under the bed' then think about how much you will like hauling a heavy tank of poo and wee off the boat on a regular basis, up the muddy tow path and into a sanitary station to empty it bit by bit, then back down again. How about doing that with a couple of kids in tow, who want to wander down to the edge, play with passing dogs or just generally tantrum because there is no TV signal and they can't watch Cbeebies?

I wouldn't worry about the kids falling in the water, if they do they will be out in seconds. Worry about them dropping their (or more often their sibling's) mobile phone / DS / camera in the canal!

It is a much more basic life, if you want to run a fridge freezer, washing machine, etc, you are best off in a long term mooring where you can hook up to electricity. If not, you will constantly be charging / nursing batteries. Again if you are handy with wiring, then this could be fun and part of the charm. If not, then get out the cheque book. Even then the voltage is limited - hairdryers and toasters are pretty much out but toasting on the fire can be lovely.

I think the decider for me to sell the boat was the lack of privacy. I know this sounds mad to people who haven't done it but if you are sitting outside on a canal, people talk to you. And there are always people passing by - day or night, canals are great places to walk your dog, cycle or simply get from A to B on a flat path. I imagined the solitude of nature but instead was endlessly asked about what I was crocheting, which way the shop was and told "This is the life isn't it". Sorry I sound such a grump. I grew up around canals and always wanted a boat but would urge caution.

Running away on a boat is not a solution to a mid-life crisis either, but that is a whole other thread!

Try reading the books by Iris Bryce - "Canals Are My Home", "Canals Are My World" And "Canals Are My Life". They go into the move from a static home to a home on the canals. She's also written "Canal Boat Cookery" which might help with feeding hungry mouths in between locks!

Running a freezer is hard unless you have a permanent 240v hook up. Washing machine, stove with backboiler, ok.
I lived on a boat for 5 years until I moved to a flat with dd 3 and ds 1. The logistics of single parenting on a boat are tough. It's hard to move a boat as sole adult with 2 kids, even older ones. It's hard to enforce the necessary safety rules. There are extra chores such as coal fetching, loo emptying, water filling. There is no privacy from each other as well as the world at large. You have to be tidy and disciplined about the number of possessions you own. A boat is either toasty warm or bloody freezing, except in summer when it's a hot tin roof. Do you really want to do this at the same time as supporting your kids through a divorce? Do you have a permanent mooring near school?

People do do it, its a thing people do...

Whether its a thing YOU can do thats another story.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is whether you want a boat to simply live on.. or a boat you can live on AND travel around the country in..

A narrowboat of 60ft would access the whole of the UK canal network... (but to do so as a single adult you'd need some extreme skills, I would not recommend it)...

Anything wider, so a barge, dutch barge etc, and anything longer, will be limited - longer isn't so much of a problem (there are some short locks but not so many) but wider is a BIG deal.

So if you do have visions of travelling extensively in your boat, forget anything broad beam, because huge sections of the canal network will be inaccessible due to bridge holes and locks that will only take a narrowboat.

Height can also be an issue, so beware that too!

If of course you simply want to live on a boat but not move the boat more than a few miles or so - ignore... but I sort of can't see the point in choosing to live on a boat that can't go anywhere!

I've been living on a boat with a mooring in London for 10 year's. I'm a single mum and my son is now almost 5. It's hard work in the winter but it's a simple and peaceful way to live. The beautiful view and feeding the ducks from my windows are my favourite bit. And the lovely community on the river. My son loves it! Give it a try, you can go back to dry land whenever you want!

Had 2 sets of friends who tried it, both chucked it in after a long winter:they couldn't get it to an acceptable warmth, it was 3 jumpers & a coat & still freezing.

Zombie 🧟‍♀️

We lived on a boat for some time. Albeit a very small boat just me and DP. It was lovely in so many ways, and horrid in others. It depends on what you're looking at though. A big modern Dutch barge will be world's away from the 30ft semi trad with a broken shower and no oven boat we were on. It's a wonderful way of life at times. Not sure I'd consider it with kids though. I just think they need their space a bit more. But that's my personal view. DP and I have plans to go back to it once DCs are fully independent.as PP has mentioned also, it's cheap a cheaper way of life, but can become very expensive very quickly. We found we'd end up spending loads on food out and about, or on going the pub or things like that just to get out. But ours was very small.

I am 15 and live on a canal boat honestly I am miserable every day and always want to move back into a house on a boat your kids wouldn't be able to do anything and it is freezing dont do that to your child it ruins their lives

We have a narrowboat, and it is neither cold or damp. We have a multi fuel stove and gas central heating. You will find space at a premium and you need to be quite minimalist. There are significant running costs and make sure you have a residential mooring before you buy the boat.

My mum was a nurse in the 1950s and vividly remembered two different children who lived on a narrow boats coming to hospital with rat bites. They both died.