sunken houseboat

[72stardust]

i am in high attempt to buy a houseboat that sank in a storm and just courious to what some diffrent opinions might be about it....its a 72 stardust cruiser 42 feet long 12 feet wide with twin chevy 350's with long body omc outdrive with elsctric shift and fiberglass hull...the hull has no holes and in consideration it looks decent considering. some of the stringers are in need replacement and the lower transom is rotted as well. although i have never glassed before i feel confident in the repairs. im pretty handy and worked on cars going on 20yrs now so with that being said outside of time would this thing be any count in restoration...all thoughts and opinions are welcomed...

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: sunken houseboat

If you add up the cost of materials and pay yourself $1/hr then divide by 4 and subtract $1000 you will likely arrive at the final value of the boat.... Of course this is speculation but I STRONGLY believe that you would be far better off aggressively shopping 10 times a day for the next year or so for great buy on a complete ready to use houseboat. I think, by doing that you would invest far less money and time and be on the water sooner......

just my .02 based on the info provided... best of luck to you.

PS If you make it known to several marina managers that you are looking for a free houseboat and have the ability to tow it away with short notice, you may be surprised at how soon you get a call.

 

[72stardust]

Re: sunken houseboat

never thought about a call...i know alot of time will need to be dedicated not to mention money...my thinking was to get a travel trailer that has damage from an auto auction my brother and i deal with...they range about 1200$ for an 98-02 model year and use alot of those items in the rebuild...i have looked at older house boats and they go for about 10,000$...i am figuring i will have about 5 in it after restoration. the motors and outdrives i assume will need gone through also. the motors are no problem but from reading the outdrives are a pain...would the travel trailer idea be a decent idea...fridge, stove, power inverter, sink. a/c unit. furnance, cabinets, holding tanks,...the boat looks decent just needs gutted and redone...it got caught up in a bad storm and just got over taken along with about 45 other boats...im so hooked on this boat...is the make of this boat a poor brand or just the condition of the boat not make it worth the hard work...

 

[QC]

Re: sunken houseboat

First off, welcome aboard!!

Second, I don't know if I could imagine a worse project candidate. Well, I could, but I'd have to try pretty hard.

Third, I agree with Smoke. Lot's of derelict houseboats that actually float.

Edit: You need to know those drives are junk. There is absolutely nothing of value except the engine cores. You need a new transom, new cutouts, and complete Merc Alphas from a donor boat(s) as a minimum.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: sunken houseboat

Qc is right and any houseboat of that vintage unless it has already been gone through, will have some serious issues with rott. Not to mention termites in alot of cases. I have rebuilt many old houseboats and can say it is a costly thing for the owners.

I would pass especially since you know it has been under water. Bad mojo!! Like already said, look for another one that is a better investment. Did I just say investment, lol Scratch that. Find another that you will be able to enjoy from the start.

Don't just look in your area, which I don't know where your located, but is on a river, you can more than likely find one one or two states away that you can float up or down river. Do you have a dock space for this? Also would be good to find one that is a live aboard for sale. These people maintain there boats year round and don't let them sit and rott away.

Old Nautilines are very good boats for the vintage they are, if they were maintained. Might look for one of those.

Ther things to keep in mind is bottom painting these big hulls and having them pulled and docked is expensive. If its a metal hulled houseboat, you have even more maintenance to be concerned about, but usually there worth the extra cost. Also don't get a houseboat that is under powered, the wind catches these things like a kite.

 

[ENSIGN]

Re: sunken houseboat

You'll be to old to enjoy it buy the time you get it done

 

[southkogs]

Re: sunken houseboat

... and there's two OMC stern drives in the picture too. Not only adding insult to injury on the rebuild, but also drawing considerable ridicule from other members of the forum

 

[H20Rat]

Re: sunken houseboat

OP, stop thinking of boats in terms of cars... With a car, you can find a rusting '69 camaro in a field, do a body off resto on it, and by the time you are done, you will have a very nice car without a huge investment, and the final result will actually be worth some money.

In the boating world, that doesn't exist. You will have a massive investment, and by the time you are done, your final product will be worth well below 1/2 of what you put into it. Worse yet, you could have taken that investment and purchased a fully running houseboat.

So yes, you can restore a boat, and many people do, but saving money is not one of the reasons.

Your guess of $5k into it is extremely low. Without pictures its hard to say, but knowing it has been sunk, you are going to be in for $15k MINIMUM. The engine/drive pairs alone could run you $5k each. We aren't talking opening up the engine and re-honing the cylinders here. Those longblocks and drives are 100% shot, they are scrap metal. Every accessory needs to be replaced also. 100% of the wiring and controls have to come out also.

 

[QC]

Re: sunken houseboat

... and there's two OMC stern drives in the picture too.

Electric OMCs to be precise. Even worser . . .

 

[dlngr]

Re: sunken houseboat

I'm no boat expert like some of these guys who have posted-but just talking money here,I bought an old 16' aluminum,and added a flat floor,fishing decks front and rear,and new wood in the transom.Carpet and 4 new swivel seats,new bilge pump,some wiring,and some odds and ends- I spent over 2k. But the biggest expense was the whole summer of work[weekends and nights after work] I put into it instead of being on the water. I think your total cost of this houseboat rejuvination could easily run nearer to 20k.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: sunken houseboat

the few appliances you will get from the camper are the least of your concerns.... the structural members, walls, floors, ceilings, wiring, insulation, fixtures, engines,drives, controls, transom, stringers, fasteners, etc, will be enough to blow your mind... you don't need to clean it up, you need to rebuild it... you'll end up with WAY more money spent than you can buy one for.. I have a buddy learning this very lesson on an all aluminum 38' sportfisher... He has had to remove sooo much more than he thought he would.... ex: mold in the walls from wet insulation is no fun

You have load bearing walls to work with too.... then there's the iceburg effect..... just about everything you look at to fix will actually be just the tip of the iceburg sticking out and the damage will be 10 times worse than what you can actually see.

 

[72stardust]

Re: sunken houseboat

well all this info is not what i was wanting to hear but the truth is never easy...i have been excited about this boat and just positive about it and just knew it would take alot of hard work. through the forums people are always replacing stringers and transoms are generally rotted so i figured why would this play a part in the cons list...its a 72...so i didnt expect much to be in good shape and as long as the hull didnt have any holes i figured it all would be ok. just needed alot of work. wasnt sure bout the outdrives as in using diffrent ones...well im really sad now but i will go check out the marinas...wish me luck on my search for my escape to relaxation...thank you for any help and thoughts...

 

[QC]

Re: sunken houseboat

I always feel guilty for squashing anyone's enthusiasm

To the OP. We would be unfair to you to be overly optimistic. We are not a bunch of negative Nancys. We honestly want your entry into boating to be a positive thing, but it probably doesn't sound that way. Maybe a way to approach this might be to look at the different pieces of your proposed budget, and then let us comment on those parts. A good example is my comments about the drives, and smoke's about the engines. Right there is a simple place to do a reality check and it doesn't have to include speculation on the health of some unknown systems and the value of the travel trailer plan. These are known issues, and known replacement costs.

I don't think that we could even find an OMC fan to recommend you keep those electric drives. So we need to price out replacements. Everything from the back of the block to the propeller needs to go. And replacements for ALL of this is costly without a complete set of matched donors. Start the pencil there.

BTW, how long was she down? Has anything been done to her since? Unless the engines were immediately "pickled" which seems unlikely, then I am with Smoke on that too. I said "cores" and I think that is optimistic. So you need to consider that complete engines are also in your plan. Rebuilding is kind of out . . .

Edit: Sorry delayed post. Most comments are still valid so I am leaving it. Thanks for the good reaction

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: sunken houseboat

don't be discouraged... you just slipped out of the hangman's noose.... Be diligent in your search... check craigslist in every major city (that you could reasonably transport from) regularly (are you along a river?)

A FREE boat that you can use with a thorough cleaning, a couple cases of caulk and associated scraping, a a few gallons of paint, new carpet, batts, fuel, a couple of carburetor jobs and a starter or two, will be MUCH more relaxing than a lifelong project that your kids will have to haul off after you are gone.

 

[72stardust]

Re: sunken houseboat

i really do appreicate all the help and looking out for me..thank you.. my search began looking for a pontoon big enough for momma and our 4 kids...then one day searching the auction list i seen this houseboat and thought wow...that would be great for all of us to go hang out on...but wants and reality dont go hand in hand and glad i posted...i did get a chance to talk to the driver that hauled the boat and he said people was offering to buy it from the insurance company as he was hauling it away...it went down in may of 2011 but not sure how long it was under and nothing had been done to it. the walls were still covered in mold or lake water residue but the floor underneath seemed solid and didnt have any mold on the joist but a further look did show signs the stringers would need replaced...ahhh....saddened but glad to escape the noose. so my search continues to ebay and craigslist...thank you again...shall i keep you posted on my next find...

 

[QC]

Re: sunken houseboat

thank you again...shall i keep you posted on my next find...

You're welcome, and yes please.

If you really think you want a houseboat have you considered renting for a reality check? I love them!!! Buttttt, what you imagine today may not be what reality will be like.. Winter rates are usually very cheap and if shared ownership is popular there I can imagine getting even a week on a nice boat as being pretty cheap. Be careful about renting a super nice one though. Family expectations will be high and very hard to duplicate. Basic rental with twin OBs might a very good option for a quick evaluation

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: sunken houseboat

Well THAT was quick!

Gibson Houseboat

Above is an example of what can be found... Just popped up today... might not be worth the fuel to burn it or MIGHT be a great start... either way they ARE out there and for every junker passed up, another potential will show up.

EDIT: also this just might have been the very add you would have posted 5 years and $5000 into the future ... YIKES!

 

[tinkerguy70]

Re: sunken houseboat

I know I'm jumping in here late, and am somewhat new to boating, but what I have learned is that the damage is seldom as simple as it seems.
Even on a small boat of any age there are lots of unforeseen expenses and repairs, I can only imagine trying to save something that was swamped and has been setting untouched for over a year now.
I think these guys are doing you a good service by discouraging this venture. I tend to agree that this just isn't a good project. I get the feeling that you will end up spending piles of money and time, only to give up in the end.
Take the advice, keep looking, the right one is out there, you just have to look for it a little bit and don't get discouraged, your ship will come in soon enough! (pun intended)

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: sunken houseboat

i really do appreicate all the help and looking out for me..thank you.. my search began looking for a pontoon big enough for momma and our 4 kids...then one day searching the auction list i seen this houseboat and thought wow...that would be great for all of us to go hang out on...but wants and reality dont go hand in hand and glad i posted...i did get a chance to talk to the driver that hauled the boat and he said people was offering to buy it from the insurance company as he was hauling it away...it went down in may of 2011 but not sure how long it was under and nothing had been done to it. the walls were still covered in mold or lake water residue but the floor underneath seemed solid and didnt have any mold on the joist but a further look did show signs the stringers would need replaced...ahhh....saddened but glad to escape the noose. so my search continues to ebay and craigslist...thank you again...shall i keep you posted on my next find...

Not only will most here look out for you, we can help you make an informed discision on what you plan to purchase or have interest in. A pontoon, though they aren't reallly my style, may be a good place to start for you if you are looking for an affordable, low cost way to get on the water and have a ton of fun. If you are purchasing your first boat, a houseboat imo is not what you should be getting into.

Houseboats are a load of fun and I think there great for liveaboards that can maintain them regularly, but most houseboats sit for long periods of time without maintenance,, even the newer ones, so you can imagine that a very old one can have many unforseen issues.

Houseboats in general were not made well, including gibson. All the older ones I have worked on had major drainage issues, and that is where most of the water/rott problems come from. Right from the factory, never mind years of neglect in most cases.

My dad had an old 43 ft nautiline that we pretty much rebuilt completely, he had invested atleast 80 grand in her by the time it was all said and done. They lived aboard for almost ten years, then sold it for I think 15G. So basically they are money pits. And nautilines were better built than most back in that era. He now has a custom designed and built houseboat they live on. My brother is also a liveaboard.

You mentioned being excited about the boat, I'm glad you came here and asked for advice, it will save you frustration and money in the long run. I get excited about atleast 10 boats per year, but haven't purchased any of them. I truly believe the right boat usually will find the right owner if they are patient. good luck on your search and keep us posted.

 

[72stardust]

Re: sunken houseboat

well several things are driving me...as a kid we had a twin hull (iirc) and remember the days of leaning over and feeling the splash in my face and enjoy the the bounce from the wake as we zoomed accross it...that only lasted one summer though...went out with friends and water skied later along life and then marriage came then kids...i have always wanted a boat and figured a pontoon would be best to fit all the kids and be comfortable. speeding along isnt what i want...just hanging out and wathing the kids horse around would be great but the budget never supported it. now the kids are in their early to mid teens and bout grown and never gave them that expirence that i got to enjoy. i always thought the idea of a houseboat would be like hitting the lottery but didnt happen to low budget families then i seen the one i have mentioned and figured with my handyman abilities it really could be feasible so i read several forums and seen alot of people do alot work to them and figured this was no diffrent just a larger scale...no problem...lol....i thing i have learned is if a few people say something listen...if many people say the same thing...listen and do as they say...i am grateful of your hardship of expirence and i appreicate all of it...but with all this being said i really like the fact of finding something old and neglected and enjoying the fact that you brought it back to life...am i crazy for looking for such a thing along the lines of a boat...do fix'er uppers exist and and least be the same as you got in them...im not looking equity just something cheap and parts availibility and a manual...lol...