The Liveaboard Report: A Boat Dweller's Guide to What Works and What Doesn't

A couple weeks ago I finished reading Charlie Wing's "The Liveaboard Report / A Boat Dweller's Guide to What Works and What Doesn't". In it he interviews 71 sail-boaters -- these are cruisers for the most part, and not your weekend-warrior racer types.Anyway, the author provides pie charts and bar graphs of the responses for a gazillion questions a beginner might have. The premise was, what would he (CW) like to know before investing in various systems and goodies. What works so to speak, planned for improvements, along with what they would change if money were no object. I found it interesting. It also had a small section on budgeting/budgets. One thing which struck me (and he) was that of those with refrigeration, those with engine driven systems were not happy. The problem (if memory serves me) is that folks aren't real pleased to run their engine for an hour a day to charge the system, and cruisers with other power sources for their units were more satisfied. You know, I too have read those wonderful stats of the engine driven units... but I don't know that running an engine (wear and tear) for an hour a day is going to make me a happy cruiser. It's the 'little things' -- my budget will be limited, therefore it is critical that I learn as much as possible pre-purchase so my choices can be wiser, one hopes! ;)You might consider the book... it opened my eyes. For instance, we read so much about SSBs and the like, but in the book, universally VHF was aboard -- and not so much the SSB. I'm going to take another look through my copy this evening (taking notes) and then upload it to my website. "The Liveaboard Report" is worth a look, though I don't know if I'd want to keep it aboard. It's more a Guide for good decision-making rather than a book you'd need forever.

This book has an interesting premise: instead of relying solely on the author's experience as to what works and what doesn't, the author instead puts the question to over seventy live-aboards. The result is a book of smart questions and interesting answers complete with both statistical breakdowns and useful anecdotes. If you are contemplating the live-aboard life-style, this book will give you a firm idea what to expect.

I currrently live aboard and found this to be a very valuable guide. I read this book before making the move and avoided several problems because of the good info provided.

Imagine my surprise a couple of years ago when I found the Liveaboard Report in a Newport bookstore. Charlie Wing, the author, happened also to be the author of "From the Ground Up," a book on owner building written in the 1970's. Charlie and his housebuilding school students built me a house in rural Maine. Last I saw of him was when he had bought his boat on the Maine coast.About the book, he rekindled an interest in sailing for me, and my wife and I are retiring in the spring, selling house and all, and moving aboard. His charts and numbers are extremely helpful and have guided a number of my equipment choices. His description of peoples' budgets, the amount of time they sail each week, and general attitudes, have given me a great picture of the liveaboard life. I'm no Larry Pardy, but can really identify with the composite liveaboard picture he paints in his book.Thanks (again) Charlie, for writing another book that helped me steer the course of my life!

This book is a survey of a number of liveaboards about everything from batteries to hulls to stoves. What the people like and what they don't like. This is useful information for me... as I haven't yet lived 100% of the time on a boat. I'm not interested in reinventing the wheel... I enjoyed the book.