What a wonderful adventure! Such fabulous memories, Becky! Just found these films after learning of Bret’s passing so it’s bitter sweet! God Bless You & Your Family! ❤️🙏 Beautiful Scenery! I would love a houseboat & being on a TN lake so so great! ❤️🙏
this is communications positive comments we can all learn from! .....and the way YT customers should be treated... I love your boat idea and cooking up something just like that txs for posting.
This is pretty cool! My significant other is wanting a live-aboard boat so I've been researching, trying to find options that would make us both happy. With every video I watch I learn something new! Thanks for sharing your story!
Thanks for watching!! I don't know how long you plan on staying on a boat, but after several days it gets to be a little bit too much for me. I like my yard. I have a few acres with fruit trees, a fire pit, and room to walk around. On a boat, you have nothing but the boat. It is relaxing for a little while though.....Becky
Hey guys a great material for your roof is called "Alupanel". It's used as a signwriting panel and comes in 2400 x 1200 (8' x 4') sheets. It's a composite material that has a plastic abs core sandwiched between two thin aluminium sheets. It comes in 3mm or the thicker 4mm, is light and strong, totally weatherproof, comes in any colour, can be cut with a knife and steel ruler (scored and snap) or shape cut with a jigsaw. It's light and can be bent to your roof profile. Great video and good luck!!
I'm glad to see y'all in the water...I have a 24 foot Lowe with the small toons on it an wanted to try a cabin on it like you guys did but it looks like more that I can do ,great job y'all did on the boat I've learned so much watching ....thank you guys..
Well, I hope you decide to build your boat cabin and upload the videos. You might be surprised how many people on TH-cam would be interested in it. My daughter is building a log cabin on a 24 foot pontoon by herself. She's been at it for a year and she probably has at least 6 months to go before it's finished. She started from scratch...just a pontoon platform and she didn't video any of it, smh. Thanks for watching and taking time to comment!!......Becky
OK my question was answered at at 9:20 mark! lol I haven't been down there in years. I went to college at LMU in Harrogate and also my Mom and Dad kept their houseboat on Norris Lake (Straight Creek) for many years. My Mother just about raised my youngins down there on Norris Lake. I can't tell you how many times we camped out in a little cove like you all did and the kids always loved to go under the 33 Bridge.We always spent 4th of July down there too. My Mom would make gravy n biscuits in the mornings,too.I sure have enjoyed your video...it's brought back some awful sweet memories for me. My Mom and Dad are both gone now and my kids are grown. Anyways, you've made this old KY gal happy with your wonderful video. PS Love the song Tuesday's Gone..my favorite Skynyrd song. I bet you all were listening to WIMZ.
A few of our kids went to LMU. We go into Straight Creek boat dock all of the time. Norris lake must be the prettiest lake on earth. I wish that we could spend more time there. Sorry to hear about your mom and dad passing. Yes, we were listening to WIMZ! It's a small world isn't it? ....Becky
used some coreplast to sheath a shed and it degraded completely in 4 or 5 years...but used some to sheath some boarded up windows that secured a garage that I painted with primer and house paint and they've held up fine for about 7 years now. You may want to try painting your roof or you may even try some of the mobile home roof sealant? Also, some coreplast is made to biodegrade. Got the wrong kind once and it was not any good for long at all.
Looks pretty cool and a lot of fun. One thing that would improve fuel mileage and increase speed is to add about an 18" to 24" cone to that flat surface of the front barrel. I will cut your drag through the water significantly. additionally, since I assume that it is too late to move the cabin forward a little on the pontoons, you might look into shifting some of your load forward. to level the boat.This too could cut gas consumption and increase speed a little. I really enjoyed your video and look forward to more.
We are going to add a temporary cone (actually it'll be a vertical wedge) We're shopping for some larger pontoons so that we can get rid of the barrels altogether. When we were doing the filming, we had all of out bottled water, gasoline etc.... in the back of the boat. We just hadn't gotten around to moving everything forward. We probably should have because it makes it look like we're going down in the back lol. Thanks for watching!!
sputter butt is cool, looks like fun guys. i am from chattanooga. i live now in baltimore. Tenn river and lock system lots of fun. film the trip when u do it. great job...
I can't wait to take it to Chattanooga!! The way that the river winds through the mountains in that area is beautiful. It's only going to be about a 200 mile round trip, but that's a long way in a boat that moves as slow as a raft :P Bret has studied the locks on TH-cam and he's nervous about it, but he still wants to do it. Thanks for watching! ....Becky
Joel Stewart You must have moved here because of you job. It's too much crime, drugs and prostitution which has overrun the once beautiful city of Baltimore.
Tamara Weber that tells me the schools and low income folks aren't being helped in your city!!! community is to blame if you allow folks to have no other option then crime and no empathy for the DISEASE of drug addiction and just keep voting in the same AGENDA !!!
Coroplast is available with different coatings. The type made for signage has a UV coating that stops sun from damaging the plastic. Without a UV coating it would deteriorate pretty quickly in a sunny area.
Thanks!! You're right about it needing another barrel in the back. The problem with adding one is that it would interrupt the flow of water and cause cavitation and the motor would overheat. We're actively looking for bigger pontoons so that we can eliminate the barrels. Thanks for watching!
I am thinking of making something like this but as a camper and keeping it on land to stay in, I’m not sure if it’s possible honestly but this gives me hope that it could be
Hey, it floats, it runs and you're in out of the weather. You don't need anything else. You did good. I learned a long time ago, though, that you always make sure that your motor starts before you take the boat off the trailer.
I checked the motor to see if it would start right before I hooked it up to the truck, so I thought everything was good. I guess the vent must have vibrated shut while we were taking it down the road. You're right though, next time I'll fire it up before I take it off the trailer. Thanks!!
I had a childhood friend, that his Dad built a pontoon from aircraft fuel tiers. It was a very sturdy craft. Went fishing on it several times. They used square bar to frame the walls and corrugated metal siding. It was mainly for fishing, not to try to live on.
Buy a painters cloth or any type of canvas, stripes design would look good and glue it down with tachy glue. Once it's dry you can roll on Thompson's clear all weather coat to weather proof it. Maybe take a look at Paul Elkins channel and ask him what he would do. I think he will be very helpful.
Pretty cool i like the keep it simple idea , only thing i'd would change would be putting the steering console forward in front of the big window. also curious about what you use for the drop curtains as you had them pulled up. over all cool boat to chill on.
We are considering moving the console forward. The only reason we didn't when we bought the boat was because the choke cable would have been too short. Moving the console now means rewiring a lot of wires, but we're still thinking about it. The curtains are only held up by Velcro. It's a higher quality Velcro because it's exposed to the elements, but not much more expensive than regular Velcro. Thanks for watching!
awesome video I would love to be there with you people maybe one day when I can afford it and get off the east coast I can go enjoy myself with the beautiful scenery God bless you
Nice boat. I used to boat on Norris Lake when my parents lived in East Tennessee. For a second I thought you were coming up on another coroplast houseboat. Wouldn't that be something? lol!
I agree that having too much weight in the front is bad, but having too much in the back is not good either Previously you had mentioned keeping most of the weight in the back and I thought, Keep it balanced, not front or back. Wish I had been there to make that suggestion.
Looking forward to seeing part 2. It looks great. I was excited to see that you got it out on the water. I just found the other videos about this recently. It would be nice to get the rear up a bit more out of the water but it doesn't seem to be a major issue. Painting the roof would probably work well if its not getting rain through it. Plus that chloroplast isn't that much to do a replacement every few years. I would cover it with a tarp when in storage. That could make it easier to get the snow off. I think Becky had the right idea getting some things up out of the way. Did that help with it seeming too crowded? You might be able to go a bit faster if you put some type of cone on the front of the blue barrels.
I think we could get the rear up out of the water by removing one of the four barrels that we recently put under the boat. They're all at the bow of the boat. We couldn't put a barrel at the stern because it would interrupt the flow of water too much and cause the motor to cavitate and overheat. We need a solution for sure. I don't think we'll have to cover the boat with a tarp if we get our barn finished before snowfall. We're building it to house the boat, but it's only about 25% complete. When I put the blankets and stuff up in the *attic* it made a world of difference. I ordered some netting that I want to try to use to hold stuff overhead. If that doesn't work, then I'll have to build something out of wood to hold it. Bret is going to make a retractable metal deflector that he says will work like a cone in front of the barrels. It has to retract so that we can beach the boat. I looked over the bow of the boat when we were on the lake and the blunt end of the barrel was really resisting the movement through the water in a big way. I think we could go faster and improve our gas mileage, which is currently 4 miles per gallon. Thanks for watching!! ......Becky
I'm sure glad that we got it finished and on the water! It took 3 years to complete, which I suppose isn't that long to build a boat, but longer than I wanted to spend :P Thanks for watching and taking time to comment! ....Becky
Bret Becky yes ma'am y'all done a mighty fine job,,and that there houseboat is a really comfortable looking way to spend a day,,or even a week at that.. I have to hand it to ya,, the ratchet straps in the rafters for storage was an excellent idea,,and I'm even going to use it myself in our attic in the near future,,so thank you very much.. y'all folks be blessed out there living the dream have a good time,,and be safe on the river.... God bless you,,and your's....PS I have family over on Hendricks Creek boat dock just there around Celina Tennessee,,and the Burkesville Kentucky state line a place called Dale Hollow Dam,,and I hear tale there is some good boating fishing,and river living over that way..... just thought I'd make reference...again God bless ya's
Thanks Pamela!! I'd live on it if I could, but Becky is a landlubber haha. I wish we had built one just a hair bigger. We're not cramped in it, but it's not spacious.
I used a light weight fiber glass sheeting that is used on the roofs of tractor trailer vans. it forms nice just need to use good bracing material. and i don't think its expensive at all
Do you remember where you bought it? The only thing keeping us from using fiberglass sheeting is the weight. If we could get our hands on some lightweight stuff, we'd use it.
It's quiet at night where we live also. I love the night sounds (except the coyotes) In the summer, we still sleep with the windows and doors open just to be able to enjoy the outdoors.
Well....now I know. Thanks. I was one of those guys that thought that boating was easy, no experience necessary. I'm learning that I have a lot to learn.
rule number 0.75 wait until it is warmed up and running properly before you do anything else and that includes a quick restart. NO boating is NOT easy it is just like flying you dont want to hit a stup any more than you want to hit a pole. PLANNING!
but it is fun finding out you have more to learn isnt it! it is called human growth and it is more than size...... when i am in a busy parking lot i like to watch the cars going in out and parking. i was asked why one day by a lady i was with. so i explained in detail just to see how she would take it, just for fun. here goes... if you look at a parking lot like a marina. you wonder why the gulls are standing in places. it looks like water to them. they just cant swim right! you throw food in water like they do in a parking lot, right! do they need to care beyond that. fed! people in parking lots drive between cars and split the lot or use it as a traffic light detour. they work on cars in them, they commit actions in them. that is because all you need to use a parking lot is really only being there. you do not need to be connected to a car to be in a parking lot. no behavior restraints at all for the general purpose parking lot. not so for a marina or an airport big or small. you dont stand in a taxiway or on a runway, you dont cut across a marina at all. nobody wants there bass boat hit by a row boat and a 38 ft yacht doesnt want to be parked next to the bass boats or Forrest's shrimpen boat. the word respect and expectation are introduced. same thing for a golf course, stadium, auditorium you name it. it boils down to the public and how they percieve the environment and ownership. end of sermon.....enjoy being a shrimpen boat captains Bret Becky. do yourself a favor in the future....wake up on the ocean and the lake...and stay up all night with no lights (except were needed) or noises!!! it WILL change your life and how you think about it. we had a baby whale circle our boat circle and sit there just looking at us. we found a boat floating the CG came out to look at it. nobody on board at all, it did not drive out by itself and no sign of robbery. CG towed it in. found a few jet skiers trying to make it to Catalina Island...DO NOT DO THAT shark waters!!!!you idiots! a shark can knock you of in a second......... enjoy your boat..and i will stop this runaway writing..i had fun!
Hey there! Thanks again for watching. I'm trying to keep the sugar down, but it's a struggle. Checking glucose levels 6 to 8 times a day, shooting insulin 4 to 6 times a day is an interruption in whatever I'm doing during the day, so I forget to do both sometimes. It doesn't get too high though.
That's great advice. Plus you may want to use a inexpensive tarp when its just being stored. If you use UV stabilized paint it should last quite a while.
Thanks Michael. I don't know what plasti-dri is, but I'll check it out. I wish that we had coated it with something like that right after we put the roof on, but we didn't think it would be necessary, ugh. Thanks for watching!! .....Becky
The sides of the boat haven't been affected by the sun or rain at all. It literally looks like brand new. The roof is a different story. We have to do something different with the roof this year, it won't wait because the sun has baked it. We are looking at a lot of options, and we probably will go with the fiberglass. Thanks for watching!
Looking at the way she floats, I suspect some points or wedge shaped extensions on the back of your pontoons would improve trim and give you some more speed. Shaped foam ought to work. Overall, she looks great.
Initially we made one giant cone out of spray foam and then covered it with fiberglass mat and resin. It was a work of art and we had over $100.00 dollars invested in it. The problem that we encountered was attaching it to the pontoon. We scratched our head for the longest time and never came up with a way to attach it, so we threw it in the fire and sadly abandoned that idea. You're right about foam though, it makes an awesome cone. Now we're shaping sheet metal to fit. Attaching it will be easier. Thanks!!
Epoxy holds to aluminum if the aluminum has been lightly sanded to give it tooth.A tight fitting sleeve with a couple of inches of epoxied overlap ought to do it.
A word of caution from a past bad experience. The design should be safe under normal conditions, however, be prepared to run up on the shore and slightly ground her if weather conditions turn inclement Bad. High winds will whip it around and a combination of currents(if any) and the winds, will have No Mercy and Flip it Over Instantly. I watched this happen and fortunately, everyone got out O.K. The boat sank rapidly and was not salvageable. Not a condemnation but definitely a word of caution as it is obvious it is top heavy and unstable in abnormal conditions. It would be easy enough however to include stabilizer outriggers(?). "GOOD LUCK AND ENJOY EVERY POSSIBLE MINUTE WITH IT!"
We kept up with the records and receipts for a long time, but stopped keeping up with the expense for some reason. If I had to guess, we have a little under $5,000 in it. Too much!!
yes I guess $5000 would be a tad much doing it yourself,but I would have to hire it built. I want to spend the summers in ohio and the winters in suwanninie fla. cheers
have you got anymore done to the bigger boat? I've been working on mine a little hope to be able to get it wet this coming summer and travel from where I live up past Tazewell as far as the water level will allow.
the engine inly runs when you want to drive it it doesnt run when your not driving so its not going to bother you more than any other boat when your driving... just saying 🤷🏼
It was uneven because we were both at the back of the boat. That's one of the drawbacks of a small boat I suppose. Once Becky moved to the front, it straightened right up :)
Nice rig, but...... Looks like your a bit aft heavy. I'd move some things forward. You'd have more room if you place some things outside. Propane tanks should never be inside. They should be in a vented box outside. If I understood you to say your pontoons 'suck in' in the cold, you should put vents on top. If they keep doing that they will spring leaks and good bye boat. Other than that, I love seeing people building their dreams and enjoying them. Hope you have smooth sailing, my friend.
Thanks! We're actually starting over. We're in the process of building a new, better boat that will use vinyl siding and a tin roof. The new boat also has a bigger motor and bigger pontoons. The other boat was just too small and weight was in areas where it shouldn't have been.
that's funny you said has tank vent was closed. I just finally got me another pontoon. had a 24ft years ago while fighting disability I had to part mine out. well got me a 19 ft. started right up 2k I was happy a 95. with 85 evenrude. well the day after I got we got hit with a flood. so didn't get to take it out for 2 months we rained a month it seamed and water up 2 months. but took out finally started right up and it quit 6 hrs didn't stay running. so finally got help. man took the pump apart 3 times. then finally I took tank out thinking maybe bad gas. so took cap off. looked inside the cap was broke so wasn't venting. put back in another cap started right up. I was mad. but finally went out a week later. had problems again opened lid. gas every were. changed hoses clamps but still leaked at the top of the line going into the pump. nope the pump. the guy who took it apart tighened on the screw and warped the pump plastic. so 120 for new pump so its been in my yard all summer and now can't get fixed till later. I was so sad. but a guy wants my 19ft. he has a 27 wants to trade his is older but 8ft bigger think I'll trade. plus his has steering in the middle of the boat not the edge I like that. its got a 80 but only 5 diffrence. but sorry for long story. glad to see y'all back videoing been weighting. god bless.
If you can trade for a bigger boat then you are lucky. Ours is a 20 ft and it's a little cramped. 27 ft would be very spacious. 5 different on the motor probably wouldn't be noticeable. Bret is always complaining because our steering is on the right side of the boat and not in the center. It's pretty rare to find a boat with the console in the center, so that's a lucky find too. If you make the trade with him, I hope you make a video of your new pontoon boat and upload it. Thanks for watching ours! ......Becky
I'm using an app named "Boating USA by Navionics." I think it was a one time cost of $15.00 and it's absolutely wonderful. It's an actual Marine GPS chart plotter that would cost around $1,000 if you bought it as a device. You can put it on your phone or tablet. I don't know how familiar you are with apps, so I'll explain it like you're a beginner. On your phone, go to the Google play store. Once you're there, you can find stuff like navigation, gps, compasses, speedometers, altimeters, sonar, etc....Most of the apps are free.
Thanks! The Coroplast did great on the walls, but failed miserably on the roof. The sun and rain was just too much for it. We're in the process of building a new, better boat that will use vinyl siding and a tin roof. The new boat also has a bigger motor and bigger pontoons. Thanks for watching Tamara!
spotted the southern accent reminded me of a story I met this old boy with a cowboy hat on he had a Southern accent I said what part of the South are you from he said why I'm from Maine I said what part of Maine he said the main part of Dallas Texas
What a wonderful adventure! Such fabulous memories, Becky! Just found these films after learning of Bret’s passing so it’s bitter sweet! God Bless You & Your Family! ❤️🙏 Beautiful Scenery! I would love a houseboat & being on a TN lake so so great! ❤️🙏
Love watching your memories Becky, I smiled thru the whole video. God Bless you always.
Young Bret was such a magical man. He is truly missed💜
What a beautiful memory and I LOVE the boat's name lol
This looks like great fun. How exciting😃well done. Great job.
this is communications positive comments we can all learn from!
.....and the way YT customers should be treated...
I love your boat idea and cooking up something just like that txs for posting.
Thanks! :)
Looks like a fine adventure can’t wait to see part 2. Thanks for posting.
Thank you!
This is pretty cool! My significant other is wanting a live-aboard boat so I've been researching, trying to find options that would make us both happy. With every video I watch I learn something new! Thanks for sharing your story!
Thanks for watching!! I don't know how long you plan on staying on a boat, but after several days it gets to be a little bit too much for me. I like my yard. I have a few acres with fruit trees, a fire pit, and room to walk around. On a boat, you have nothing but the boat. It is relaxing for a little while though.....Becky
You two are wanting me to do something like this, love your ideas, very cool!
Thanks!!
That’s so cool! I like your disco music in the background.
Hey guys a great material for your roof is called "Alupanel". It's used as a signwriting panel and comes in 2400 x 1200 (8' x 4') sheets. It's a composite material that has a plastic abs core sandwiched between two thin aluminium sheets. It comes in 3mm or the thicker 4mm, is light and strong, totally weatherproof, comes in any colour, can be cut with a knife and steel ruler (scored and snap) or shape cut with a jigsaw. It's light and can be bent to your roof profile. Great video and good luck!!
Thanks!! We'll check it out. It sounds like it would be perfect for us :)
Alupanel is made in the UK. Here is a company in the US that makes a similar product graphicdisplayusa.com/products/dibond/
Neat little water camper congratulations on all the hard work
Thanks!!
I'm glad to see y'all in the water...I have a 24 foot Lowe with the small toons on it an wanted to try a cabin on it like you guys did but it looks like more that I can do ,great job y'all did on the boat I've learned so much watching ....thank you guys..
Well, I hope you decide to build your boat cabin and upload the videos. You might be surprised how many people on TH-cam would be interested in it. My daughter is building a log cabin on a 24 foot pontoon by herself. She's been at it for a year and she probably has at least 6 months to go before it's finished. She started from scratch...just a pontoon platform and she didn't video any of it, smh. Thanks for watching and taking time to comment!!......Becky
A log cabin on toons sounds too heavy. I wish you luck.
OK my question was answered at at 9:20 mark! lol I haven't been down there in years. I went to college at LMU in Harrogate and also my Mom and Dad kept their houseboat on Norris Lake (Straight Creek) for many years. My Mother just about raised my youngins down there on Norris Lake. I can't tell you how many times we camped out in a little cove like you all did and the kids always loved to go under the 33 Bridge.We always spent 4th of July down there too. My Mom would make gravy n biscuits in the mornings,too.I sure have enjoyed your video...it's brought back some awful sweet memories for me. My Mom and Dad are both gone now and my kids are grown. Anyways, you've made this old KY gal happy with your wonderful video. PS Love the song Tuesday's Gone..my favorite Skynyrd song. I bet you all were listening to WIMZ.
A few of our kids went to LMU. We go into Straight Creek boat dock all of the time. Norris lake must be the prettiest lake on earth. I wish that we could spend more time there. Sorry to hear about your mom and dad passing. Yes, we were listening to WIMZ! It's a small world isn't it? ....Becky
I thought about making raft with barrels. My thought was to fill the barrel with marine foam. I like your design.
You may want to try a flexible greenhouse roofing material to get the uv toughness and illumination. Have a boating blast!
That's a great idea! Thanks! I think it comes in 10 foot lengths and that's exactly what we'll need.
Get your roof sprayed with the same stuff they spay in back of Pickup Trunks -- like RinoLiner. :) Some nice Lakes up there -- Nice Video. :)
Thank you!
great idea w/ ratchet straps to use for storage. cool boat, looks hella fun!
Thank you!! We had a great time!!
What a cool lil boat! Man, that looked like a great time. Good job on the boat.
...great, now Im hungry after seeing that breakfast....luckily breakfast is only about an hour and a half away, haha
Thanks, we had a great time!!
used some coreplast to sheath a shed and it degraded completely in 4 or 5 years...but used some to sheath some boarded up windows that secured a garage that I painted with primer and house paint and they've held up fine for about 7 years now. You may want to try painting your roof or you may even try some of the mobile home roof sealant? Also, some coreplast is made to biodegrade. Got the wrong kind once and it was not any good for long at all.
Thank you!! The sides of the boat hasn't degraded at all, but the roof has. We definitely have to change roofing materials.
Looks pretty cool and a lot of fun. One thing that would improve fuel mileage and increase speed is to add about an 18" to 24" cone to that flat surface of the front barrel. I will cut your drag through the water significantly. additionally, since I assume that it is too late to move the cabin forward a little on the pontoons, you might look into shifting some of your load forward. to level the boat.This too could cut gas consumption and increase speed a little. I really enjoyed your video and look forward to more.
We are going to add a temporary cone (actually it'll be a vertical wedge) We're shopping for some larger pontoons so that we can get rid of the barrels altogether. When we were doing the filming, we had all of out bottled water, gasoline etc.... in the back of the boat. We just hadn't gotten around to moving everything forward. We probably should have because it makes it look like we're going down in the back lol. Thanks for watching!!
sputter butt is cool, looks like fun guys. i am from chattanooga. i live now in baltimore. Tenn river and lock system lots of fun. film the trip when u do it. great job...
I can't wait to take it to Chattanooga!! The way that the river winds through the mountains in that area is beautiful. It's only going to be about a 200 mile round trip, but that's a long way in a boat that moves as slow as a raft :P Bret has studied the locks on TH-cam and he's nervous about it, but he still wants to do it. Thanks for watching! ....Becky
Over the years I've found Latex roof coatings easy and lasting two years . No need to replace solid roofing . Thanks
Joel Stewart You must have moved here because of you job. It's too much crime, drugs and prostitution which has overrun the once beautiful city of Baltimore.
Tamara Weber that tells me the schools and low income folks aren't being helped in your city!!! community is to blame if you allow folks to have no other option then crime and no empathy for the DISEASE of drug addiction and just keep voting in the same AGENDA !!!
Tamara Weber
l
Coroplast is available with different coatings. The type made for signage has a UV coating that stops sun from damaging the plastic. Without a UV coating it would deteriorate pretty quickly in a sunny area.
I love the fact you experimented with coroplast thumbs up!
Thanks!!
I'm really enjoying the ride,,,,,,,, from here (Lake Balboa, Ca).
I love the idea of a boat like that! Good Job!
Thank you!!
Glad it worked out for you guys. You took a chance, spending 3 years of woring on it, befor you were sur it would float
Thanks!
looks like you guys need another barrel in the back....cool boat man! I like the rubber roof idea.
Thanks!! You're right about it needing another barrel in the back. The problem with adding one is that it would interrupt the flow of water and cause cavitation and the motor would overheat. We're actively looking for bigger pontoons so that we can eliminate the barrels. Thanks for watching!
タイニーハウス🏠シップ、のんびり、ゆつくり。かたつむりキャンプ⛺もエエんでないか、作れそう🎵おもろいな😃好きやわ‼️
That's pretty neat. As you were driving down the highway thought it was TN. Good ol southern engineering
You're right . It is Tennessee!! We appreciate you watching and taking time to comment!
It looks like the place to be to me..!!!!! 👍👍👍 I would have extended the front deck another three or four feet...
If it was up to my wifey, it would all be front deck :P
I am thinking of making something like this but as a camper and keeping it on land to stay in, I’m not sure if it’s possible honestly but this gives me hope that it could be
very nice house-boating on a lake
Hey, it floats, it runs and you're in out of the weather. You don't need anything else. You did good. I learned a long time ago, though, that you always make sure that your motor starts before you take the boat off the trailer.
I checked the motor to see if it would start right before I hooked it up to the truck, so I thought everything was good. I guess the vent must have vibrated shut while we were taking it down the road. You're right though, next time I'll fire it up before I take it off the trailer. Thanks!!
I had a childhood friend, that his Dad built a pontoon from aircraft fuel tiers. It was a very sturdy craft. Went fishing on it several times. They used square bar to frame the walls and corrugated metal siding. It was mainly for fishing, not to try to live on.
I wish that we had those types of building materials available to us when we started building. Thanks for watching!
Buy a painters cloth or any type of canvas, stripes design would look good and glue it down with tachy glue. Once it's dry you can roll on Thompson's clear all weather coat to weather proof it. Maybe take a look at Paul Elkins channel and ask him what he would do. I think he will be very helpful.
Thank you very much! We will watch Paul Elkins channel right now and we will go shopping for canvas.
Tamara Weber I
Pretty cool i like the keep it simple idea , only thing i'd would change would be putting the steering console forward in front of the big window. also curious about what you use for the drop curtains as you had them pulled up. over all cool boat to chill on.
We are considering moving the console forward. The only reason we didn't when we bought the boat was because the choke cable would have been too short. Moving the console now means rewiring a lot of wires, but we're still thinking about it. The curtains are only held up by Velcro. It's a higher quality Velcro because it's exposed to the elements, but not much more expensive than regular Velcro. Thanks for watching!
awesome video I would love to be there with you people maybe one day when I can afford it and get off the east coast I can go enjoy myself with the beautiful scenery God bless you
Thanks for watching!
Nice boat. I used to boat on Norris Lake when my parents lived in East Tennessee. For a second I thought you were coming up on another coroplast houseboat. Wouldn't that be something? lol!
Lol. When we saw the other houseboat we thought the same thing!
hamburger and potato chips nice meal. I like your boat. nice video
Thanks Devon, we both appreciate you taking time to watch and comment!.....Becky
Bret Becky try tacos in a bag.... toss GB and taco stuff in a smashed up bag of nacho chips..
Wow! Being a Cargo/Camper DIYer, I can appreciate your build...Great Job! Does the wind make it much harder to steer with the cabin on top?
I agree that having too much weight in the front is bad, but having too much in the back is not good either Previously you had mentioned keeping most of the weight in the back and I thought, Keep it balanced, not front or back. Wish I had been there to make that suggestion.
very nice , looks like water level is low there too
As the song says "Tennessee, Tennessee, there ain't no place I'd rather be
Baby won't you carry me back to Tennessee"
Absolutely awesome idea love it enjoy have fun
Thank you!!
You guys did an amazing job praise God he gave you guys this idea. That's incredible!!!
Thank you!
This is really cool. I would have to do something to mitigate the engine noise though.
Thanks!
Looking forward to seeing part 2. It looks great. I was excited to see that you got it out on the water. I just found the other videos about this recently. It would be nice to get the rear up a bit more out of the water but it doesn't seem to be a major issue. Painting the roof would probably work well if its not getting rain through it. Plus that chloroplast isn't that much to do a replacement every few years. I would cover it with a tarp when in storage. That could make it easier to get the snow off.
I think Becky had the right idea getting some things up out of the way. Did that help with it seeming too crowded?
You might be able to go a bit faster if you put some type of cone on the front of the blue barrels.
I think we could get the rear up out of the water by removing one of the four barrels that we recently put under the boat. They're all at the bow of the boat. We couldn't put a barrel at the stern because it would interrupt the flow of water too much and cause the motor to cavitate and overheat. We need a solution for sure. I don't think we'll have to cover the boat with a tarp if we get our barn finished before snowfall. We're building it to house the boat, but it's only about 25% complete. When I put the blankets and stuff up in the *attic* it made a world of difference. I ordered some netting that I want to try to use to hold stuff overhead. If that doesn't work, then I'll have to build something out of wood to hold it. Bret is going to make a retractable metal deflector that he says will work like a cone in front of the barrels. It has to retract so that we can beach the boat. I looked over the bow of the boat when we were on the lake and the blunt end of the barrel was really resisting the movement through the water in a big way. I think we could go faster and improve our gas mileage, which is currently 4 miles per gallon. Thanks for watching!! ......Becky
Maybe torch down roll rock roofing over that metal roof?
Glad to see yall got her in the water!
I'm sure glad that we got it finished and on the water! It took 3 years to complete, which I suppose isn't that long to build a boat, but longer than I wanted to spend :P Thanks for watching and taking time to comment! ....Becky
Bret Becky yes ma'am y'all done a mighty fine job,,and that there houseboat is a really comfortable looking way to spend a day,,or even a week at that.. I have to hand it to ya,, the ratchet straps in the rafters for storage was an excellent idea,,and I'm even going to use it myself in our attic in the near future,,so thank you very much.. y'all folks be blessed out there living the dream have a good time,,and be safe on the river.... God bless you,,and your's....PS I have family over on Hendricks Creek boat dock just there around Celina Tennessee,,and the Burkesville Kentucky state line a place called Dale Hollow Dam,,and I hear tale there is some good boating fishing,and river living over that way..... just thought I'd make reference...again God bless ya's
Loved this ♥️
I was wondering if you still were using it or how it’s holding up.
Nice work on super structure but you have the drag co-efficiency of a 55 gallon drum.
We took it off :P
That should get you a couple more knots.. You could fab a cone for the fwd end if you still need the flotation..
Love the boat...very cool.
Thanks!!
Hi Bret and Becky, love your project, I was wondering how the corraplast is still holding up, I am starting a shanty boat this summer.
The Coroplast held up very well on the sides, but it was a failure on the roof. We're doing a complete rebuild with a tin roof.
put a tarp around the front. it will stop the wind from catching .
Looking like a good time
your complaining about it but I think it's delightful! I'd love to have it cause I'd live on this dude for sure. I think u did a great job
Thanks Pamela!! I'd live on it if I could, but Becky is a landlubber haha. I wish we had built one just a hair bigger. We're not cramped in it, but it's not spacious.
I used a light weight fiber glass sheeting that is used on the roofs of tractor trailer vans. it forms nice just need to use good bracing material. and i don't think its expensive at all
Do you remember where you bought it? The only thing keeping us from using fiberglass sheeting is the weight. If we could get our hands on some lightweight stuff, we'd use it.
Try Great Dane trailer shops or any trailer repair shops should have it
Thanks a bunch!!
wow that looks like so much fun
I love the night noises . I live in a small city now and there are now night noises that aren't man made
It's quiet at night where we live also. I love the night sounds (except the coyotes) In the summer, we still sleep with the windows and doors open just to be able to enjoy the outdoors.
Rule #1 for experienced boaters.... don't drop the line until its running.
Well....now I know. Thanks. I was one of those guys that thought that boating was easy, no experience necessary. I'm learning that I have a lot to learn.
rule number 0.75 wait until it is warmed up and running properly before you do anything else and that includes a quick restart. NO boating is NOT easy it is just like flying you dont want to hit a stup any more than you want to hit a pole. PLANNING!
a lesson you only need to learn once* lol
Great advice all around..
but it is fun finding out you have more to learn isnt it! it is called human growth and it is more than size......
when i am in a busy parking lot i like to watch the cars going in out and parking. i was asked why one day by a lady i was with. so i explained in detail just to see how she would take it, just for fun.
here goes...
if you look at a parking lot like a marina. you wonder why the gulls are standing in places. it looks like water to them. they just cant swim right! you throw food in water like they do in a parking lot, right! do they need to care beyond that. fed!
people in parking lots drive between cars and split the lot or use it as a traffic light detour. they work on cars in them, they commit actions in them. that is because all you need to use a parking lot is really only being there. you do not need to be connected to a car to be in a parking lot. no behavior restraints at all for the general purpose parking lot.
not so for a marina or an airport big or small.
you dont stand in a taxiway or on a runway, you dont cut across a marina at all. nobody wants there bass boat hit by a row boat and a 38 ft yacht doesnt want to be parked next to the bass boats or Forrest's shrimpen boat.
the word respect and expectation are introduced.
same thing for a golf course, stadium, auditorium you name it. it boils down to the public and how they percieve the environment and ownership.
end of sermon.....enjoy being a shrimpen boat captains Bret Becky.
do yourself a favor in the future....wake up on the ocean and the lake...and stay up all night with no lights (except were needed) or noises!!! it WILL change your life and how you think about it.
we had a baby whale circle our boat circle and sit there just looking at us. we found a boat floating the CG came out to look at it. nobody on board at all, it did not drive out by itself and no sign of robbery. CG towed it in. found a few jet skiers trying to make it to Catalina Island...DO NOT DO THAT shark waters!!!!you idiots! a shark can knock you of in a second.........
enjoy your boat..and i will stop this runaway writing..i had fun!
Glad to see your on the water for a trial run.
Bret, watch that sugar.
Hey there! Thanks again for watching. I'm trying to keep the sugar down, but it's a struggle. Checking glucose levels 6 to 8 times a day, shooting insulin 4 to 6 times a day is an interruption in whatever I'm doing during the day, so I forget to do both sometimes. It doesn't get too high though.
As far as the roof goes, don't replace it, just paint it with plasi-diy, would make it look better plus give you a coating to protect from the sun.
That's great advice. Plus you may want to use a inexpensive tarp when its just being stored. If you use UV stabilized paint it should last quite a while.
Thanks Michael. I don't know what plasti-dri is, but I'll check it out. I wish that we had coated it with something like that right after we put the roof on, but we didn't think it would be necessary, ugh. Thanks for watching!! .....Becky
Mobile Home Cool Seal works great and insulates (Cool Seal)~LOWE'S.
plasti-dip perhaps?
Pro tip : watch series at kaldrostream. Been using it for watching lots of of movies recently.
It was a fun Video to watch.
Thank you!
I was raised on norris lake im from clinton tn love this
Howdy neighbor!
@@bretbecky711 howdy yall live in the area
We're around Tazewell
@@bretbecky711 im a good Payne from tazwell
@@lynnstanton7018 Small world :)
Cool boat!!!!!
Thanks!!
How long will the coraplast survive in the sun? Maybe go with a tin roof or coragated fiberglass, etc
The sides of the boat haven't been affected by the sun or rain at all. It literally looks like brand new. The roof is a different story. We have to do something different with the roof this year, it won't wait because the sun has baked it. We are looking at a lot of options, and we probably will go with the fiberglass. Thanks for watching!
Looking at the way she floats, I suspect some points or wedge shaped extensions on the back of your pontoons would improve trim and give you some more speed. Shaped foam ought to work.
Overall, she looks great.
Initially we made one giant cone out of spray foam and then covered it with fiberglass mat and resin. It was a work of art and we had over $100.00 dollars invested in it. The problem that we encountered was attaching it to the pontoon. We scratched our head for the longest time and never came up with a way to attach it, so we threw it in the fire and sadly abandoned that idea. You're right about foam though, it makes an awesome cone. Now we're shaping sheet metal to fit. Attaching it will be easier. Thanks!!
Epoxy holds to aluminum if the aluminum has been lightly sanded to give it tooth.A tight fitting sleeve with a couple of inches of epoxied overlap ought to do it.
Thanks for the info!!
A word of caution from a past bad experience. The design should be safe under normal conditions, however, be prepared to run up on the shore and slightly ground her if weather conditions turn inclement Bad. High winds will whip it around and a combination of currents(if any) and the winds, will have No Mercy and Flip it Over Instantly. I watched this happen and fortunately, everyone got out O.K. The boat sank rapidly and was not salvageable. Not a condemnation but definitely a word of caution as it is obvious it is top heavy and unstable in abnormal conditions. It would be easy enough however to include stabilizer outriggers(?).
"GOOD LUCK AND ENJOY EVERY POSSIBLE MINUTE WITH IT!"
very kool if you ask me. great job! hey where did you get the sheets this big of coroplast?
Thanks! We got the coroplast at Lowe's. At the time we could only buy them by the case of 10. Now they sell them in singles.
Seems like plenty of room, I mean, how much do you need to bring? Seems great.
You ever traveled with a woman? lol
Love the HUGE windows.
Some cozy boating..
Lol, thanks for watching!
Thanks for the Awesome Video
Thanks for watching!!
those bee gees songs. Epic!
Lol
Great job!!!
Thanks!!
i sure would like to know how much you have in the sputter butt.i want to build one,real neat,thanks.
We kept up with the records and receipts for a long time, but stopped keeping up with the expense for some reason. If I had to guess, we have a little under $5,000 in it. Too much!!
yes I guess $5000 would be a tad much doing it yourself,but I would have to hire it built. I want to spend the summers in ohio and the winters in suwanninie fla. cheers
Nashville Tennessee watching.
have you got anymore done to the bigger boat? I've been working on mine a little hope to be able to get it wet this coming summer and travel from where I live up past Tazewell as far as the water level will allow.
OH my, I'd have to do something with the outboard noise :) that will get old quick... thought of a cover/deflector of some kind ?
Our boat moves super slow. The noise from the motor lets us know that we're moving forward lol.
@@bretbecky711 😂
the engine inly runs when you want to drive it it doesnt run when your not driving so its not going to bother you more than any other boat when your driving... just saying 🤷🏼
just subscribed that boat is awesome. I want one
Thank you!!
haha pretty cool looks like fun
Thanks!
LOURD ☑️🏆✊🏆💎🏆 Lourd love ♥️
I like how the design resembles a caboose.
Lol, someone else said it resembled a United States mail truck
Is there any way you can lose the barrels and put in another pair of tubes. also try to lighten up the back and weight down the front.
Even better than that lol, we managed to acquire some bigger pontoons, so the problem is solved! Thanks for watching and commenting.
How did you fix the uneven floating at 3:36?
It was uneven because we were both at the back of the boat. That's one of the drawbacks of a small boat I suppose. Once Becky moved to the front, it straightened right up :)
Nice rig, but...... Looks like your a bit aft heavy. I'd move some things forward. You'd have more room if you place some things outside. Propane tanks should never be inside. They should be in a vented box outside. If I understood you to say your pontoons 'suck in' in the cold, you should put vents on top. If they keep doing that they will spring leaks and good bye boat. Other than that, I love seeing people building their dreams and enjoying them. Hope you have smooth sailing, my friend.
Thanks! We're actually starting over. We're in the process of building a new, better boat that will use vinyl siding and a tin roof. The new boat also has a bigger motor and bigger pontoons. The other boat was just too small and weight was in areas where it shouldn't have been.
that's funny you said has tank vent was closed. I just finally got me another pontoon. had a 24ft years ago while fighting disability I had to part mine out. well got me a 19 ft. started right up 2k I was happy a 95. with 85 evenrude. well the day after I got we got hit with a flood. so didn't get to take it out for 2 months we rained a month it seamed and water up 2 months. but took out finally started right up and it quit 6 hrs didn't stay running. so finally got help. man took the pump apart 3 times. then finally I took tank out thinking maybe bad gas. so took cap off. looked inside the cap was broke so wasn't venting. put back in another cap started right up. I was mad. but finally went out a week later. had problems again opened lid. gas every were. changed hoses clamps but still leaked at the top of the line going into the pump. nope the pump. the guy who took it apart tighened on the screw and warped the pump plastic. so 120 for new pump so its been in my yard all summer and now can't get fixed till later. I was so sad. but a guy wants my 19ft. he has a 27 wants to trade his is older but 8ft bigger think I'll trade. plus his has steering in the middle of the boat not the edge I like that. its got a 80 but only 5 diffrence. but sorry for long story. glad to see y'all back videoing been weighting. god bless.
If you can trade for a bigger boat then you are lucky. Ours is a 20 ft and it's a little cramped. 27 ft would be very spacious. 5 different on the motor probably wouldn't be noticeable. Bret is always complaining because our steering is on the right side of the boat and not in the center. It's pretty rare to find a boat with the console in the center, so that's a lucky find too. If you make the trade with him, I hope you make a video of your new pontoon boat and upload it. Thanks for watching ours! ......Becky
the portions are not big to support the load? add more pontoons
What are you using for navigation?
I'm using an app named "Boating USA by Navionics." I think it was a one time cost of $15.00 and it's absolutely wonderful. It's an actual Marine GPS chart plotter that would cost around $1,000 if you bought it as a device. You can put it on your phone or tablet. I don't know how familiar you are with apps, so I'll explain it like you're a beginner. On your phone, go to the Google play store. Once you're there, you can find stuff like navigation, gps, compasses, speedometers, altimeters, sonar, etc....Most of the apps are free.
What size motor do you have on that boat? I'm thinking of building me one that's how I found your video.
How is the Coroplast holding up on "Sputter Butt" and what did you do to repair the roof? It's a awesome boat you and Becky built.
Thanks! The Coroplast did great on the walls, but failed miserably on the roof. The sun and rain was just too much for it. We're in the process of building a new, better boat that will use vinyl siding and a tin roof. The new boat also has a bigger motor and bigger pontoons. Thanks for watching Tamara!
You need storage dude. Shelving would go a long way towards helping you enjoy your time on "Sputs"?
Why not use a 12 volt bilge pump to pump your water?
There's no lights, but less to go wrong.
spotted the southern accent reminded me of a story I met this old boy with a cowboy hat on he had a Southern accent I said what part of the South are you from he said why I'm from Maine I said what part of Maine he said the main part of Dallas Texas
Hahahaha!
yes yes yes the sputter butt is back.
lol, I was beginning to wonder...
Always something simple
is this TimsFord lake and River
what more do you need
Always make sure it will start before getting out in the middle of the water.