- If you just want the answer
- Quick summary
- How does water work on a boat?
- Our real water system (Gold Coast)
- How reliable is rainwater?
- Why we don’t use a watermaker
- What about showers?
- Laundry setup
- Living at anchor vs marina
- Is water unlimited on a boat?
- The real difference (boat vs land)
- The real takeaway
- Final answer
If you just want the answer
→ We live on a boat on the Gold Coast, Australia
→ We rely mainly on rainwater + two 1,000L tanks
→ This setup supports a family of four without constant refilling
This is how our real system works.
Quick summary
- Location: Gold Coast, Australia
- Water source: Rainwater
- Storage: 2 × 1,000L tanks
- Refill: Rare (1–2 times in 9 years)
- Watermaker: Not installed
- Laundry: Laundromat
- Showers: Boat + gym
How does water work on a boat?
On land:
👉 Water comes out of a tap
On a boat:
👉 You store it
👉 You manage it
Our real water system (Gold Coast)
We live full-time on a boat on the Gold Coast.
Our system:
- Rainwater collection
- Storage tanks (2,000L total)
- Usage control
👉 This is enough for a family of four
How reliable is rainwater?
On the Gold Coast, especially in summer:
👉 Rain = supply
When it rains:
👉 We refill naturally
Over the past 9 years:
👉 We’ve only needed to refill from land once or twice
👉 That’s not luck
👉 That’s system design
Why we don’t use a watermaker
A watermaker converts seawater into fresh water.
Typical cost:
👉 $3,000–$10,000+ AUD
We don’t use one.
Why?
👉 Our current system works
👉 Lower cost
👉 Less complexity
👉 Again, it’s a design choice
What about showers?
This is where reality hits.
On our boat:
- The boys shower onboard
- Fast, efficient
When it rains:
👉 They shower outside
For me:
👉 I use a gym
👉 That’s the system
Laundry setup
We don’t wash clothes onboard.
We use laundromats:
- Washing: $7–$20 per load
- Dryer: ~$5 per 30 minutes
On sunny days:
👉 We skip the dryer and air-dry on the boat
👉 Not everything has to be onboard
Living at anchor vs marina
On the Gold Coast, you have options.
Marina:
- Water available
- Electricity available
- Monthly cost
Anchor (our choice):
- No direct supply
- Full control
- Lower cost
👉 Different systems, different trade-offs
Is water unlimited on a boat?
👉 No
Water is:
👉 A finite resource
That changes behaviour:
- You don’t waste it
- You think before using it
- You manage daily usage
The real difference (boat vs land)
On land:
👉 Water feels unlimited
On a boat:
👉 You see the limits
👉 That changes everything
The real takeaway
Water is not just something you use.
👉 It’s something you design around
- How you collect it
- How you store it
- How you use it
👉 These are system decisions
Boat life just makes it visible.
Final answer
Our water system on the Gold Coast:
→ Rainwater-based
→ 2,000L storage
→ Minimal external refill
👉 That’s enough for real life
And the bigger point:
👉 Water is not a utility
👉 It’s a resource
👉 You design around it
コメント