What It’s Like to Live on a Houseboat in Vancouver

This houseboat in Vancouver offers a stunning view of the marina. The North Shore mountains and downtown are only a taste of the upsides of living in this floating home.

The owners Doug McClelland and Anthony Tucker plopped their newly built floating home in Coal Harbour Marina in Vancouver, British Columbia.

This harbour is considered one of the best in North America, and is full of gorgeous yachts of the rich and famous.

The sleek modern design stands out as the newest floating house built in this harbor. The owner made sure that their home was full of windows and light. They built a roof deck to take advantage of the 360-degree view. 

 “Our favourite thing about our home is the fact that it moves,”

Says McClelland

“The subtle movement makes it feel like a living thing. You feel connected to the water around you.”

Vanmag.com

The exterior of the house is clad in a clean cedar with a clear coat finish to highlight its natural color.

The marine engineering was the most difficult part of this home’s construction. Underneath the house is an eight-foot deep flotation barge made out of concrete and filled with styrofoam. “It was pretty tricky for the engineers and the architects to fit everything we wanted and needed into a 20′ x 45′ footprint, while still keeping the house stable and floating levelly,” McClelland says.

Since it had to fit inside a certain footprint, the house itself has a very compact design. The couple had to get creative with their design and organize their living areas in a single great space. The lightest available colour of bamboo flooring is an eco-friendly choice that helps the small space feel bright and open.

Kitchen-Diner

Next is the kitchen. They decided to mount a JennAir down-draft fan behind the cooktop instead of doing a full hood. The down-draft fan rises out of the counter and outputs exhaust below the counter. White granite countertops, a glass subway tile backsplash and light maple cabinets from Ikea all contribute to the open feeling of the main living area. 

Steel pendants from Robinson Lighting work well with the stainless steel appliances. Tucker and McClelland chose an extra-tall Blomberg refrigerator in a counter depth for their limited space. Light pours through rounded windows throughout the home, paying homage to the house’s nautical locations.

A master’s bedroom designed to be cozy. This bedroom has two glass walls to take advantage of the beautiful view. The walls is made up of two sliding glass doors that access a small balcony.

The master bathroom sticks to the same light, white and bright palette as the rest of the home. The marble tiles and countertop is made of the same white granite. The window faces the northern view of the nearby mountains, while a skylight lets in additional natural light.

Finally, the roofdeck was the favorite part of the owner. It feels like you’re right in the middle of the view, rather than just looking out at the view.

Floating Home In Harbour Marina

This stunning floating home is the first new houseboat in Vancouver in 15 years. All the other floating homes that have been built since then are upriver in suburban areas. It’s also only one of 18 floating homes in Vancouver, and one of 6 in Coal Harbour Marina. Vancouver has been home to many of these floating houses since the early 19th century, when they were nothing more than log cabins on log floats.