30 ft Friday Harbor Ferry & Waterbed 30

A 30 ft design from Jay Benford's catalog, drawn for plywood construction. The Waterbed 30 is where the whole ferry-houseboat idea started. Drawn in 1972, she was published widely and brought in more mail than any other design the office had published, and every production builder approached about her said no. The reasoning behind her was simple enough: maximise the living accommodation, run at economical displacement speeds, and look like something that belongs on the water. One of the ferry-styled houseboats, which began as an answer to the question of why a liveaboard had to choose between a house trailer on a box and a planing boat that drank a gallon a mile. Drawn to the shape of a small ferry, so the cabin runs almost the full width of the hull, the accommodation is enormous for the length, and the hull is easily driven at displacement speeds.

Benford publishes a displacement of 14,000/12,600 lb in coastal cruising trim, which is tanks full with the crew and their stores aboard rather than a shipping weight. Plans are sold to owner-builders, and study plans are sold separately for anyone wanting to look before committing.