When Sausalito contractor Tim Dabner found a fixer-upper in 1989, he set out to completely renovate the floating home and do all the work himself. The result is a gorgeous home that reflects Dabner’s tastes and aesthetics.
The home, along with 11 others, will be open to visitors during the upcoming Floating Homes Tour, sponsored by the non-profit, volunteer Floating Homes Association. The tour, which returns after a one-year hiatus, is the main fund raiser for the organization and a chance to show off the floating homes lifestyle.
Dabner named his home “By Storm” because, he says, “That’s the way I took it.”
The main level is designed with an open-floor concept, with arches that define the separate rooms — kitchen, dining room, living room. Here, the walls are painted yellow to complement the stained, white ash floors — a combination that glows in any light.
Downstairs, Dabner built two bedrooms and a bath for his twin daughters. Now that they have grown and moved on, one bedroom serves as in-home office. A laundry and utility room also are on this level along with something not found in a lot of floating homes: storage space.
The master suite is on the top level with doors to both the bay and the dock sides, allowing the evening breeze to flow through. The suite also has an exercise room, a bath and a private deck with water views and a dining table that seats four, making it a perfect spot for brunch or for watching fireworks over the San Francisco skyline and the Bay Bridge.
By Storm
Address: 64 Liberty
Owner: Tim Dabner
Square footage: 2,900
Number of stories: 3
Tickets: Prepaid registration is $50 per person; $55 on tour day
Time: 11 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Sept. 14
Location: Tour events are anchored at the Kappas Marina Green, 100 Gate Six Road, Sausalito, where there will be live entertainment, food and refreshments for sale, and artists and authors from the community offering their creations for sale.
Other homes
Check out the other homes featured on the tour:
- Floating on a dream
- “White Elephant” houseboat focuses on whimsy, eclectic art
- Houseboat is a salute to modern Danish art and Hawaiian wood
- 4-story ‘Dragon Boat’ houseboat will be open to visitors
- Tiny houseboat makes a big statement
- Romance is only part of this houseboat’s attraction
- Floating museum celebrates Denmark, old San Francisco and Jimmy Carter
- Landlubber transforms houseboat and himself
- Summer always in season on this Sausalito houseboat
- Colorful floating home suits a ‘pair of docs’
- Transforming tiny floating home into a weekend getaway
