Hollow Hull. Is this normal?
 

Hi,

Today I made two hole on my Centurion Avalanche 2004 in the V-drive Area. One 2inch for the Depth finder and another for the ballast intake.

I was sure hulls were one solid piece of fiberglass, but apparently it's not the case on my boat. It's the first time I'm piercing a hull so I really didn't know what to expect.

From the outside, there is the gelcoat, 1/2 inch fiberglass, then hollow for maybe 1/4 inch , and then 1/3 inch fiberglass. Is this normal?

Also, on the side where i made a one inch hole for the ballast intake, everything was dry. This was not the case for the hole I made on the bottom besides the speed sensor. It used to be the bottom drain plug which i removed to replace it by the thru hull depth finder. It kept pouring water and it's all wet.

Again, should i be worried?

Thanks!!

Best ask over at Centurion forums, I know they claim to use a little different build technique, but don't know if that would explain the gap or not.

This does not sound right, but I don't know this stuff either... I am sure someone will pipe up. Do you have pics?

Sounds like a liner boat. I have never been on that brand of boat so i don't know for sure. In a two piece boat they will use a molded structural liner for interior support instead of traditional stringers and bulkheads. This liner is placed in the empty hull and adhered with a Plexus type putty. It gives designers more leeway for non geometric storage areas as well as fast and cheep assembly with good repeat ability. It would be common for a gap to be found in the hull flat area. The water would depend on if there are designed secondary bilges. Are their two drain plugs in back of the boat? If yes, then the water is no issue. If not? I would get on the phone to the builder to get the right answer.

i just drilled a 1 3/8 hole in my 05' centurion enzo and it was definitely solid all the way through. i put my hole across from the raw water intake.

Ohhh bad news then. I was trying to be optimistic... :(

Call the builder asap.

How thick was your boat hull on your Enzo?

On mine, there are two areas, one with the dual layer, under the Vdrive, and another area, under the engine, where there is only one layer of fiberglass. That first layer seems to be 1/2 inch thick...

Could it be 2 seperate layers of woven roven delaminating from each other?

Actually, now that I said that doesn't/didn't Centurion use strictly chopper guns or do they use rolls of woven roven on the flatter surfaces and a chopper gun in the corners?

That is not right - there cannot be any void spaces in a hull. There are ways to fix it, but it is very difficult and expensive. Most likely there was a time-gap in the layup and the waxes in the resins skinned on top and the layer did make full adhesion. This may not be a big issue if your boat never gets into freezing conditions, but if it does, the problem may spread.

I suggest you contact the dealer and manufacturer for an appropriate fix. Centurion has a decent reputation for taking care of their hulls.

I dont know anything about hull, but I had on 08 Avy/have a 2012 244 and have seen a lot of DYI projects on Centurion Crew and have never heard of this. Start a thread on CenturionCrew.Com and I bet someone will chime in.

I would also shoot Duffy a PM (he is in Surf forum a lot). He cut a ton of holes in a 03 Avy. Like I said, Centurion is generally know for a very solid/thick hull. So that does not sound right to me.

If you throw up a pic or two, more than likely someone can answer your question. Without visually seeing it I could not tell you for sure.

I found the core from the hole i drilled and it is 5/8 thick.

IMO if there is space and water it = serious future problems.

Sounds bad, especially if there's water in there. When I drilled a 2" hole in my Supra for the paddlewheel is was solid and very thick, like 3/4" - 1" or maybe thicker. I'll have to dig out the plug and measure. My major concern would be water getting in that void and freezing, causing further damage. Your boat is practically brand new, call Centurion and see about a fix. They seem to advertise a 3 yr boat warranty and a lifetime hull warranty which I think is transferable for a fee. Let us know how it goes!

My guess is that the Hull Warranty was voided the second he drilled a hole in it.

"My guess is that the Hull Warranty was voided the second he drilled a hole in it."

If they want to be *******s maybe. Social media is a power thing. It'll make companies think about doing the right thing.

Anyway, when I drilled for my perfect pass install on my 2001 Malibu, the hull was definitely a solid 3/4" at at least.

drilling holes through your hulls.....for ballast. YIKES!
ill just hang the pump over the edge of the boat. that some scarry stuff right there boy.

I agree, but that may be their stance.

Not really. The factory does it, so why can't the owner? Pumps over the side just suck.

That's irrelevant, the defect was there prior to the new hole, not as a result of it. The manufacturer puts several holes in the hull, for anything from raw water pickups,rudder ports, shaft logs, ballast intakes, etc... This is no different.

Centurions name will be crap if this in fact a defect and they won't stand behind the practically brand new hull this guy has.

Cory and CIE: I am just telling Jonathan B that my guess is that will be Centurion's stance when he calls them and he needs to be prepared to respond to that. I am not at all saying Centurion should not work to help Jonathan if the hull really has issued caused by problems during the build process.

I posted this thread on centurionforum.com

Apparently, there is a fiberglass liner inside the boat, and others had this issue (if really this is an issue) and everything seems to be normal according to them.

As far as the first layer of fiberglass is concerned (the first 1/2 inch) it is solid and dry, so I think I should be okay. I will post pics ASAP.

Thanks

Same thing happened to me on a Malibu Sprotster, when I was drilling for a Perfect Pass. It's a liner, a non-issue.

The fit and finish of a Centurion may not be spectacular, but their hulls and gelcoat are second to none.

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...8/DSCF1437.jpg
Pic from the inside of boat. You can see both layers.

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...8/DSCF1441.jpg
This is the hull. 1/2inch thick.

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...8/DSCF1443.jpg
This is the second layer of fiberglass. In between the is some kind of blue epoxy...

Doesn't seem right if there was water in there, that's just a recipe for disaster.

Truthfully if it is an all composite boat, IE no wood. the water wont hurt it. looka like it was a liner that was dropped in. Nothing to worry about.

There is nothing wrong Looks just like is should

The Hull 1/2 inch thick then the green stuff is plexus a chemical bond that bonds the hull to the liner
Since you have drilled a hole in a place that one does not normally exsist I would fill the gap
between the hull an liner with LIfe Caulk or even 5200

Might not be a bad idea to fill the gap around the perimeter of your thru hull. That way if any water leaks past your seal from inside or outside of the hull it won't be able to go between the layers.

"Truthfully if it is an all composite boat, IE no wood. the water wont hurt it. looka like it was a liner that was dropped in. Nothing to worry about. "

Except for the fact that you can't easily drain the water out, and if it freezes it will cause major problems, right? Water in places it shouldn't be can cause more problems other than just rot.

If water isn't supposed to be there then its a terrible design on their part. It looks to me that is is open on one end and comes to a point at the other. Therefore if it freezes it shouldn't cause any problem. If it were mine, I'd take and grind out at least a half inch bigger than the hole on the liner part and make sure your thru hull fitting is 100% on the actual hull and not the liner.

Done, I've filled everything with LOTS of marine sealant. Hope water won't get there anymore!!