Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

A conversation among Whalers
Drc726
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Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby Drc726 » Wed Dec 23, 2020 9:15 am

What defects in the hull or fuel tank should be considered when buying 20-year-old Boston Whaler boats?

BACKSTORY
I'm shopping for my first boat. I am considering buying a 15 to 20-year-old 18 Dauntless or Ventura. Given the scarcity of these boats, I'm considering buying one with an older engine. If the hull is sound, I may re-power the boat.

Jefecinco
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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby Jefecinco » Wed Dec 23, 2020 9:35 am

Unless [there is] repaired damage, there is no reason to suspect a hull problem.

I believe the fuel tanks on the Dauntless and Ventura models of that era were made of "poly" and have been extremely reliable.
Butch

jimh
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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby jimh » Wed Dec 23, 2020 10:17 am

A 15 to 20-year-old Boston Whaler means a 2000 to 2005 production epoch, which is, in the general focus of this website, a newer Boston Whaler, not an older Boston Whaler.

There are no particular manufacturing epochs for Boston Whaler boats that are noted for substandard quality. If a hull has a defect, it would most likely be discovered before the expiration of the ten-year-hull warranty, and Boston Whaler would have provided a remedy.

There is not a particular trend or tendency for certain problems to be endemic in 15 to 20-year-old Boston Whaler boats. But care should be used when buying a 20-year-old hull because it could have problems. The present condition of any boat is the result of the particular pattern of use and maintenance employed by the owner or owners. You can find 20-year-old (or older) boats that are in better-than-new condition, and ones that need significant restoration to be in like-new condition. Because Boston Whaler boats are more expensive than most, they tend to receive good care. Because Boston Whaler boats are of very high initial quality, they age well, and even neglected boats can often be very impressively restored with proper work.

In regard to 18-foot-long DAUNTLESS or VENTURA hulls, I don't recall any particular defects associated with an 18-foot hull in either model.

Defects in below-deck fuel tanks have occurred after 15 to 20-years of use, but generally in boats with aluminum fuel tanks that have been used in saltwater and which have had excessive amounts of water on the deck leaking below deck and into the fuel tank cavity and may have suffered from use of gasoline fuels with ethanol and experienced phase separation. But by no means is there any reason to avoid 15 to 20-year-old Boston Whaler boats on a general basis of having defects in the fuel tank. I have a 30-year-old Boston Whaler boat with an aluminum fuel tank that has no sign of corrosion or leaking. Boats with polyurethane fuel tanks generally do not have corrosion problems, but they can still leak. Generally any leaking of gasoline is easily detected by its odor.

Regarding hull defects that may have occurred in 20-years of use, the most important aspect of the Boston Whaler boat hull is to verify that there has been no damage to the hull or the hull liner which has permitted water to flow into the interior of the Unibond hull. It is possible that hull damage could have exposed the foam interior to water ingress. This is particularly of concern if the damage was below the waterline and on a running surface of the hull where very high pressure streams of water flow along the hull exterior. Any indication of such damage should be investigated carefully.

Do not interpret this advice as being something that often occurs. At my local boat yard there is a 16-foot Boston Whaler hull that has been used as a workboat for 50-years, and it still floats on its original lines, without evidence of water intrusion.

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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby jimh » Wed Dec 23, 2020 11:46 am

Drc726 wrote:I'm shopping for my first boat. I am considering buying a 15 to 20-year-old 18 Dauntless or Ventura.


If I may, based on you being a first-time boat buyer, I want to mention the Boston Whaler Unibond hull and the general design of Boston Whaler boats.

The reason Boston Whaler boats are generally regarded as unsinkable is due to the hull construction. A Unibond hull is distinctive among recreational boats in that a very large volume of the interior hull space is filled with foam, reducing the open space in the hull where water could accumulate to a much smaller volume. The result is that a Boston Whaler hull can take on water into the open spaces of the hull and retain positive buoyancy, even with very high weight in passengers and gear aboard. This ability is denoted as the Swamped Capacity of the hull. A hull is swamped when filled with water (and passengers) to the point where the gunwales are almost awash.

For example, a 2020 production 180 DAUNTLESS has specified swamped capacity of 3,300-lbs. This means that the hull will remain afloat when swamped with water even with 3,300-lbs of people and gear aboard. It is this characteristic that has engendered the notion of a Boston Whaler hull being unsinkable.

Masbama
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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby Masbama » Wed Dec 23, 2020 2:53 pm

Jefecinco wrote:Unless [there is] repaired damage, there is no reason to suspect a hull problem...I believe the fuel tanks on the Dauntless and Ventura models of that era were made of "poly" and have been extremely reliable.

I agree with [those comments from] Butch.

I [once] owned a 1999 Dauntless 18. [That boat] is still in use today. It has no problems with the ["poly" fuel] tank that I know of.

[Fuel tanks made with "poly"] sometimes emit [gasoline] odor when left unused.

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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby jimh » Wed Dec 23, 2020 5:00 pm

The term "poly" as used in regard to a fuel tank for gasoline may mean polyethylene plastic, but perhaps those using "poly" can clarify their intended meaning.

Plastic fuel tanks for gasoline are known to have a permeability that permits gasoline odors to pass through them. For advice on permeability I recommend contacting the manufacturer of any plastic fuel tank designed for gasoline in order to get factual information. Here is a except from an FAQ at the website of a major manufacturer of plastic fuel tanks, Moeller:

I smell gas. Can my below deck fuel tanks be leaking? What should I do?
Non-low-permeation fuel tanks will permeate some fuel odor, not fuel vapor. The ventilation of the fuel tank compartment is critical. Take your boat to a qualified technician and have your fuel tank pressure tested.

Source:http://www.moellermarine.com/customer-resources/frequently-asked-questions/

As general advice, I would not ignore the smell of gasoline coming from a fuel tank of ANY material.

UPDATE: Also see this article for comparison of plastic and metal fuel tanks:

http://www.moellermarine.com/builders-t ... -aluminum/

Thanks to Tom H for the link.

[Updated this post to reflect polyethylene plastic is more likely to be used for fuel tanks for gasoline. The terms "cross-linked" or "high density" are often applied to polyethylene material. Added second Moeller link--jimh]

Drc726
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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby Drc726 » Wed Dec 23, 2020 6:00 pm

Thanks for taking the time to educate me on Boston Whaler hull construction. This helps me feel much more confident purchasing a 15 to 20-year-old boat. I am learning lots from this forum.

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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby jimh » Thu Dec 24, 2020 7:59 am

Drc726 wrote: I am learning lots from this forum.

Also see the permanent article collections in the Boston Whaler section, starting at

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/

There is much more to the website than just this forum. The website has been on-line since the 1990s. The general goal of the website is to collect and organize information on its topic areas, and then present that information in an effective, fast, and straightforward manner. and to preserve and archive the information.

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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby fno » Thu Dec 24, 2020 9:43 am

A point of clarification. Modern Boston Whalers utilize HMW-HDPE polyethylene based tanks. The translation is High Molecular Weight-High Density Poly Ethylene. It is extremely durable and while it does leak odors I would not worry about the integrity of the tank. The only influence that may compromise HDPE is sunlight and that is not a factor in a below deck tank. A Polyurethane tank would be more like a balloon and be very flexible and elastic. Thanks Jimh for questioning the semantics as there are polyethylenes (many types), polyurethanes ( also many types), polycarbonates (nylon, delrin), polyvinyl chlorides (PVC), etc.

roundle1979
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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby roundle1979 » Thu Dec 24, 2020 10:15 am

Drc726 wrote:What defects in the hull or fuel tank should be considered when buying 20-year-old Boston Whaler boats?


In addition to the fuel system comments, I would recommend that you have a look at the through hull fittings.

These need to be replaced and serviced from time to time. If they are ignored and neglected, you can have water enter the transom at the waterline. As the transom has a wood core, this can lead to problems.

Several years ago Boston Whaler put out [a recorded presentation on youTube] to create awareness that through hulls need attention from time to time:

https://youtu.be/Zby76eoKO-I?t=11
2004 Nantucket 190 w/ Mercury Optimax 135

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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby jimh » Thu Dec 24, 2020 10:39 am

roundle1979 wrote:..recommend...you have a look at the through hull fittings
That is very good advice--and perhaps particularly for the boats in this production epoch that used plastic fittings. Really any below-the-water-line hull opening must be checked for proper sealing, but especially on a Unibond hull.

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GoldenDaze
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Re: Hull and Fuel Tank Defects in 15 to 20-year-old DAUNTLESS or VENTURA

Postby GoldenDaze » Mon Dec 28, 2020 11:25 am

I am the original owner of a 2003 160 Dauntless. She has a few tiny gelcoat nicks from a few unfortunate encounters and some very minor hairline cracks. She is otherwise basically like new after 18 years of use, and has required only a modest amount of maintenance to stay that way.

If I were looking for a Whaler in this age range, then as far as the hull goes I think I'd be looking for (aside from blatantly obvious damage) any significant repairs to the fiberglass skin, any delamination or soft spots in the deck, and as roundle mentioned, a close look at through-hull fittings. These are pretty simple boats and everything else, like old fuel lines or a bit of gelcoat oxidation, can be put right fairly easily. Engine condition may be another matter entirely, though that can also be put right by the liberal application of money. :-)

There's a great discussion of through-hull fitting replacement on boats of this age range at http://continuouswave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2729&p=20455#p20876 (in which I learned that I had some problems I didn't know I had, but found them early enough to avoid any serious repercussions).

As jimh mentioned, these are extremely high-quality boats that stand up to age and use very well, and with a bit of love and care can remain like new for many years.

-Bob
2003 160 Dauntless Golden Daze