Caribe Dinghy Question

[lorenzo b]

I'm thinking of buying a used Caribe RIB fiberglass dinghy and I noticed some water in the double fiberglass hull, is that common or a problem? I did see where there is a drain in the back for this area and a screw off hatch on the deck to insert a pump to get water out.
I also noticed the seller had put a strip of protective material along the bottom edge of the keel. How hard is that fiberglass to repair if it's banged up or punctured?
Many thanks

[shipofools]

Originally Posted by lorenzo b

I'm thinking of buying a used Caribe RIB fiberglass dinghy and I noticed some water in the double fiberglass hull, is that common or a problem? I did see where there is a drain in the back for this area and a screw off hatch on the deck to insert a pump to get water out.
I also noticed the seller had put a strip of protective material along the bottom edge of the keel. How hard is that fiberglass to repair if it's banged up or punctured?
Many thanks

Cut out the floor. The double floor on ribs in my opinion is a waste. Traps water, and there is no easy way to drain it without pulling the boat up on shore.

I have not seen one rib builder that has solved this issue effectively, and they all seem to collect water. Rotozip worked in my case, but make sure to be careful to not cut thru the outer hull. Also the end result will be a rib that is lighter which is what the manufactures have started to sell and call their Lite models.

Cheers,

[Vasco]

Lorenzo,

The double bottom should not have water in it. Caribe seems to have a worse problem with this than other manufacturers. Water usually gets in through the hardware fastenings. If the double bottom fills up it'll be hard to get up on the plane. A friend took his new Caribe back three times before the dealer found and fixed the leak. The strip on the keel is good if it's attached well. Too many of the DIY strips tear off when underway. The hull is very easy to patch if you scratch, hole or ding it.

Some "Lite" models have a double bottom. I know my AB Lite has one. It's a lot shallower than the "regular" models but it's there.

[speciald@ocens.]

I have had 2 Caribes, the current one is an 11 lite. Water got into both through the bow tow ring; resealing did not work well. If I turn it over, water drains out at the stern lift rings. When in the Caribbean, I lift my dinghy at night and every so often pull the hull drain plug to let it drain. The water should not harm the fibreglass.

[shipofools]

Originally Posted by Vasco

Some "Lite" models have a double bottom. I know my AB Lite has one. It's a lot shallower than the "regular" models but it's there.

I did not realize that. Regardless, I can find no reason for a double floor, if anyone can think of one I am intrigued.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by shipofools

I did not realize that. Regardless, I can find no reason for a double floor, if anyone can think of one I am intrigued.

I'm not a fan of them but they do give you a flatter floor (better for carrying all the jugs etc.) and I suppose there is a bit of a flotation plus. (If there's no leaks in it).

[Jon D]

I have a Caribe 9x which has the double floor, they all seem to trap water we just pull thepluf when I lift it up on the davits, seems to happen more when it rains etc. The reason for the double floors in most cases is that model has the bow locker. That is neither worth it to you nor not for us itnprovided a great step for the dog.

[shipofools]

Originally Posted by Jon D

The reason for the double floors in most cases is that model has the bow locker. That is neither worth it to you nor not for us itnprovided a great step for the dog.

Ours has the bow locker, and it is a great step (perfect for getting on our boat), and gives us a convenient place to store items. I like our setup so much, that if I was to have to buy a new rib, and was considering a caribe again (which I probably would), I would purchase the dlx model which include the bow locker, and cut out the floor once again at the start vs waiting.

Cheers,

[shipofools]

Originally Posted by Vasco

I'm not a fan of them but they do give you a flatter floor (better for carrying all the jugs etc.) and I suppose there is a bit of a flotation plus. (If there's no leaks in it).

The flatness was the thing I was worried about as well, but honestly it seem that we wedge so much stuff on board at times it works out decent.

I guess a plus would be that the double floor might keep your feet dryer . . .not 100% sure if it will even do that.

[keepondancin]

I have a 13 year old C9X, and it has been great, has lived a tough life. It started leaking into the double hull in about year three. I installed a Beckson inspection port in the floor, just forward of the drain plug, and use a small manual bilge pump to pump the water out. It only seems to fill with rain water. There are a lot of hairline cracks near the outer edge of the floor, and I have been thinking about using Boat LIfe LIQUID CAULK to see if that would help. I think it is not uncommon to have RIB's leak into the space between floor and hull.

[lorenzo b]

We got a West Marine RIB 350 HYP and are very happy. It has a solid foam filled bottom and is self bailing.

[Captain Bill]

I have a Nautica Dinghy (which is now part of Caribe) that was on the boat when I bought it and always had a problem with water between the hulls. A couple of months ago I was removing the screw in plug that drains lower compartment when the plastic retainer snapped and fell overboard. The only replacement I could find at the time included a new metal female portion of the assembly so I decided to replace the whole assemby instead of just the plug. When I got the old one off I saw that there was NO caulking under the female part of the original plug. I bedded the new one in some 3M 4000 and now I have a dry bilge. Imagine that. I don't know if it is a common practice not to put sealant on this part at their factory, but it was the source of my water intrusion. It is only held in by 2 screws if there's no sealant, so it's a pretty easy check.

[speciald@ocens.]

Mine leaks at the bow tow ring.

[endoftheroad]

Originally Posted by shipofools

I did not realize that. Regardless, I can find no reason for a double floor, if anyone can think of one I am intrigued.

bouancy!

deflate the tubes and get in the boat, it still floats.

i have the floor in mine and i get about a gallon of water after a couple months use. i will soon be re-sealing the hardware.
never been much of a concern.
i live in the hook and use my caribe hard.

they are great inflatables.

[Dreaming Yachtsman]

Apologies for reviving this old thread but I just discovered it while reseaching Caribe dinghies for a cruiser friend.

Just another data point on Caribe dinghies: Our 2004 model year C-10X has shown no leakage into the double bottom space. I check it at the beginning and end of each cruising season and so far have found no accumulation of water. Guess we were just lucky to get one that is water tight.

Caribe must do something right because a very high percentage of dinghies I see while cruising around the USVI are Caribe. That is probably not just coincidence.