Is there a seal between the keel and the hull?

[Scott_S]

I have a 1996 Compac 16 with the Raven rig. Mine is a white hull with 2 port holes on each side of the cabin, just like other 16's. My question is whether or not there is a waterproof barrier between the cement in the keel and the cabin? If there was a hole in the keel, would the keel fill up with water and then overflow into the cabin? If I spilt water in the cabin, would it drain down into the keel? Living in Ohio, I would be concerned if water got in the keel and froze. I've read of people drilling a hole to drain the water and then patching the hole, but has anyone added a drain to their keel to be sure there is no water? If so, what type drain and where should it be located.
I have owned 3 Com-pacs and I love this forum. Sorry to hear news of Gerry and Richard Hutchins and Com-pac Yachts shutting down. They were always great support and they made great boats.

[Mas]

Hey Scott, not sure about how the CB arrangement is set up on your boat but the usual 16 keel construction is a molded in design with the ballast added after layup is complete. No seams but you can clearly damage the keel in a hard grounding or collision and provide access for water into the keel. It can also find its way in from above if not careful. Our Pacific Seacraft had a bolted on design but no seam was visible as it was fared over after bolting on. It had a lead keel so no chance of water absorption even if compromised. The external vs internal keel debate is almost as common as which anchor is best!

[KObek]

I have a 1996 Compac 16 with the Raven rig. Mine is a white hull with 2 port holes on each side of the cabin, just like other 16's. My question is whether or not there is a waterproof barrier between the cement in the keel and the cabin? If there was a hole in the keel, would the keel fill up with water and then overflow into the cabin? If I spilt water in the cabin, would it drain down into the keel? Living in Ohio, I would be concerned if water got in the keel and froze. I've read of people drilling a hole to drain the water and then patching the hole, but has anyone added a drain to their keel to be sure there is no water? If so, what type drain and where should it be located.
I have owned 3 Com-pacs and I love this forum. Sorry to hear news of Gerry and Richard Hutchins and Com-pac Yachts shutting down. They were always great support and they made great boats.

The keel is full of concrete and forms the floor of a Compac 16. Sometimes there is a carpet or similar covering and I've seen people put other floor covering over the concrete. It would seem that sealing the top of the concrete with a good outdoor concrete sealer might prevent water saturation from above. Below the waterline is a different story. I have read where people drill a small hole and see if any water runs out. You could then seal it up with an appropriate fiberglass patch or install a removable drain plug of some sort.

[MacGyver]

I've got a 16 in my shop currently, The floor carpet is covering a fiberglass pan that is on top of the concrete. after drying this one out as best I can and filling the holes in the keel I drilled in order to get more water out, a decision will have to be made as to what to do on the top.... Sadly I have not dug into where the water infiltrates the keel area. It definitely did somewhere on this boat from the inside.
I am unsure if it is worth chasing down the area of infiltration and I am also not sure what kind of space is inside that area where say would it be worth filling with epoxy or not.
I have a feeling that the tabbing that is allowing the water to penetrate that area is under and inside the side bunks, etc..... The water did come out when I set the boat to such a steep angle it was in rocket ship mode and water was coming out of the keel in that back well area inside the rear hatch access area.

Mac

[Urban Hermit]

Nearly 30 years ago I had a 1978 (?), hit an underwater breakwater, knocked through the fiberglass at the forward end of the keel, and within an hour I had water on the sole. I sold the boat to someone with more patience than I had and more guts to drill into the keel.  The "concrete" is, or then was, extremely porous.