2 Hulls Are Better Than 1
Compare World Cat to the hull of a leading monohull competitor below.
230SD
325CC
When deciding what type of boat to buy, you will likely want to understand the differences between the most popular boat hulls.
This brief article highlights some of the critical differences between Catamaran and Monohull boats.
Ride Comfort
Undoubtedly one of the most important features of any watercraft is how well it’s engineered for a comfortable ride for all passengers. Many boats are primarily designed around comfort for the captain. This usually means anyone at the front or sides of the boat takes most of the jostling. The catamaran style hull delivers three distinctive characteristics key to ride comfort, smoothness, load distribution, and stability.
Catamaran
The wider footprint of the catamaran vessel helps negate the effects of unpredictable rolling while at sea. The efficient hull design reduces resistance and allows for faster headway, especially in rough conditions.
Monohull
The narrow design of the monohull vessel relies heavily on the calmness of the water to ensure a smooth ride. More bouncing, slapping, and choppiness is encountered due to more surface area that remains in contact with the water.
Deck Space
Catamaran
A catamaran beam is carried fully forward. This and two hulls compared to one gives the catamaran deck a rectangular design, and allows for more usable deck space than a monohull boat.
Monohull
Boats have a pinched bow, which comes to a point, creating a triangular shape as opposed to a catamaran's rectangular shape. This feature makes the monohull less space-efficient.
Load Distribution
Catamaran
The catamaran's rectangular shape uses space much more efficiently, giving passengers room to stretch out and enjoy the ride. Passengers can also enjoy the freedom to fish from either side of the deck without worry of weight distribution.
Monohull
Monohull's tendency is to rock and dip when passengers are boarding and offboarding. This can be understood best with a simple analogy: catamarans stand on two legs, while monohull vessels are balancing on one leg.
Stability
Catamaran
Catamarans' parallel hulls create reliable form stability, which prevents heeling and capsizing, and greatly reduces the vessel roll at rest and at trolling speeds. This drastically eliminates seasickness for passengers.
Monohull
It requires four-times less force to initiate the capsize of a monohull vessel than an equally sized catamaran. Monohulls single-beam style also makes it seven-times more prone to heeling than a similarly sized catamaran.
Fuel Efficiency
Catamaran
A catamaran hull experiences little to no drag or resistance to get on plane, resulting in greater fuel economy. Catamarans have a steady rise in speed and fuel burn with little to no spikes in fuel consumption.
Monohull
Bow(keel) drag created by a monohull vessel is higher than that of a catamaran, which means greater displacement. The monohull encounters higher resistance taking longer to plane and spikes in speed and fuel consumption at mid-range.
Make Memories
on the Water
If you’re looking for the all-around best boat to enjoy time on the water with your friends and family, the choice is World Cat. We have several models that fit your specific needs. Download our catalogue to see which boat works best for you.
Schedule A Test Drive
To really understand the advantages of owning a World Cat, you need to experience it for yourself. Fill out the form below and we’ll work with you to schedule a free, no-obligation sea trial with one of our dealers.
Ride Comfort
Undoubtedly one of the most important features of any watercraft is how well it’sengineered for a comfortable ride for all passengers. Many boats are primarily designedaround comfort for the captain. This usually means anyone at the front or sides of theboat takes most of the jostling. The catamaran style hull delivers three distinctivecharacteristics key to ride comfort, smoothness, load distribution, and stability.