Do hydrofoil stabilizers increase top speed?

Question

I would like to increase the top end speed of my boat by 4-6 mph. I have seen that some of the hydrofoil stabilizers advertise that they can accomplish this. If you have installed one on your boat, can you tell me if it helped?

I have a Suzuki 115 outboard on an 18 foot fish and ski. I am topping out around 40 mph right now. The boat planes very quickly, so I am just looking for an inexpensive way to get a little more speed.

Answer 1

my DAD used to install them on his boat.

it was a nineteen fifty model and it made a beutiful spray

and looked cool but did it work no,,,,

you are gonna have to break down and invest into a craftier kind of boat,,,

its gonna be expensive but when you see and feel the results

it will be worth it

Answer 2

just get a hydrofoil stabilizers if you only want the speed to go up a littel bit

Answer 3

No it will not increase speed, if anything it will slow you down a bit, but it may make the boat handle a little better. A hydrofoil keeps the front end down some, causing more hull in contact with the water, thus increasing resistance and lowering speed.

Answer 4

The way a Hydrofoil increases the speed of a boat is if you have an underpowered boat or one that doesn't plane off good. You have plenty of power and you say that it planes quickly, then you have no use for the 'foil. It will slow you down rather than speed you up. 40 MPH is about right for that boat with that engine. There are a few things that you can do for more speed but none of the are inexpensive. A 150 HP motor might help but only if the boat is rated for it.

Answer 5

The main purpose of Hydrofoil stabilizers is to make trim adjustments more quickly, by increasing the surface area.

If you are going to keep this boat, invest in a set of trim tabs not only will the boat react MUCH quicker, but you will be able to adjust for list  to starboard and port.

If you want a higher top speed the best way is to change your prop,HOWEVER When you increase top speed, you also lose the low end power that gets you of the line faster.

Besides, 40 MPH is great for an 18 ft boat,you need less than half of that for "tubing"

Answer 6

I was a captain and marine mechanic for the USNPS. We tried the foils on a portion of our fleet of boats and we found no appreciable difference. We stopped the testing after one year and