why use foam?

[zaroba]

ok, i understand that foam is a requirement for small boats to help prevent sinking, but it seems that the general opinion of it is that it absorbs water readily like a sponge and gets ruined easily.

so why use it instead of other stuff? for example:
styrofoam blocks. lightweight, and as far as i know, waterproof.
expanding insulation foam (like Great Stuff). easy to apply, spray it into the hull, let it expand and set. i am pretty sure there are some that are waterproof. or could coat it in silicon to make it waterproof. if putting it directly on the hull is undesirable, you could form it in a box and cut it to shape.

of course, i don't know how the buoyancy of the above compares to the standard foam used. so might be more needed.

 

[oops!]

Re: why use foam?

read "boat rot...wet foam prevention"

its one of the most comphrensive discussions on this forum as of late....tons of great ideas....

it got bumped just a few days ago

cheers.......happy studying
oops

 

[Bondo]

Re: why use foam?

(like Great Stuff).

Ayuh,..... The Worst of the Worse........

 

[zibzer]

Re: why use foam?

Im pretty sure its to insulate noise and vibration.

As for the floatability of it. Most will absorb water and sink your boat.

I knew a guy who used to put empty milk jugs in the nooks and crannies of his boat for flotation. Pretty redneck if you ask me, but I bet it would have worked.
Keep in mind though when you start doing stuff like this, or block of foam or whatever.. you end up losing a lot of storage.

Best bet is to buy insurance and forget about it. Imho

 

[Coors]

Re: why use foam?

If the boat is under 20', it is required.
Will insurance bring back a life?

 

[Lou C]

Re: why use foam?

When I did my 88 Four Winns over I contacted FW about the foam. They told me it was for both flotation and structural reasons, so I felt I had to replace it. I made sure that any holes in the deck to mount seats were really sealed well with 3m 4200 and I keep it covered when not in use. So it's really never left out uncovered. The old one lasted about 12 years before the rot got bad so I'm sure that this one, with no carpet to hold moisture and properly sealed holes will last as long as I want to keep it. The end result is that the boat feels way more solid than it ever did before and I'm not going to worry about eventual rot. I have seen a Wellcraft done over on this site that originally did not have foam and it had a lot more transvers bulkheads than my FW did. That made me think that if it's designed to have foam, it may well be needed for structural reasons, and if you leave it out you have to re-engineer the structure to keep it as rigid.

 

[zibzer]

Re: why use foam?

If the boat is under 20', it is required.
Will insurance bring back a life?

Hopefully theres lifejackets on board.

 

[txbandit44]

Re: why use foam?

Who requires it . USCG? If so why dont they require it in aluminum jon boats?

 

[oops!]

Re: why use foam?

yes....uscg...requires foam under 20 feet......the uscg rules are at the top of the forum.....

youll find out about the jon boat there

 

[Darren Nemeth]

Re: why use foam?

If the boat is under 20', it is required.
Will insurance bring back a life?

The Batboat is my first boat. A 14 foot 6 inch miniature Man O' War.

If flotation is required by law, how much flotation is required for my boat in proportion to its size?

Is it required by law that it be insured, too? I am new to all of this. Just bought it in December 2007.

To be perfectly honest, if this craft sinks it will be virtually worthless. {except for the sealed atomic batteries and other classified gadgets. }

If I put, say, $3,000 into fixing it up, will I get that amount back or just the book value on a rotted out 1971 Glastron V-145?

 

[Coors]

Re: why use foam?

google uscg, homemade boats. They have a formula.

 

[Darren Nemeth]

Re: why use foam?

google uscg, homemade boats. They have a formula.

Coors,

Thanks for the information!

Darren

 

[jamie950]

Re: why use foam?

Hi,I;m trying to find out if my 91 220 horizon has foam.Do you know where I might be able to find out? Thanks Jamie

 

[tcindie]

Re: why use foam?

If I put, say, $3,000 into fixing it up, will I get that amount back or just the book value on a rotted out 1971 Glastron V-145?

Given the custom nature of your boat, I'd imagine you could insure it for more that the book value of the original equipment.. talk to some insurance agents and see if you can't insure it as a homebuilt vessel with a value of $xxxx however much.. Of course, the higher value you place on it the higher your premiums would be.

 

[salty87]

Re: why use foam?

imo, the problem with foam is not that it gets wet and sinks your boat (?? never seen that happen unless it was sunk some other way) but that it completely seals to whatever it touches. it creates small pockets throughout the hull that can trap water and block the flow of any drainage you may have added. once you have standing water and not perfectly encapsulated wood, you have the makings for rot. get rid of the standing water or the wood.

we've all seen that the wood is pretty necessary so that's gotta stay. so, eliminate the standing water. my solution is in that other thread...bag the foam when you pour it, after about 15 mins you can pull the section, peel the trash bag off, and the foam block will drop back in whatever compartment you just poured it in. it's not sealed to the hull or stringers so any water that might get in there will just run off the foam, down onto the hull, then get moved along your drainage system to the bilge.

if it was a structural component of your hull, this might not be for your boat.

and, foam is really better under the gunnels anyway.