wet bow foam

[mxpx035]

i was looking around in the crawl space on my starflite and i wanted to see if the foam was wet and sure enough i stuck my finger in the whole at the bottom and it was mushy what would be the best way to get the foam out with out cutting the front peice that sections it of?

 

[cooperider]

Thats the only way to get the foam out. Just cut the wood about 2 inches from the edge of the hull, then you have after you dig the foam out you have something to attach a new piece of wood to.

 

[boatn70]

thats what i did!! mine didnt add up to much but ive heard someone that weighed their foam that came out.....80lbs.....right up front, that had to kill some bow lift for sure!!

 

[billm]

I have an 1986 Enchanter with that problem.I used a hole saw under the bck seat on either side. Passenger side was damp, driver side had water spurting up before I even finnished cutting through.

 

[JUPITER PULSARE]

YOU CAN CUT AWAY THE BALSA CORE/PLYWOOD TO REMOVE THE SATURATED FOAM AND REINSTAL THE CORE/PLYWOOD WITH EPOXY AND GLASS. REFILL THE EMPTY CHAMBER WITH TWO PART FOAM. COAST GUARD REGULATIONS REQUIRE IT ON BOATS UNDER (I THINK) TWENTY FEET. IT WILL ALSO HELP WITH SOUND INSULATION FROM WATER SMAKING THE GLASS!!

 

[mxpx035]

well the boat is 21 would i be exempt and if i take it out it woun't cause anything bad it is just for flotation right? is it worth puting it back in there or leaveing it empty?

 

[cooperider]

It would be best to put it back in. If something happens and you get swamped iit may mean the difference as to weather you make it home or not. The rules say that boats under 20 feet must float lever or no more that 10 degrees from it. For 20 ft and over it does not have to float level, because they figure you are a more experienced boater. The idea behind alot of foam in the nose is that if you sink the nose may still be above water. Then a tow boat can hook on and salvage your boat. But there is lots of foam in a Starflite so you should be ok. I think in the Starliner same hull there is less foam at the nose and a storage locker up there. You should still be OK

 

[Panther]

Just get rid of all the foam....it will just soak up more water again some time. If you boat starts to sink, that's what insurance is for right?

Yes you are supposed to have foam, but I made the decision to take all of mine out.

 

[mxpx035]

when you took the foam out did you just cut a large section of the wood and did you replace it?

 

[cooperider]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Panther:
Just get rid of all the foam....it will just soak up more water again some time. If you boat starts to sink, that's what insurance is for right?

Yes you are supposed to have foam, but I made the decision to take all of mine out. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

You can accually order your boat without foam I've seen it done. For most people it would be a good idea to have the foam and don't mess with it. But for someone with more experiece its not really an issue. They have changed the formula for the foam over the years so newer foam is less likely to absorb water. Now fiberglass is heavier than water so if you have no foam and an all composite boat with no intierior cushions it will go right to the bottom.

With Checkmates that have a balsa core the balsa is considered part of the floatation as is the plywood floors and all the interior pieces. So if you remove some foam it won't really matter. The rules on foam are mainly for the manufacturer if it floats level then people are more likely to stay with the boat and it can act as something to keep them from drownding it acctually has nothing to do with saving the boat. Boats over 20 feet still have foam but since the Coast Gaurd assumes the owners of these boats are more experienced they need not float level. Just stick alot of foam in the nose so it will stick above the water and the salvage boat can hook on and drag it back. Whew...