richg99
Well-known member
Foam...water-logged foam...and no foam
There have been numerous posts recently on using foam; using too little/too much foam; taking foam out and not replacing it, etc. I just thought it would be worthwhile to have a round-table discussion on all of that.
As has been clearly stated here before...most recently by JasonLester..foam doesn't float a boat...only displacement i.e. area of hull vs weight of boat and gear............ floats a boat.
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I will simply start it off with my opinion...remembering that it only my opinion and I don't have any formal training in the topic at all.
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No foam..Water, sooner or later, gets in. Water weighs 8 lbs or so a gallon. Water sinks boat or makes the boat so unstable that it turns over and dumps boater and gear over-board.
Foam NOT water-logged. Water gets in. Water fills open areas but cannot fill the area(s) that the good foam is in, so the boat continues to float as too little water is allowed to accumulate in the open areas to sink the boat.
Foam..Water-logged foam. Obviously not as good as "good foam"....but...still does SOME good as the water cannot fill every possible crevice in the foam...so...the water that is allowed in is still less than the amount that would come in if there was no foam there at all.
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IMHO....No boat starts out with water-logged foam. Most water-logged foam situations occur due to poor installation of deck fastened objects and bulk-heads. No caulking on screws; no caulking on bulkheads; boat is left out in the rain; drain is plugged...all the water that sits on the deck, sooner or later, drips down into the foam...and....Viola! we have water-logged foam.
Not the foam's fault. Poor installation and poorer maintenance is the issue.
*******************************************************************************
You guys take it from here.....
Rich
There have been numerous posts recently on using foam; using too little/too much foam; taking foam out and not replacing it, etc. I just thought it would be worthwhile to have a round-table discussion on all of that.
As has been clearly stated here before...most recently by JasonLester..foam doesn't float a boat...only displacement i.e. area of hull vs weight of boat and gear............ floats a boat.
********************************************************************************
I will simply start it off with my opinion...remembering that it only my opinion and I don't have any formal training in the topic at all.
______________________________________________________________________
No foam..Water, sooner or later, gets in. Water weighs 8 lbs or so a gallon. Water sinks boat or makes the boat so unstable that it turns over and dumps boater and gear over-board.
Foam NOT water-logged. Water gets in. Water fills open areas but cannot fill the area(s) that the good foam is in, so the boat continues to float as too little water is allowed to accumulate in the open areas to sink the boat.
Foam..Water-logged foam. Obviously not as good as "good foam"....but...still does SOME good as the water cannot fill every possible crevice in the foam...so...the water that is allowed in is still less than the amount that would come in if there was no foam there at all.
**********************************************************************
IMHO....No boat starts out with water-logged foam. Most water-logged foam situations occur due to poor installation of deck fastened objects and bulk-heads. No caulking on screws; no caulking on bulkheads; boat is left out in the rain; drain is plugged...all the water that sits on the deck, sooner or later, drips down into the foam...and....Viola! we have water-logged foam.
Not the foam's fault. Poor installation and poorer maintenance is the issue.
*******************************************************************************
You guys take it from here.....
Rich