under floor floatation
Submitted by fishin mad on Wed, 2014-10-01 19:59
Hi guys doing up a little 12ft dinghy and am putting a floor in it.Question is i have some foam which i might put under floor ,does it matter what type the foam is and do you think it will make a differant to the boat.i think the foam is the same as in coolroom panels about 120mill thick.also should i wrap the foam in something.
Cheers Davo
trymyluck
Posts: 908
Date Joined: 06/05/12
I would have thought any foam
I would have thought any foam is a benefit mate, better than nothing, Im assuming the original seat floatation is still in place.
fishin mad
Posts: 70
Date Joined: 03/05/13
trymyluck i took the middle
trymyluck i took the middle seat out so just have the front and rear now which have the floatation in still ,will be getting a brace put in where the middle seat was ..
spinksy
Posts: 266
Date Joined: 06/10/10
closed cell foam
It doesnt absorb water
craig scott
Posts: 114
Date Joined: 16/10/10
GDay mate,I have played
GDay mate,
I have played around doing up a few dinghies and have found the best way for me to add flotation is to collect pet soft drink bottles and fill them with expander foam. I removed the rear thwart from my dinghy (4.6m) and relaced the lost volume of foam plus at least a further 20% under a floor section where the seat was and all other low areas.
The empty bottles on their own will compress if subject to pressure, so I have used either pressure pack foam or the 2 part foam poured in the bottle. Makes them able to withstand a lot of pressure and not collapse.
The pet bottle will resist fuels and oils and will not absorb water like open cell foam will, plus they weigh very little, and you can jam them in tight.
I bought 2 part foam (parts A and B..... amazing hey!) from an industrial scale irrigation joint for cheap. They sell it to drillers to seal the drill fluid return tube from the ground.
Works for me!
Cheers, Craig.
DTrain
Posts: 486
Date Joined: 10/02/12
Those cool room panels have
Those cool room panels have polystyrene in them. The polystyrene will dissolve into a sticky mess if it gets fuel or oil on it. So it's not really suitable for an oily bilge or near the fuel tanks. It's still better than nothing though.
Boat builders use the two part closed cell foam which you mix and then it expands in place. It's water proof and fuel resistant.
fishin mad
Posts: 70
Date Joined: 03/05/13
cheers guys thanks for
cheers guys thanks for comments so far Dtrain that was what i was a bit worried about so may get different foam.