floatation.....

[Peter A]

I can't think of any better flotation than pool noodles really. They're just the easiest and most convenient, and cheap!

Ditto!

[785boats]

I use Ecofoam two part Urethane expanding foam. Totally waterproof.
Poured in before the top skin goes on & sanded to shape.
This not only makes the hull more rigid but makes the bottom & side skins stronger as they are fully backed by the solid foam. No air pockets at all. The top skin has a lot of surface area to glue to as well. Not just the framework.
Here's a pic of the GP400 one sponson carved & sanded. The other one is how the foam finished up after expanding. There's also a bit of foam in the front sections of the tub.

[Doby]

I've seen pool noodles float safely back to shore on a few occasions after collisions ...the boats they were in sank to the bottom. Great Stuff rules if you know how to properly use it.

[Fluid]

...pool noodles can hold some water too....

I had heard this before, so several years ago I weighed a 2-foot length of noodle (cut in half the long way) and submerged it for 24 hours. When I took it out and shook off the loose water, the weight was less than 1/2 ounce heavier. I use pool noodles almost exclusively. 29 cubic inches of foam for every pound of boat weight is enough. Less risks a sinking, you need to add enough floatation. The silliest thing I've heard is "wood boats don't need floatation, they float by themselves"...

Some two-part foams will shrink over time. I filled a 'glass hydro's sponsons with two-part foam, and a year later the sponson decks were pulled down 1/4" as the foam shrunk. Not all foams do this, but I seldom use it any more. It did add rigidity to the hull though.


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[siberianhusky]

+1 for pool noodles.
Expanding foam is great - until you have to remove it. Do that once and you will never use the stuff again!
I'm also not convinced it doesn't absorb water, the stuff I pulled out of the nose of a used mono I bought this past winter seemed awefully heavy for foam.

[HTVboats]

I have used two part foam on many model and full size boats. In doing fiberglass repairs I have found a lot of so called closed cell foam saturated with water. Vibration and heat in partially closed chambers drives water into foam. Warm sunshine creates heat that will make foam shrink and distort your hull. I had a gas cat that went from great handling to hooking in turns no matter how we countered the added weight. Dug out all the foam in the front sponsons and what should have been a few ounces weighed 1 1/2 pounds. Boat went right back to great handling. I now use pool noodles, IV bags and or lightly epoxy coated ping pong balls into tight areas.
Mic

[Shooter]

Anybody notice that the new pool noodles being sold have a hole through the center?? They used to be solid.

[HOTWATER]

I use Ecofoam two part Urethane expanding foam. Totally waterproof.
Poured in before the top skin goes on & sanded to shape.
This not only makes the hull more rigid but makes the bottom & side skins stronger as they are fully backed by the solid foam. No air pockets at all. The top skin has a lot of surface area to glue to as well. Not just the framework.
Here's a pic of the GP400 one sponson carved & sanded. The other one is how the foam finished up after expanding. There's also a bit of foam in the front sections of the tub.

I like this idea best! That pic is shows the basic framing that I am talking about adding foam to. I have used the US Composites 2 part before...just need to guage what you pour in....

Thank you 785!

[properchopper]

I like pool noodles. They come in pretty colors and can be shaped with a steak knife to fit boat insides and do their job well. I got tired of driving all over town looking for them and finding them to be the "hole in the center" ones. Then I had an idea (and was willing to pay a little extra to get just what I wanted). I sat at my keyboard and hit a bunch of keys. As if by magic, a few days later, just a few feet from where I sat at my keyboard, a uniformed postal employee knocked on my door. I opened it and there was three colorful pool noodles with solid centers ! http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pool-Noodles...item19d9b9ce1a

[Fluid]

Anybody notice that the new pool noodles being sold have a hole through the center?? They used to be solid.

I've been using pool noodles for over eight years, usually buying them from Wally's. I have never even seen a "solid" noodle......



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[properchopper]

DSC04619.JPG

I've been using pool noodles for over eight years, usually buying them from Wally's. I have never even seen a "solid" noodle......



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[Fluid]

Well I'll be a monkey's uncle, and I live in the fourth largets city in the US......

Personally I prefer the ones with the hole. It makes it very easy to insert my weights (PVC pipe full of bird shot) whan I need to add weight to the boat but don't want a 'ballistic missile' inside the hull. Too, it is easier to compress them to fit in tight spaces: squeeze while inserting - expand in place so no movement. But I can see advantages to the solids too.



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[Heaving Earth]

I too use pool noodles that way. Grab lead fishing weights, insert into pool noodles and put in hull. Beats having a lead weight bouncing around or having to glue in weights.

[properchopper]

I'll use the "hole" stuff as well - As a maintenance assistant in my building I capture the insulation that comes when a new hot water heater gets unboxed.

DSC04623.JPG

[properchopper]

(thread hijack alert) Sorry Kendt

I've found that putting lead BB's weighed out to your needs inside of a sandwich bag and duct-taped up makes a safe, pliable ballast device. [ of course, not to be used as a glove insert when entering drinking establishments with high hand-to-hand combat potentials]

DSC04624.JPG

I too use pool noodles that way. Grab lead fishing weights, insert into pool noodles and put in hull. Beats having a lead weight bouncing around or having to glue in weights.