Has Anyone Considered Spray Foam ?

[otherthan]

[
I do believe the OP had a FRP boat, hence corrosion is not an issue.[/QUOTE]

mmm thot I was the OP

but you are right my boat is FRP

[sabray]

wonder what Richard Gould used? Great story recommend the book North to the night.

[CDunc]

My 2 cents: I lived aboard a 25 ft sailboat in Maine for two years, I insulated the hull with a mylar bubble wrap I think was called REFLEX. We heated dockside with a small electric oil heater and even on very cold days -20 we still maintained 50 degrees in the boat. I kept a small fan and the hatches cracked a small bit for venting with no noticeable condensation problems. The only Issue we did have was Ice forming in the fresh water tanks on occasion. I did look into the spray Foam but the cost, bulk and issues with fire and water entrainment were no starters for me.

[otherthan]

Originally Posted by CDunc

My 2 cents: I lived aboard a 25 ft sailboat in Maine for two years, I insulated the hull with a mylar bubble wrap I think was called REFLEX. We heated dockside with a small electric oil heater and even on very cold days -20 we still maintained 50 degrees in the boat. I kept a small fan and the hatches cracked a small bit for venting with no noticeable condensation problems. The only Issue we did have was Ice forming in the fresh water tanks on occasion. I did look into the spray Foam but the cost, bulk and issues with fire and water entrainment were no starters for me.

glad to hear this...I will try to stay in my boat next month when its really cold and see if it needs insulation...nowdays we can get DIY spray foam kits and these foam are none flameable...I tested the faom last summer and fund it easy to spray and not to hard to remouve from fiberglass.
cheers

[heron237]

Would aerogel work anywhere?

ASPEN AEROGELS

[sundown]

In the fishing industry spray foam is commonly used to insulate fish holds. The usual method of insulation was to spray the foam on the bare hull, then plane/grind it to the desired thickness before covering it with a layer of fiberglass. The glass made an easy to clean, rigid surface to mount bulkheads etc.
Using rigid foam usually led to having condensation problems between the foam and the hull - this did not happen with spray foam.
I would check carefully though about the fire hazard of spray foam - the stuff we used was very toxic if burned.

[Conall]

I spray foamed the metal boat I'm building and have some detail of it on my blog. You have to use closed cell. I used 2lb foam. The cost of the DYI kits seems reasonable, but when you realize the net yield, and the hassle and learning curve, using a contractor is worth the few more pennies they charge. I had prices of $1.25 per board foot labor and material from contractors. I did it myself for about $1.00 per board foot.

Conall
conallsboatbuild.blogspot.com

[mbianka]

Originally Posted by heron237

Would aerogel work anywhere?

ASPEN AEROGELS

Hmmm. Looks like it would be very useful in places where you can install it easily. I'd first install a sheet under and around a bunk for sure. Cost may be another issue though when compared to foam. But, it looks like a pretty interesting material if it could hold up in the marine enviornment.

[zoombats]

I knew a guy thirty years ago who built a Gillmer design steel schooner and spray foamed before fitting out the interior. He lived on board in the north east states and wintered in the caribbean. It was brilliant stuff and nowadays the modern foams are that much better. Closed cell foams in the two pound variety are even given structural ratings in the building trades and do not require vapour barriers. They adhere tenaciously to any substrate and can give a 5R rating per inch. I would be hard pressed to do a retrofit job on a boat that had the hull ceiled as without the complete envelope the expense wouldn't be warranted. When curing they only give off water vapour and are inert at final cure. You can buy DIY porta packs of foam from Dow, Tiger Foam or Zero Draft and do a decent job. If I had a newly completed hull, wood, steal or GRP without the interior, I wouldn't hesitate for a minute in hiring a spray foam contractor and paying the buck and a half per square foot (one inch thick) to have it applied before fitting out the furniture down below.

[otherthan]

Originally Posted by Conall

I spray foamed the metal boat I'm building and have some detail of it on my blog. You have to use closed cell. I used 2lb foam. The cost of the DYI kits seems reasonable, but when you realize the net yield, and the hassle and learning curve, using a contractor is worth the few more pennies they charge. I had prices of $1.25 per board foot labor and material from contractors. I did it myself for about $1.00 per board foot.

Conall
conallsboatbuild.blogspot.com

exelent work your doing...realy enjoyed until I saw the captens bed...now I hate you

[otherthan]

Originally Posted by sundown

In the fishing industry spray foam is commonly used to insulate fish holds. The usual method of insulation was to spray the foam on the bare hull, then plane/grind it to the desired thickness before covering it with a layer of fiberglass. The glass made an easy to clean, rigid surface to mount bulkheads etc.
Using rigid foam usually led to having condensation problems between the foam and the hull - this did not happen with spray foam.
I would check carefully though about the fire hazard of spray foam - the stuff we used was very toxic if burned.

do you know what tools they use to plane/grind the spray foam?

trying to find ways to do this...

[seandepagnier]

I used large blocks of foam to make the boat unsinkable. Then I used the 2 part and spray foam to fill the small voids because it was nearly impossible to cut the blocks to fit perfectly. The boat is much warmer now, but I believe I could do even better because I did not add insulation to the deck yet.

[Simes]

We are re-fitting a Ferro Cement Schooner (Seems to be a lot of comment about Schooners in this thread) we have fitted Tongue and Groove ceilings throughout and have spray foamed between the ceiling and the hull. The spray foam we have used comes in small (ish) spray cans and is used to hold Double Glaving panels and door frames in place here in the UK. It is a self extinguishing PU foam and is available from all DIY and construction shops.

It does have a fairly high expansion rate and can take a short time to get used to.

We have around 4" thicj foam all round our boat and are snug and warm with little or no condensation.
Heat is provided by a Dickinson Adriatic cookStove and by a Dickinson Antarctic heater when really cold. Both of these pick up cold damp air from low in the bilge and exhaust this as hot fumes from the flue stack.

Spray PU Foam insulation was a key part of our re fit.

Simes

[otherthan]

lets say I wanted to test closed cell foam, the 1/2 camping matress type...its cheep and may very well do the job if well instaled...what type of glue should I use (white glue?) I want it to be easy take apart if it dont work.

[Matt sachs]

I have been trying to learn all I can about spray foam for my boat. So far the product I like best is HF 605 FR-11. It has an E84 fire rating. Is this the best product for a steel hull? I really am a bit lost here. It has an 8-1 expansion, closed cell, paintable. Any thoughts?