HELP! water logged foam filled dink!

[h20]

HEY! any body know how to get the water out of a foam filled dink?
OR i thought maybe to cut out the deck and dig it out or maybe acidtone would melt it a way, then could maybe refill it? Any ideas would be wonderfull!
Thanks, Dan on the Risky Lady Boot Key Marathon FL

[Sailmonkey]

If you've got a vacuum pump and a lot of time you could draw the water out that way.....or just pull out the foam......if you acetone it you'll have a toxic soup to dispose of.


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[minaret]

Boston Whaler?

[ozskipper]

Yeh.. Cut a hole the right size for an inspection port. Dig out the old foam and clean up. Add new foam, then install an inspection port.

An electric drill with a large spade bit would make short work of the existing foam.

[Dulcesuenos]

Call Shoreline or even Tiki water sports in key largo, they sell a chemical that melts the foam.

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[boatbrain]

I don't understand - are all dinghies filled with the same kind of foam? If not, how can you be sure one particular chemical will fix this?


Without knowing anything about how the water got in, I'd be inclined to suggest you pick the boat up and try to tilt it so the water runs back out - if the cracks are in the right place -

If they are in the bottom of the boat - the sole - I'd get the boat in my garage or under a good waterproof tarp and drill a hole in the inner hull at the lowest point, and put in a highly absorbent cloth to wick the water out over a long time.

I don't know about repairs - polyurethane foam forced in?

[coastalexplorer]

We had a similar thread to this last month, So at the risk of offending by repetition I will write it out again:

My Father worked for the British Government back in the 1980's at the Institute Of oceanographic science's located in the village of Wormley, Surrey. England. They became concerened about water ingression into the foam fill of their tow fish torpedos that carried the transducers to map the ocean floor.

So a contract for a research project was assigned to a company who carried out Experiments to remove the water, Several methods were tried such as building the foam cores with passages through them to blow hot air through. Installing electro connections to pass voltage through to try and convert the water to hydrogen and oxygen gas, As an area dried out the circuit became broken. and perhaps a few other things like experimenting with the chemical formulations of the foam. Regardless: millions of £; Later. The conclusion was that there was no way to economically remove the water from the foam and that it was cheaper to treat them a disposable items.

So to those who advise to destroy the wet foam and refill the empty shell with new material you are absolutely right. IF one does not assign a monetary value to their time perhaps it is worth doing. Those with good income might just dispose and buy new. I have no experience with the chemistry So others may be better placed to enlighten us? However I have been told that most foam is toxic especially if heated.

[minaret]

Originally Posted by boatbrain

I don't understand - are all dinghies filled with the same kind of foam? If not, how can you be sure one particular chemical will fix this?


Without knowing anything about how the water got in, I'd be inclined to suggest you pick the boat up and try to tilt it so the water runs back out - if the cracks are in the right place -

If they are in the bottom of the boat - the sole - I'd get the boat in my garage or under a good waterproof tarp and drill a hole in the inner hull at the lowest point, and put in a highly absorbent cloth to wick the water out over a long time.

I don't know about repairs - polyurethane foam forced in?

No, they don't all use the same foam. That's why my first question was whether the boat in question is a Whaler, the most common type to run into this problem. Until the OP responds, there is not enough info here to give the right advice.

[captstu]

I've used several brands of USCG approved floatation foam over the years - not a drop of water enters the foam, judging from the weight of the boat. I tried less expensive foams - worthless, just operated like sponges.

If your boat if full of water soaked foam, throw it away. No amount of removal and replacement is worth the cost.

[hellosailor]

Find someone with a big centrifuge, the kind NASA and the USAF use to see if a prospective pilot is doing to function under heavy G loads. Then slip someone a hundred bucks and ask them to send your dink on a joy ride. The water should get neatly whipped out, if you make a few small holes.


Heat and a vacuum-bagging machine will also pull it out, but that's gonna take a whole lot longer.

[deblen]

Drill & tap two 1/2 " drain holes in bottom outside corners of transom. Tap for bronze 1/2" pipe plugs later.
Drill & tap a similar hole(s) in top of stem area. Install a 1/2" x 1/8" bushing & a schraeder (tire) valve in stem top hole.
Put bow of dinghy up on a saw horse in the sun so it can drain out the transom holes.
Plug all drilled holes & pressurize the hull to 4-5 lbs. Find the leaks with soapy water in a spray bottle.
Fix leaks-5200 or epoxy.

With luck & a week or two of sun it will mostly drain.
Leave the old foam in place unless you find a practical way of removing it.

Worked ok for my polyethylene (Wedco gas jug ) boat.http://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-197...-/331548961946

Cheers/ Len

[captain mitch]

Helped a friend in Ct with this a couple years ago.
A 13' Whaler that had soaked the foam.
We could not get it completely dry, but we did remove over 150 lbs of water.
Drilled 2 holes on back of the transom down low to hit the core.
Drilled another hole in the fill plug near the bow.
Hoisted the bow up vertical and tied it off to a tree and let it drain for a couple months.
He collected the "run-out" and ended up with over 150lbs of water.
Not completely dry, but sure lightened it up and gave it back flotation.

Trying to "de-core" a Whaler would be hell as even with bad foam after you cut the floor trying to separate it from the foam would be serious challenge

[hellosailor]

For every foam, there's a solvent. I'd give odds that xylene would eat away any foam used for flotation, but between the cost and the risk that it might also eat away the entire boat...No thanks.

[Chuck Hawley]

I have a few thoughts:

1. The effort invested will be 10x the benefit of that effort.

2. If you were able to dissolve the foam, you'd have to figure out a way to pour in new foam so that there were no gaps, and the pressure of the expanding foam would surely blow the deck off the hull.

3. You won't have solved the core (!) issue which is that water can get into an area where there shouldn't be any water.

The only possible answer here is to put the hull under a vacuum for weeks and draw the water out, but the leaks in the shell surrounding the foam will probably leak so much that the vacuum pump will be overwhelmed (won't actually produce low enough low pressure to draw out the water.

My advice is to start over with a different dink.

Chuck Hawley

[GordMay]

Basic Water Infiltration Repair (this is a complex process and should be completed by an authorized Boston Whaler dealer to guard against future problems):

Tap the damaged area with a hard plastic tap hammer.
A dull thud will indicate a void, or separation of the foam from the fiberglass.
Mark the outside of the entire voided area with a marker.
Drill from one to several 1/8" holes (depending on the size of the void) near the bottom of the void. This will allow the water to drain. The void must be dry before proceeding to the next step. Tip: A heat lamp or heat gun may help to draw the water out faster. Be sure not to hold the heat too close, however, as it may cause additional damage.
After the void is dry, drill from one to several 1/8" holes at the top of the void (depending on the size of the void).
Proceed to pump polyester resin with a pump gun (available at most marine suppliers) from the bottom holes until it comes out of the top holes.
Plug the bottom holes to prevent the resin from leaking out.
Allow the resin to cure.
Repair any damage that caused the water infiltration and re-gelcoat.
Remember: Keep a lookout for hull damage and maintain your drains.

➥ Boston Whaler | Water in the Hull