floation? strenth? sound-proofing??

[shootingstar72683]

I want to pull the foam out from under the deck of my 79Taylor18' Olds 455 JE-Berk. I'ld prefer the room for skies and boards. Will that floatation keep this hull on the surface ,or will it go under? Does it have any structual support to the hull. It isn't touching the deck? My Hawiian was carpeted under there,real nice. Rode alot of people under there coming back in bad weather. Can I remove it?

[Captain Assin' Off]

The foam was shot in there for floatation in the event you should sink your boat. There is an added benefit of added structural stability in that it is a mass of rigid material lending it's inherent strength to the hull. It will keep stress cracks from starting also. If you aren't a mad man, and you don't run hard on rough water, then sure, pull it out. I never really planned on sinking my Hondo, but it has happened, and I was/ am glad for the foam up front. I filled my entire bow with medium density sheets of foam, cut to fit, and sealed the bulkhead and reinforced it with 3/16" aluminum sheet, glued and screwed around the perimeter, but then again, I'm a madman. :skull:

[maxwedge]

If you remove the flotation foam, then no, it isn't going to keep you from sinking. Unless maybe you remove it and hold it in your arms while the boat goes under. Wether or not the boat actually sinks without it will depend on the load (# of people, coolers, etc) in the boat, type of damage and how much water is in there. I'm going to go out on a limb and say the people trapped under the deck of your boat in the rain would rather not sink with the boat. However if it's just a big pile of foam, it's probably just there to provide life saving flotation in case of an accident and you can remove it without creating any structural problems.

[shootingstar72683]

If you remove the flotation foam, then no, it isn't going to keep you from sinking. Unless maybe you remove it and hold it in your arms while the boat goes under. Wether or not the boat actually sinks without it will depend on the load (# of people, coolers, etc) in the boat, type of damage and how much water is in there. I'm going to go out on a limb and say the people trapped under the deck of your boat in the rain would rather not sink with the boat. However if it's just a big pile of foam, it's probably just there to provide life saving flotation in case of an accident and you can remove it without creating any structural problems.
I've seen a few boats sink, being in water rescue. The only ones I've been around that remained on the surface were completely upside-down, with air trapped in the cockpit or hull cavity. Once they went straight up and down,Bow-up, it was all over in short time. This boat looks like it will be straight up real fast even with the foam BYE/BYE. Now seal the bulk-head and probably alot different.

[shootingstar72683]

The foam was shot in there for floatation in the event you should sink your boat. There is an added benefit of added structural stability in that it is a mass of rigid material lending it's inherent strength to the hull. It will keep stress cracks from starting also. If you aren't a mad man, and you don't run hard on rough water, then sure, pull it out. I never really planned on sinking my Hondo, but it has happened, and I was/ am glad for the foam up front. I filled my entire bow with medium density sheets of foam, cut to fit, and sealed the bulkhead and reinforced it with 3/16" aluminum sheet, glued and screwed around the perimeter, but then again, I'm a madman. :skull:
I'm still not getting the stability part. This stuf isn't touching the deck, I'm not sure if it's ferm agains't the sides. How did they put it in? Sprayed? Does it shrink after age? If it's there for sinking I don't want it. I don't plan on sinking it, sound-proofing,stereo takes care of that, but support I don't want to mess with.