pics of floor rot

No ones going to be able to read this post until you fix those pictures. Go back and edit the post by putting a carriage return between each photo, that will line them up vertically instead of horizontally. Use the preview post button to proof your layout before finalizing it.

Edit- Much better, thanks

dont you guy's ever wonder that when you put foam back in on how quick the water gets back in there and dams up? it would bother me

While I don't regularly swamp my boat, knowing that it would go straight to the bottom if I did would bother me more.

Depending on the value of the boat, it could be cheaper to let it go to the bottom and buy another one. I don't even want to know what the cleanup bill would be like for plucking a ski boat off the bottom of the lake.

Pool Noodles !

Of course there are options inbetween foam-filled and building a lead sinker.

Level, recoverable flotation is all that is required.

From the factory, my pre-composite supreme had a few long strips in the gunnels, a few long strips below the floor, and good volume in the bow, but above bilge level. That passes USCG level flotation rules.

Like WakeSlayer sez, I'm not just proponent of pool noodles, I'm a client.

maybe thats why after 6 years my floor is rot appart of all the water spilled while filling and emptying the ballast....

The boat is a 1990.

newoldboat wrote: Did you guys notice the crappy 80's trailer that the previous owner had the boat on?

Im not sure of the year, but its definitely a Correct Craft trailer. It seems to fit the boat just as the original would have, so Id add some wooden step pads and fenders and call it a day.

I sit here and sit here and sit here and think and think and think and think.
on this site I have heard of about 50 boats that needed gutted because of the foam rot. and on the other side of the coin, how many boats have been stuffed or flipped, if they flip they are not going down because of the air trapped? i would be more afraid of the boat breaking in half when rotted then it sinking, I really really dont think sinking is even a statistic.....I'll take my chances with no foam, plus i swim pretty good

Hey Newoldboat,
I went through the same exact issue with my 90, the guys at SN must have been around that year must have forgot about workmanship because it seems more common with the 90's SN than the 80's. Anyway the drain hose that goes from your battery box should be removed and closed up. That is a real lousey connection and water enters through that opening. You will see when you remove the battery box that the foam will be very wet under the box. As for the wood damage - dry to hold off taking all the braces off until you have the boat properly level and supported. THe foam is not only for floatation but mainly for support. As for the water getting back in...well limit the swamping and put a good cover on it. UScomposites can help with all the supplies that you need. After you get it done it will be better than when it came off the line.

kapla wrote: Hey my boat actually flipped over due to nose diving a big wave while being towed... the thing is that it stayed on the surface thanks to the foam...then CG appeard flip the boat to normal position then with a 3000 gph pump managed to get all the water out and then towed back the boat to the marina....w/o foam other was the story.... two weeks later my boat was ready to use after drying out and cleaning everything. insurance paid the bill which was in the 2k range... For the engine the mechanic remove all the plugs added some oil and turned the enginoe until it puke all the water out of the cylinders.... This was like 6 months after buying the boat back in the 2000. Why was it being towed? well I borrowed the boat to a friend so i was not there. the thing is that he could not restart the engine and asked to be towed... he thought it was something with the battery...not it wasn´t as that battery continued to be used after for 3 years... it was the NSS that sometimes you have to move the stick back and forth a couple of times to disengage it..... hey i´m having nightmares now that i see this pics... I hope my boat is in better conditions that yours

"Hey my boat actually flipped over due to nose diving a big wave while being towed..."

I've seen pictures of that while boats were being towed behind house boats on Lake Powell. Must be aweful to look back an see.

eric lavine wrote: I sit here and sit here and sit here and think and think and think and think.

Don't hurt yourself!

eric lavine wrote: on this site I have heard of about 50 boats that needed gutted because of the foam rot.

Not true. I don't think anyone has torn up there floor just because of wet foam. I'd say almost all the foamed boats from the 70s and 80s have some degree of wet foam.

Now, you could say the foam traps and holds the water then it wicks through the polyester resin and rots the stringers. With the current method of glassing in the stringers, this is no longer a concern.

eric lavine wrote: how many boats have been stuffed or flipped, if they flip they are not going down because of the air trapped?

I certainly wouldn't be counting on trapped air to save you. All I want to know is that my boat (if I were rebuilding the stringers/floor) would not be a statistic.

eric lavine wrote: I'll take my chances with no foam, plus i swim pretty good

Yeah, well I'm not sure how well I'd be swimming after an accident with cut up legs for the driver and concussions for the observers.

Remember those guys in Florida that just vanished? The sole survivor was the one who clung onto the flipped, floating boat. I primarily don't ski on the Gulf of Mexico, but since I don't know for certain the future of my boat and who will be using it, it would be comforting to know it won't be going down wherever it might flip. Our 1988 Ski Nautique could be k.o.'s next boat in Aruba, cruising the rivers in Australia or dodging barge traffic on the California delta.

We still have the original stringers (probably rotting), foam (probably wet) and floor (solid) in our boat!

just a note, a heavier foamed soaked boat will go down quicker because of its weight lol

eric lavine wrote: I will always foam a customers boat because of liabilty

Liability from what? NMMA flotation foam regulations?

eric lavine wrote: i would make air tight compartments with drains at the bottem of each so if you did happen to stuff the boat the air tight compartments would provide flotation for an extended period until help arrives.

If the drains are at the bottom of the compartment (near the hull, boat floating upright), when it flips they are now at the top and the air will go right out. If the drains are at the top (near the floor), they will fill with water once you swamp and won't be any air in them once it flips.

I think the pool noodles are a great solution for you plywood floor fans/anti foam pourers. Also, I really like the extra bulkheads that JoeinNY and BuffaloBFN did. This way Greg has separate poured foam compartments, the ones along the sides and upper bow will never get any holes drilled into the floor above. They should theoretically remain dry forever.

Interesting point about the weight of wet foam sinking faster than no foam. The entire starboard side to the helm was sopping in mine. The port side from the exhaust back was also completely soaked. I am guesstimating I removed an additional 400lbs from the boat in water weight. Certainly the dry bow foam and the port side fore would float the boat, but I feel it was drier than it could have been. What if the boat was completely soaked front to back and side to side? It would have to weigh what 1000-1200lbs? nearly the weight of the boat. That thing would rocket to the bottom. I live on a very small lake which greatly affected my decision to not foam. If I was on a big lake with cruisers and huge waves, I would have re-foamed and done tight compartments.