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13' 1961 whaler with wet foam
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| fathersonwhaler |
Posted on 06/28/09 - 7:55 PM
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Purchased a 1961 13' whaler as a great project boat for my 13 year old son with a little helpo from Dad. Turns out the foam is wet. Fortunately the boat was almost free. How do you remove the floor and foam and replace it?
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| nvaccaro |
Posted on 06/28/09 - 9:57 PM
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Welcome to the site, FatherSonWhaler.
You have come to the right place with this question. I, however, can't help you with that. Let me see if I can help point you in the right direction.
Go to the block at the left of the page called "Navigation." Then go to "Site Search." Type in "Wet Foam" and see what comes up. The system appears to be auto set to search past forum postings. I ran a test before typing this and searched under wet foam. A good deal of information popped up, so hopefully you'll be on your way. If anything, it should point you to some members who were once faced with your same situation.
I can't think of a cooler gift for a 13 year old boy than a 13 ft. Sport. My son has really enjoyed helping me restore our 17ft. Montauk. I hope you guys enjoy it and good luck.
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| Turpin |
Posted on 06/29/09 - 5:25 AM
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Though I did not remove the floor from my boat, I did research the possibilities. What I found was that you could either drill test holes to determine how much was wet or just remove a large section and scrape all the foam from the floor then run a fan and/or dehumidifier for a period. One would use an A-B two part foam and refill the floor. It appeared that some talent would be required in getting the floor contours goes to what started. Most that had removed the entire floor, cut along the seam or channel my guess would be that would give you a guide to make that job easier. I also notice most made a new fiberglass floor rather than reusing the old, I'm not sure why as it appeared it would be easier to reuse the old but I'm sure there was a reason.
There was a really good look at the job being done on a boat for a Boston Whaler demo show, I'll keep looking.
1963 13' Sport 50hp Evinrude
Maintaining a level of sanity that is socially acceptable |
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| Turpin |
Posted on 06/29/09 - 5:32 AM
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http://www.metanmarine.com/Restoratio...index.html
Finally remembered the site.
1963 13' Sport 50hp Evinrude
Maintaining a level of sanity that is socially acceptable |
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| fathersonwhaler |
Posted on 11/19/09 - 6:39 PM
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Thanks! i will take the floor out tomorrow. ( im jack the 13 year old)
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| kamie |
Posted on 11/19/09 - 6:49 PM
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Jack,
Before you take the floor out try cutting some access holes and digg out the foam leaving as much of the floor as you can. That is my plan with my 13 footer. To refoam use 2 part foam
http://www.shopmaninc.com/foam.html/foam.html, shape once dry and then fiberglass and gelcoat
Take some photo's of your progress so we can all see and build a personal page
Edited by kamie on 11/19/09 - 6:50 PM |
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| frstevec |
Posted on 11/19/09 - 8:06 PM
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Greetings,
I also have a 13' Whaler with wet foam. I weighed the hull, motor, trailer and stuff together= 1070#. Backed out all the non hull piece weights and estimate that I have 20 gallons of water in the hull, 160#!! So, I subtracted the water weight from the carrying capacity and I have enough to safely carry me, my son and all the stuff we need for outings. Used it all summer and have only one complaint; I need more than 15hp to get on a good plane. I added the little string ray jr. and it is ok for fishing and putting around the local rivers and lakes. I considered the options you have found or were given. I heard too the judgement of many who did it that not a lot of water is removed despite heroic efforts. Therefore, my humble suggestion is make it safe; make it neat and clean and use the heck out of it together. Steve
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| Finnegan |
Posted on 11/19/09 - 8:26 PM
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Pardon me in advance for these remarks, and I don't mean to offend anybody, but to me (Whaler perfectionist and a believer in paying up for a good Whaler is ten times cheaper that rehabbing a dog in the long run) fixing up an old 13 like Metan did seems, in spite of beautiful work, like a ridiculous waste of time and money. I couldn't imagine being their customer and paying for a job like that. It seems like an equal waste of time to do a job like that yourself, when there are literally hundreds of nice, dry 13's to be found for 2k-3k or so. And you still have a lower value PAINTED boat, rather than an original gelcoat model. I would never take that boat Metan fixed up out into any kind of seas. I'd be afraid it would come apart (delaminate) on me and sink. That's right, it could sink!
Secondly, Whalers gain their strength from the bonding of the injected, expanding foam between the two molds, to form a monolithic casting. The destruction of that structural system by removing the compression member (the boat floor) seems like a bad and dangerous idea. The company never recommended such major repairs, and Whalers torn up like that were considered total losses and junked.
If the free 13 is really soaked, either try to dry it out by drilling holes, or pitch it and buy a dry hull in decent shape. That's why it was free in the first place. You'll save tons of money when you find out the free boat really cost you a fortune. Otherwise, you're simply putting lipstick on the proverbial pig. Unfortunately, there are Whalers out there ready for the scrap heap, and you may have one.
Edited by Finnegan on 11/19/09 - 8:32 PM |
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| LabCab |
Posted on 11/19/09 - 8:41 PM
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Finnegan, Let's see some photos of those perfect Whalers you own. You don't have any registered and you don't have a personal page. Some people get enjoyment out of learning and fixing things. I don't consider a hobby a waste of time.
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| kamie |
Posted on 11/20/09 - 10:00 AM
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Turpin,
Thanks for finding the photo's. They clearly show the stringer type blocks that separate the bottom for the deck and keep the deck solid.
fathersonwhaler, follow the link that Turpin posted so you can take a look at the inside of the whaler without the floam. You must not destroy those fiberglass blocks, as they keep the floor and the bottom the correct distance apart.
How much water is in the foam? How heavy is the hull alone? your hull should weight between 250# and 300# if you have removed all the wood.
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| Finnegan |
Posted on 11/20/09 - 10:45 AM
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LabCab;
Per your request. If you enlarge the photos to full screen you can see that like you, I, too, consider owning Classic Whalers a hobby as well as recreation. I hope you like my teak varnish work and preservation of the original design detailing of these classic boats.
http://whalercentral.com/userphotogal...hoto_id=95
If you scroll down to the discussion in the above link, there is another link to many more photos, showing other original detailing of this Whaler model.
http://whalercentral.com/userphotogal...oto_id=102
Incidentally, I don't see any problem with your 13 restoration at all, as that was not what I was talking about. You have not destroyed the boat's structural integrity by cutting out the boat's entire floor. That was my point in the above post. A badly waterlogged 13 is probably not worth the work & cost to restore. Better to find one like you have.
Edited by Finnegan on 11/20/09 - 11:04 AM |
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| fathersonwhaler |
Posted on 11/20/09 - 1:37 PM
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How would i drill the access holes to check on the foam
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| kamie |
Posted on 11/20/09 - 1:43 PM
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fathersonwhaler,
First lets confirm that your hull is truely waterlogged. Have you stripped all the the interior?
Have you taken the hull to a scale? Any scale will do, I use the drive across scale at the local lumber mill?
How much does the hull alone weight?
Are there any existing holes or breaks in the gelcoat?
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| fathersonwhaler |
Posted on 11/20/09 - 2:08 PM
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Well I haven't put it on a scale yet so I don't know the weight of it. I can go and do that tomorrow and then ill get back to you when i know the weight of the hull.
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| LabCab |
Posted on 11/20/09 - 9:00 PM
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Nice boat Finnegan! Why don't you have a personal page? Fatherson: From your pictures your boat does not appear to be a lost cause. Right now there's a 13 on Ebay that is missing a huge chunk of the bow yet the owner says it still functions. I would try many things before I resorted to cutting holes. If you can't weigh your boat maybe you can launch it briefly at a boat ramp to see how it sits in the water. I notice you have old bottom paint. The boat's water line should be close to the line of bottom paint you have. Don't forget to put something heavy in the stern to simulate the weight of an outboard. If the line is not way off or if the boat doesn't list to one side I would not bother drilling holes. Another thing you can do before drilling any holes is to replace the through hulls. When you collapse and remove the old brass you should get an idea of how wet things are. That is if you haven't left the boat outside or been hosing out the interior. You can read plenty about replacing through hulls by doing a search on this site.
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| kamie |
Posted on 11/20/09 - 10:11 PM
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fathersonwhaler,
I can't tell but the boat doesn't look too bad. Unless you can see cracks on the inside or outside where water has gotten in, I would not sweat it. Wash the hull, wet sand the sides of the hull on the inside, use buff magic on the non-skid wax and go boating.
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| fathersonwhaler |
Posted on 11/21/09 - 5:51 AM
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I already did all the sanding and stuff so thats done.
Ill take pics of the bottom, its a wreck. The boat looks fine from the top but the bottom of the hull is a disaster. There are three holes. There not that big but you can tell water defiantly got into the foam.
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| kamie |
Posted on 11/21/09 - 7:27 AM
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Put it on a scale and take some photo's of the damage. If the foam got water in it thru an opening in the keel, it may be localized enough to get it out that way. Or you may find that the boat is not as heavy as you though and a couple pounds of water won't effect how she handles.
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| modenacart |
Posted on 11/21/09 - 8:23 AM
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If you still have the engine on it and there are no open cracks in the hull, put it in the water and look where she drafts. If she isn't sitting low in the water, then I wouldn't worry.
They that give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty or safety.
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| fathersonwhaler |
Posted on 11/21/09 - 1:54 PM
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i couldn't get the boat weighed today but i do know that the foam is wet. how would i drill the access holes again?
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