Has it ever been done?? Well it’s about to happen.

[3 Squids]

Originally Posted by Destroyer

Interesting. https://www.ebay.com/itm/1986-Wellcr...gAAOSwx95bFWi4

That an 18’ right?

[Destroyer]

Yes. Still... it's an interesting find for anyone looking for a smaller boat.

[1224bret]

I’m actually in the process of converting my cuddy to a cc and am doing it like you are glassing the floor directly to the sides setting on top of the stringers. Looking forward to your progress pics.

[1224bret]

Here’s a pic that kinda shows what I’m doing. Completely built console from scratch not quite finished with it yet.

[3 Squids]

Originally Posted by 1224bret

I’m actually in the process of converting my cuddy to a cc and am doing it like you are glassing the floor directly to the sides setting on top of the stringers. Looking forward to your progress pics.

Originally Posted by 1224bret

Here’s a pic that kinda shows what I’m doing. Completely built console from scratch not quite finished with it yet.

Very nice. I can’t wait to get mine started. Unfortunately work is keeping me away from it recently. I did manage to have 10 free minutes yesterday and I dug into some of the foam and just as I suspected the last inch or so was solid water. I had dental surgery yesterday and by doctors orders took today off so I plan on going out today and getting the foam all out and clean her up and get a cover on her.

[Destroyer]

Yep. That last 1-3 inches of foam is usually where the water is the most. It's amazing how much extra weight just those few inches can add to the total overall weight of the boat.

I'm in the process of removing the same thing (saturated foam) from my 16.5 Airslot. I've already removed over 350lb of saturated foam. I think I'm going to try something a little different this time. First, I'm going to use solid foam noodles (think of the ones used in swimming pools) instead of foaming in place to fill the voids.. This way I'll always be able to remove and replace them easily and cheaply if they get waterlogged. Second, instead of glassing the deck back into place like I did with my V21, I think I'm going to secure it back down with SS screws and seal the edges with silicone caulk so I'll always be able to remove it easily. The whole idea is to make it as easy as possible to remove the deck again if I ever have to replace the fuel tank or bilge pumps or filler hoses or.... well, you get the idea. I'm all about convenience on this project.

[3 Squids]

Originally Posted by Destroyer

Yep. That last 1-3 inches of foam is usually where the water is the most. It's amazing how much extra weight just those few inches can add to the total overall weight of the boat.

I'm in the process of removing the same thing (saturated foam) from my 16.5 Airslot. I've already removed over 350lb of saturated foam. I think I'm going to try something a little different this time. First, I'm going to use solid foam noodles (think of the ones used in swimming pools) instead of foaming in place to fill the voids.. This way I'll always be able to remove and replace them easily and cheaply if they get waterlogged. Second, instead of glassing the deck back into place like I did with my V21, I think I'm going to secure it back down with SS screws and seal the edges with silicone caulk so I'll always be able to remove it easily. The whole idea is to make it as easy as possible to remove the deck again if I ever have to replace the fuel tank or bilge pumps or filler hoses or.... well, you get the idea. I'm all about convenience on this project.

I like the pool noodle idea. And the boat I was going to fix up for my nephew had a removable deck like you speak of. Seems like an ok idea as long as it’s done well (his wasn’t). I’m going to seal this one up good. I didn’t get to work on it today as my mouth is hurting a lot worse then I though it was but I’m my blank mind of a day thought of something. I noticed on this boat at the top of the foam there is a hole through the stringer into the center of the boat to where any water that gets on top of the foam in theory will go into the bilge before saturating the foam.

I seriously doubt this worked but I can’t really rule it out with this boat because the floor has been cut open to the elements for over a year so there’s no way that much water could of ran off quick enough. But my thought is what if I re-foam the compartments then put a couple layers of chop strand over the foam then make weep holes into the bilge area. It may be a complete waste of time but is there any reason anyone here thinks I’d regret doing it?

[Destroyer]

The saturated foam does not come just from standing water on the bottom of the bilge. When I redid my V21 I had to do so because the wood under the deck was completely rotted. No water was ever standing on that wood. I was all because of humidity. The PO never vented the bilge area after use or during the winter. SO my thought is that if humidity is enough to rot wood it might be able to be absorbed into the foam in the same way. Understand, this is just theory with no proof on my part. If I was going to seal the foam in the voids I'd make sure that it was, indeed, a seal. No weep holes, no top holes, no penetrations of any kind. If there's no way for water to get in then there's no way for water to saturate the foam.