what type of Styrofoam is this

Discussion in 'Metal Boat Building' started by the brain, Aug 25, 2017.

  1. the brain
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    the brain Senior Member

    what type of Styrofoam is this


    I picked these Styrofoam blocks used to surport ultility trailers tongues at Lowes home improvment.


    Can this be used for floation? it is denser than the orginale white stuff in my 1977 Starcraft.would like to stuff Styrofoam in OB engine Pod and stuff under dive platfoam.


    This Styrofoam is covered halfway w/ plastic

    Maybe to keep it dry? Trailer’s stay outside and get rained on this Styrofoam is still dry.


    Thanks TB
     

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  2. the brain
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    the brain Senior Member

    anyone know what type of Styrofoam is this? and can it be used for floatation?
     
  3. Barry
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    Barry Senior Member


    Difficult to know what type of foam that it is from a picture
    There are some spray foams used in aluminum boats so that there is adhesion between the aluminum and the foam. You need to ensure that water cannot get trapped between the two as this can create some areas for corrosion.
    But, I realize that your boat does not sit in the water for months on end. Sometimes when foam manufacturers pour foam into a mould, the outer edges of the foam will skin over and look like they would not absorb water over time but
    when the skin is breeched, the water will ingress into the foam

    The other consideration is that some foams burn and would not meet ABYC requirements.

    You say that these blocks do not get wet when they are rained on. Perhaps not but it is a different environment when you might have long term contact with the foam with water and a bit of water pressure against the foam

    A couple of things about foam

    Permeability- the ability of say water to move through or into the foam
    Porosity- the air voids within the foam

    So 100 ping pong balls totally encapsulated with a solid resin - high porosity no permeability---closed cell foam
    The same ping balls just glued together at the contact spots- high porosity high permeability ----a sponge
     
  4. ondarvr
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    ondarvr Senior Member

    It's EPS foam, it can and is used as flotation foam, but is only approved for use in some locations.
     
  5. the brain
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    the brain Senior Member

    actualley floating docks are made w/ these blocks.

    good looks like I'm going to stuff Styrofoam in OB engine Pod (hopefully it will work better than the laundry bottles I'm currently using) then check water line and then stuff under dive platfoam.
     
  6. Barry
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    Barry Senior Member

    There’s No Such thing as a STYROFOAM™ Cup

    STYROFOAM™ Brand Foam is a registered trademark of The Dow Chemical Company and has been a valued asset for more than 60 years.

    The STYROFOAM™ Brand name is often misused as a generic term for disposable foam products such as coffee cups, coolers and packaging materials. These materials, however, are made from expanded polystyrene (also known as EPS) and do not have the insulation value, compressive strength or moisture-resistant properties of STYROFOAM™ Brand Extruded Polystyrene Foam Insulation.

    There isn’t a coffee cup, cooler or packaging material in the world made from actual STYROFOAM™ Brand Extruded Polystyrene Foam Insulation. STYROFOAM™ is a registered trademark of The Dow Chemical Company that represents its branded building material products, including rigid foam and structural insulated sheathing, and more.

    What is foam?
    There are two kinds of Polystyrene Foams:
    1. Expandable Polystyrene / EPS usually use as packaging for many kind of products such as television, electrical appliances, helmet, ice box, sheet foam and block foam for road construction.
    2. Polystyrene Paper / PSP so called Extruded Polystyrene / XPS which use to produce food tray and food box.
    “Foam” is generally known everywhere but in fact its’ meaning is so wide. According to translation “Foam” means, “expand” or “blow”.

    There’s no any CFC’s in PS foam

    Both EPS and PSP contain 95 -98 % air another 2-5% is polystyrene which is pure hydrocarbon. CFC’s is Chlorofluorocarbons which is totally different chemical structure from polystyrene. CFC’s has very low blowing point and uneasy to be maintained in EPS beads. Therefore, EPS Foam never use CFC’s at any stage of its production. The blowing agent used since EPS Foam was first introduced in 1952 by BASF of Germany is Pentane gas which, does not contain any chlorine atoms as CFC’s. PSP Foam in the beginning used CFC’s as blowing agent. In the past two decades CFC’s are gradually phased out from plastics and refrigerator industries. PSP molders in Thailand already use Butane (C4H10) as the blowing agent since the last 15 years. Butane gas is the gas that we use at home for cooking. The blowing agents that use in producing PS Foam are Pentane and Butane, which are pure hydrocarbon as polystyrene. They belong to the same chemical family, the paraffin series as methane, ethane, and propane gas.

    PULLED OFF THE NET,
     
    Last edited: Aug 27, 2017
  7. Ike
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    Ike Senior Member

    Polystyrene foams are susceptible to being dissolved by most petroleum products (gasoline, oil, diesel etc) and many cleaning products. So if you use polystyrene foam it has to be protected or placed where these products can not affect it. Encasing the foam in polyvinyl plastic (bagging) works and encasing it in fiberglass and epoxy resin works as well. Boat manufacturers generally put polystyrene foams in sealed compartments or boxes where water and other fluids won't get to the foam. They also do not put this type of foam in the bilges. Most boat manufacturers use polyurethane blown foams, but in smaller boats where the foam is typically in boxes under the seats the do use polystyrene. It is far less expensive and just as durable.
     
  8. the brain
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    the brain Senior Member

    I mearsured inside of POD I can stuff this block into POD allmost perfect fit block is slitely smaller than POD anxious to see new waterlevel.
     
  9. ondarvr
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    ondarvr Senior Member

    Does water currently fill the pod when the boat isn't moving?
     
  10. the brain
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    the brain Senior Member

    Yes the POD was designed to take on water it completely fills the inside of POD, see the extra set of engine mount holes see the center hole/ see drain cut away POD was made this way thanks a lot Armstronge.


    I don’t understand the logic behind a POD designed to take on water adding stern weight.


    I have made a lid/5200 around outside of POD against transome/5200 the extra holes 5200 a flange in the cutout section drain

    Where the lower part contacts the transome this is a drain I actually attempted to completely seal this POD unsuccessfully.


    Anyway when I partially filled the POD w/ laundry bottles (bottles occupied about 75% of inside POD area limiting the amount of water inside POD) vessel rode better.


    I measured the Styrofoam block and it’s a almost perfect fit will cut a second block to hopefully occupies 100% of inside POD so threoreticalley I won’t have the extra stern weight from the water inside POD but will also have about 200LBs of floatation (when dive platforms are completed I estimate each to have 3 blocks =s 600LBs of floatation).

    I plan a BRP 250hp ETEC OB engine swap it weights around 125LBs more than the current Johnson 175hp so I'm liking additional floatation.


    Hopefully w/ less stern weight and floatation it will raise the water level making the stern

    Higher and lighter boat should plane quicker and cruise more efficiently

    TB.
     

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    Last edited: Sep 2, 2017

  11. the brain
    Joined: Sep 2016
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    the brain Senior Member

    lots of space for floatation under dive plateform.
     

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