converting a rib to a rbb.

hello, i have been offered a ribeye 2.9m rib but it has a leak under one of the tube seams, i was going to take it off and repair it but i thought about filling the tubes with foam, as i would like to keep it in a tidal river with flotsam and jetsom in it.

so i thought converting it to a rbb as it would make it less punture proof, by branches and stuff.

has anyone had any experience in doing this or can anyone offer any advice please.

thanks.

 

The problem with this is that expanding foams are not designed to be continually wet or the degrade. Since the inside of a leaking tube will almost always retain water while it may work for a year or so I would expect that before long the boat will turn into a crushed foam mess. I guess if you just want a year or two out of it then it couldn't hurt, but if you want it to last it is a no-go.