Fiberglass over Foam Core

What are the thoughts on building a hull from foam and then glassing over it?

 

Welcome to the Forum HG.

There are so many thoughts on this already on the Forum, just look in the Search window, upper right of your page.

It is sound if done properly... but it's really challenging to do it properly.
All stresses, forces, dynamic loading complications, everything must be accounted for.
Not within the scope of most, especially on a custom, one-off design/build.

Why do you ask?

 

And what type / design / size of foam sandwich hull would you like to build?
Are you designing a boat yourself, or do you have a stock plan in mind?

What is your experience so far of using fibreglass?

 

Done all the time. Stations must be close as foam does not self support. Or, you can glass one side of it, or strip glue.

But to offer a better answer requires much more detail about the plan.

The advantage of foam is generally weight. And weight is decreased using vacuum.

Another issue is removing it from the jig can result in deformation after glassing; so sometimes it is preferable to build it on bulkheads as well. Or, build in a female jig and laminate the inside first and install bulkheads. But this is all generalized for the open ended question.