FoamStream...

[GPW]

I missed that , how did it happen ?

[Wolffarmer]

I was burning weeds and trash. Had made my fire breaks and all. My knees was killing me and I had about 3 hours of sleep the night before so when I had it all under control and went in the house to set down for a few moments and fell asleep. Some how it got started up again and went around my fire breaks and got to the shop. Building a total loss. Wenches are not to bad, most of my wood working tools are gone or very bad. Motorcycle collection is now some parts. Motorcycles did not burn but any plastic or rubber above 2 feet from floor is melted. They can be rebuilt but I no longer have the resources ( ie money ) to do so. Table saw can be repaired. Fence and power switch melted and rusty top but can be fixed. Two radial arms saws gone. I was storing one for a friend. Thickness planer really gone. Hand planes are rusty and will need to be refurbished. Work bench has water damage. Lost lots of paint, finishes and oil. One drill press. One Shopsmith band saw melted. Shopsmith base is not to bad. Most every thing covered with smoke. Still cleaning stuff out of the building before it comes down.

Oh well

Randy

[GPW]

Gosh !!! That’s a major setback ... But a chance to start anew , new tools , new projects . Little bit at a time , which is how you got all that stuff before eh ....

[Wolffarmer]

I no longer have the income to get that all back. Pretty much out of business.

[GPW]

Give it time !!!

[Cliffmeister2000]

Homeowner's insurance?

I was burning weeds and trash. Had made my fire breaks and all. My knees was killing me and I had about 3 hours of sleep the night before so when I had it all under control and went in the house to set down for a few moments and fell asleep. Some how it got started up again and went around my fire breaks and got to the shop. Building a total loss. Wenches are not to bad, most of my wood working tools are gone or very bad. Motorcycle collection is now some parts. Motorcycles did not burn but any plastic or rubber above 2 feet from floor is melted. They can be rebuilt but I no longer have the resources ( ie money ) to do so. Table saw can be repaired. Fence and power switch melted and rusty top but can be fixed. Two radial arms saws gone. I was storing one for a friend. Thickness planer really gone. Hand planes are rusty and will need to be refurbished. Work bench has water damage. Lost lots of paint, finishes and oil. One drill press. One Shopsmith band saw melted. Shopsmith base is not to bad. Most every thing covered with smoke. Still cleaning stuff out of the building before it comes down.

Oh well

Randy

[Wolffarmer]

Some on the building. Will probably not get anything on contents.

[Mary C]

i like your floaty barge ........ would one similiar made with 8 inches of foam, only 8 foot long, float? I am still wondering about a 7 foot 8 inches (truck bed length,with hatch closed) would float? How thick would that have to be to hold up lets say 200. pounds that would be me and fishing stuff.

Mary C.

[KCStudly]

...that figure must include the cooler full of beer and ice, too.

[GPW]

Mary , always being a TLAR builder , I cannot supply the water displacement Math for your request ( I know others here will be able to do so ) ... We always have to resort to “testing” .... build it , test it , and if that doesn’t work . modify it to do so.

I’m planning on leaving the tail gate down on the PUTruck to allow the extra footage to hang out a little ... I’ll need all the foam we can muster because I weigh 240# (right now ) , and then there’s battery , trolling motor ,tackle, ice , and the requisite 500# of beer ... hence the “barge" requirement ... And to top that it must be Stable ... Very stable for the old guy ... although I can swim well , I don’t like to swim with the fishes ... (sharks and whatever is in the salty -brackish water )

Funny story , we were out in the marsh in a flat boat , quietly fishing... Suddenly the water started to boil right on the side of the boat , and up popped a huge Porpoise not but a few feet away ... Scared the Holy *** outta’ me , but then we laughed about it and threw live shrimp to the Porpoise , who hung around for a good while and then left when we ran out of shrimp ... You never know what’s under the boat ...

[KCStudly]

Here's my logic (may or may not be the customary method, but should at least be mathematically accurate: For fresh water figure 8.33 lbs of displacement per gallon and 0.133681 cubic feet per gallon. So (200 lbs / 8.33lbs/gal) x 0.133681 ft^3/gal = 3.2 ft^3.

Add for free board.

So if your "footprint" is 2ft x 8ft (average, assuming tapers are accounted for or flat bottom), or 16 sq ft, you need about 0.2 ft or 2.4 inches of draft. Add for tapered bow/stern, radius rocker and radius chine (boat terminology?).

It is not the volume of foam, it is the volume of water that the shape of the foam displaces. The volume of foam only comes into play as floatation when the boat gets swamped, in which case you need to compare the difference in density between the foam and water to figure out what volume of foam provides the required delta.

... I think. Maybe. Not a qualified boat designer.

[Wobbly Wheels]

For a 'non-boat guy', that's pretty good KC.

To clarify:

It is not the volume of foam, it is the volume of water that the shape of the foam displaces.

It's the weight of that water, not the volume. We use volume because it's practically constant so it makes the math a bit easier.

1)Take the total weight of you, gear, and beer...and double it (or more). That's the minimum weight you want the boat to be able to support (its displacement in lbs).

2)To figure out how much foam you need, you'll need to know the buoyancy of the foam (lbs/cu ft). That's the weight of the polystyrene in the foam subtracted from the bouyancy given by the amount of air in it. It might be tough to find for foam not intended for marine use so you can take a measured volume of foam and test how much weight it takes to just barely submerge it below the surface of the water.

3)To figure out how much foam you'll need, divide the density into the displacement and the result will be how many cubic feet of foam will safely support that weight under calm conditions most of the time.

That gets reduced once you start removing foam to shape the bottom. It's not just floatation you need to consider, but stability. As the platform gets lighter and longer, it will need more width to stabilize it. Nav archs and designers spend their entire careers looking for that 'sweet spot' for each design. For our purposes, it's probably best to make it as wide as will fit in your truck and cut it down from there as you feel comfortable.

[GPW]

Thanks Guys !!! Glad that’s cleared up !!!
You know ( or may not know ) being an Artist , I do most everything by TLAR . That may not be scientific , but it sure works , within practical limits of course ... We’ve been fishing all our lives on certain sized boats .... mostly what many would call “ your basic Bass boat" ... Wide, flat , low , very stable ... and FAST , although that is no longer my personal consideration . But it does provide a nice stable and Open platform to Fish off of ... So working with that in mind , and the practical size limitations of the transport, we are (theoretically) able to downsize the same proportioned craft to a new /smaller manageable size .. and still have similar behavior in the water.... sorta’ ...
Easy enough to throw together a “basic” craft ( or even a scale model) ,and test it under "simulated operating conditions" (swimming pool ) and then proceed with whatever stage of Finishing is desired .. if successful.
A boat will either float .... or sink ... ... If it sinks , you just add more Foam ...
But then there’s always the wild card variable that cannot be cured with Math nor instinct.... Your 350# brother in law... “ hey, lets go fishin’ with your new Foamie’ boat !!! “ .... just the Beer alone ...

[GPW]

.... and now for something completely different, back to the FoamStream ...

Naturally since I sprayed the foam in the kerfs on the trailer nose , it Rained , and pretty heavy too ... and just checked , the inside is DRY , not a hint of water wicking in ... so that’s a “Good Thing” ... A quick and easy Fix !!! The essence of Foamie construction!!! Now , we’ll clean and neutralize the mildew, and then glue the de-laminated spots back together , I’m making small plywood pads that will serve as clamps for the plywood re-gluing ( + waxpaper) ... then repaint and then were done .... and just in time for Hurricane season too (June 1 ) ... the sole reason the FS was built ... and aside from the current repair, I’m ready this year ... "Justin Case" ...
Note: I am temporarily ignoring the small damaged canvas area at the very nose .... that’s all foamed in now so no problem with rot or water intrusion . The reason for the delay is to further explore possibilities for a simple “drip" edge style addition to the nose , and possibly sides too ... It has to be SIMPLE , and effective , yet be able to be installed successfully by anybody . Currently thinking about Eternabond tape or something similar like a piece of folded canvas ... until we find something better ...

[GPW]

.... and furthermore ... since really heavy canvas is available , a bent folded canvas strip might do the job , as seen in the Orange drawing included . That would be as simple as it could get , but still be flexible and effective... Thrifty too . Sometimes it’s the SIMPLE things that work Best !!!