urethane foam core and peel ply on the cheap

[FishStretcher]

I am doing some experiments now. I did a little reading and guessing. Dow super TUFF-R closed cell urethane foam board in 1/" thickness and 4' x 8' sheets is $15 at Home Depot. That and some $4 a linear yard nylon and similar price polyester scrim/fabric were purchased this weekend. I just laid up some test swaths to check adhesion and strength of the peel ply and foam. The foam probably isn't good for much more than non weight bearing hatch covers, or livewells, but the price is right. I should know in 24-48 hrs after the epoxy cures fully. This should at least be good enough for my cover on my console.

For what it is worth, the foam gets a bad rap for structural parts over at boatdesign.net- I suspect rightly so.

[Blue_Heron]

Originally Posted by FishStretcher

For what it is worth, the foam gets a bad rap for structural parts over at boatdesign.net- I suspect rightly so.

True, but for non structural parts like coolers and cooler lids, it should be fine. I believe the urethane foams are also compatible with polyester resin.

Dave

[bly]

It glasses good and all. I did use it more for insulation then structure because I laminated it to the underside of my new coffin lid I built. But the bottom is just a thin layer of glass facing the coffin inside. Now the best. No epoxy needed! Since it is not styrofoam it holds up to vinyl ester and polyester resin contact. I have also been thinking about replacing the wet foam flotation that I removed from the 20 sea craft I am doing with some of that foam only the thicker stuff maybe in multiple layers. For flotation only. I am thinking of blocking it up off the bottom with pieces of scrap penske under. Then laminating all the edges with a layer of 1 1/2 mat.

[FishStretcher]

Well, the polyester peel ply worked. The nylon, not so much.

The polyester peel ply allowed me to get what seems to be a pretty good resin ratio with just a squeegee. Not dry, but not a lot of excess. I will have to try more than a sample coupon next to verify.

The urethane foam is pretty soft, but the epoxy adhesion was stronger than the foam itself. Not that I expected something different from what Bly reported.

[bly]

Originally Posted by FishStretcher

Well, the polyester peel ply worked. The nylon, not so much.

The polyester peel ply allowed me to get what seems to be a pretty good resin ratio with just a squeegee. Not dry, but not a lot of excess. I will have to try more than a sample coupon next to verify.

The urethane foam is pretty soft, but the epoxy adhesion was stronger than the foam itself. Not that I expected something different from what Bly reported.

I have found it is more worser to be too dry then too wet. Yes it is heavier. But in my quest for lightness I have found that I have sometimes resin starved the laminate after trying to get the excess resin out. Peel plys are great for leaving a nice surface also. I always have peel ply around the shop. I sometimes for get to get all my toys out of the toy box til its too late tho. On that urethane home depot foam. I have a sheet on the floor to roll my glass out and cut, why? Its nice and soft on the knees.

[FishStretcher]

Well, I thought peel ply was expensive, but airtech prices seem pretty good. Anyone want to split some supplies? Peel ply, bagging film, tape, etc? I don't need some of the minimum buys from them, like 25 linear yards of peel ply. Send me a PM if you think you might want some and are local-ish to greater Boston.

https://www.airtechonline.com/htm/defaultnetscape.htm