NO or very little foam w/ bilge under tray?

B

Bern

X
I am flat decking my fx-1. I have the foam all pulled out and I will be replacing it with either styrofoam or water noodle material.

I got to wondering:

Has anyone ever put a bilge undneath the tray as an emergeny incase a major crack or leak happened in a ski that is running little or no foam under the tray? then create an water tight access hatch to get at it?

I realize the foam is also necessary for reinforcement, but i have covered that by reinforcing the bottom and sides of the rear as well as making aluminum brackets that will support some thin marine plywood to recontruct the tray.
 
NVJAY775

NVJAY775

My home away from home.
Location
Gardnerville, Nevada, United States
Noodles absorb water unfortunately. Extruded polystyrene won't absorb water and is very stout and light. But you will have to cut it up into pieces and fit it in, which works fine. Then use some 2 part foam over that to make a solid surface for the deck to sit on. Install some small drain plugs at the lowest points of the transom and everything should be good.

I haven't herd of anyone using a bilge under the tray. I would think it would be hard to get at for serviceng, adds weight, and the foam will do fine for floatation and also give needed support.

Just my .02 Hopefully others will chime in too.
 
Tyler Zane

Tyler Zane

Open Your Eyes
Location
Panama City Beach, FL
i think there are to many factors in having a hatch, another pump, wires going in, bilge outlet... keep it simple, the method jay described is the most bullet proof imo and the way ill do it when i get around to it. i think you going more for a back up plan if you get a big crack in your hull? if it comes to that, one more pump isnt gonna save you. reinforce well and you shouldnt have to worry about that.
 
D-Roc

D-Roc

I forgot!
Location
Dirty River Rider
it is not a bad idea, just one that needs to be figured out. i have a access hatch into my tray so that i can get to my scupper/oneway valve for servicing if it needs it. anything is possible but i did it jay's way.
 
Freakrider

Freakrider

X247
Location
Tampa Bay area
If skis sink because they are upside down and taking on water, what about a pump mounted upside down; 5200 on the backside of the tray where there is room and near the hatch ? this would of course assume a breach in your tray hull area...

but I like your idea too...couch drain plugs for the tray area are nice...
 
Last edited:
D-Roc

D-Roc

I forgot!
Location
Dirty River Rider
i run a ball valve alot like the vesaplug except bigger and better and can flow a bit more. It keeps my tray area dry as i ride and my scupper/oneway keeps my bilge dry. having foam in the tray is more insurance than no foam at all. a diver told me that a ski can become neutral in the water, it will sink but may not stay stationary because of this. i think a waterlogged heavy ski will sink before a ski with dry light foam or no foam as long as the tray area has not been breached. we need a co2 cartridge that fires out a red/orange floating balloon with 200' of hightest fishing line that we can mount on the area above the pump. someone invent this please.
 
B

Bern

X
thanks for the replies , i appreciate it. what i am doing is sort of a combination of the responses i got. i am using thin marine plywood to create the structure ofthe tray that i will stand on that is supported by aluminum angle brackets. i will seal it with 5200 and glass over it, but I am going to measure out and record where I put the seam (along the edge of the plywood.) this way if i need to get at my tray again I can just use a roto zip tool to take off my 'access hatches.' Then jsut use some combo of 5200 , 404 with resin ect to seal it back up instead of getting into a crazy cut and paste job.

The idea of a bilge under the tray was more a crazy idea i had for someone who runs zero foam. in the event that water filled up under the tray area, as long as the bilge outlet was run above the water line the pump would keep up and not allow water in. i was thinking of this as an emergencey backup more than anything, but also realized that VXR's and Blasters are set up this same way.. water can flow freely from the bilge of the hull back to under the seat area and out the plugs.
 
Last edited:
227

227

Its all about the surf!
Location
Oceanside, CA
No bilge set up will ever compensate for little or no foam. Basicly the more foam the better, especially in a surf ski. Forget the noodle, they will absorb water like a sponge. Styrofoam is the ticket. What ever you decide to do, keep as much foam as possible
 
R

ridethelip

Guest
If you flat deck and remove foam how do you deal with the lack of buoyancy?
 
eeerieski

eeerieski

Location
NW PA
Something to tickle your brain: if you pump the water out, what takes its place? More water from the gaping hole in the side of your ski? Same concept for upside down ski except replace hole with submerged air intake.
 
Last edited:
B

Bern

X
yeah, i planned on using stypfoam but someone else was trying to convince me of noodle stuff. i already have a bunch of styrofoam. most of it is in sheets so i can shape and layer it to conform to the hull. i also have the foam out of a VXR that i will shape to cram as much in there as I can.
 
227

227

Its all about the surf!
Location
Oceanside, CA
My kids pool noodles absorb water over time. They are good at first but sooner rather than later they start retaining water. They are heavier than Styrofoam also. If the VXR foam is the same type of foam as SJ nose foam that would be money. Some one needs to do some homework and find out what type of foam SJ nose foam is. I'll look into that
 
B

Bern

X
i am jamming as much styofoam as humanly possible into this thing...

one of those self inflatting life jackets would provide at least 200 lbs of lift but probably never enough to save a ski from going down.

i am pretty sure that the stuff i yanked out of the VXR is the same as the stuff in the nose of a superjet. I am also going to line the nose of the fx-1 and possibly 5200 some onto the sides up front too. my number one priorit was to seal up the tray water tight. i am sure the rear of the tray will be less boyant than normal when boarding, but i try to stay true to the old mantra of the surf .. NEVER LET GO
 
B

Bern

X
i also plan on making this thing modular with a removable deck on top of it. i could always add a layer of sealed board foam to the deck before i bolt it on. i think that would be just as much if not more floatation than was originally in the ski.
 
js/sj

js/sj

Location
Grand Rapids
If you use styrofoam from a vxr pro and cut it and break it all up into pieces like popcorn and stuff it in a superjet tray would that work?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom