MacGregorSailors.com

I just bought a 1982 Macgregor 25.
Same thing: all the sytrofoam has been removed by previous owner(s).
I am a very new sailor, and would like all safety precautions in place.

I am thinking: get about 4 used twin-bed waterbed matresses from Craig's List. Inflate them into various parts of the hull. If one somehow pops, you still have 3 more. Does this approach have merit??

Mac25

Do they even make waterbeds anymore? You might try twin size mattresses. They make them fairly tall now for us older campers who don't like to sleep too close to the ground.
Robert

Just take foam packing peanuts, put them in plastic bags and stuff them into various voids throughout the boat.

~Rich

Hello,
I'm not so sure all packing "peanuts" are closed cell, IIRC they absorb moisture. Make sure whatever you use is a closed cell ozone stabile type of foam. Even the original styrofoam can come apart after a while, maybe why it was removed.

Smugglers will remove foam flotation to make more room to store... "stuff". Scott told me so! (Like the hollowed surfboards, IYKWIM! )

Really important - some packing peanuts are made from corn starch, which is water soluble.

These cannot be used for flotation of course - they will dissolve.

Polystyrene is the stuff to use, in bags as noted. You can figure out how much you are putting in weighing it.

My 1976 V-25 has foam under the V-birth. It was originally in large chunks I cut them down and added more foam. Overkill is not always a bad thing. I also put floatation anywhere there was unused space and I place as much as I could aft. Ya never get back there much. Fair winds and full sails... Old Salt.

We were doing a project and tried spraying great stuff into plastic bags, it has to have full air around it or the areas that do not get air do not cure.
My two cents worth

Smooth seas

UseDaGreyMatter
http://thetoydiybyagirl.blogspot.com/20 ... -boat.html