Cowling Insulation

[vaughneric2000]

My 1978 55HP Johnson has the loudest carburetor intake noise I've ever heard. I've owned maybe a dozen motors over the years--some Johnson, some not--and while I understand some noise is inevitable, I think this motor it TOO loud. Upon inspecting the inside of the cowel, I discovered that almost all of the factory insulation has disintegrated. I've priced new foam from Johnson; and, as you'd expect, it's very expensive.<br /><br />Is there a substitute material I could use if I scrub the remaining tattered foam from the inside of the cowel? At this point, there's no more than 1/32 of an inch of foam left.<br /><br />Thanks,<br />Eric

 

[Reel Appeal]

Re: Cowling Insulation

You could use several rolls of wide black closed cell polyurethane tape(weatherstripping).The correct(Johnson) materials are heat/fire resistant and designed for sound-proofing.I'm not sure about the tape.Your choice...

 

[ob]

Re: Cowling Insulation

Carpet padding from your local building supply or carpet outlet.Some installers may even give you that much.

 

[Hooty]

Re: Cowling Insulation

Don't put anything under there that's gonna come loose and get sucked into a carburetor. Bad juju.<br /><br />c/6<br />Hooty

 

[vaughneric2000]

Re: Cowling Insulation

Thanks to all. I cut out exact replacement pieces of carpet padding (as OB suggested)using the old, worn out foam pieces as templates. The motor is MUCH quieter, and after running the motor all over the bay today, the temporary temp sensor I installed under the cowling registered no rise in temp! In fact, it actually ran about 5 degrees cooler +-1 degree all day.<br /><br />Woo hoo! <br /><br />Thanks again to all,<br /><br />Eric