Foam filled U-shaped toons

[Cubbyblue22]

I recently bought a pontoon with the U-shaped foam filled toons. I've been hearing some bad reviews on here about them but didn't know they were that big of a concern when I bought them. What are the disadvantages that i'm facing and advantages if any?? I do like how the boat can hold so many people because these are huge logs. That and they are very clean with no dents or dings....that's what I saw as an advantage when buying it. Any comments would be great!

 

[lncoop]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

They're fine as long as long as the foam stays dry. If it becomes waterlogged due to unattended to leaks you are SOL. It sounds like the toons are in very good condition and watertight, so just be sure you keep them that way and you'll be ship shape. However, if you ever suspect you have a leak adress it right away or thou shalt be sorry. Happy tooning!

 

[5150abf]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

Yup ,that is the only real draw back to the U tubes is water logging the foam, other than that they are the same as any other tube.

For what ever reason the coast gaurd views them as a hull rather than a tube so they have to have foam.

Don't worry, you did good.

And LOGS grow in the forest, TUBES are crafted from aluminum, been a pet peeve of mine ever since I started building them.

 

[Cubbyblue22]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

Let's say they do get a leak and the foam does get some water soaked in. Is it possible to dry that foam at all with a blowdryer or some sort of device to blow into the toons???

 

[OldePharte]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

My guess is that the foam is a beaded variety and it doesn't readily absorb water like a sponge. It has to be soaked for quite awhile for it to be an issue.

There really is no real good (read cheap) way to dry out water-logged foam still in the tubes other than let them drip dry for an extended time.

FWIIW - I have U-shaped tubes with no foam.

 

[VaGent]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

I have U shaped logs as well. My toon is a 1984 JC 24 ft. I called JC Mfg a while back & was assured mine did not have any foam in them anywhere. I pulled the plugs on each log & checked for water & ran a long plastic rod inside to find out if there was any foam or not & found none at all. No water was found either.

 

[5150abf]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

They may have changed the regulations on that but I built U tubes at Suncruiser back in the late 80s and it was required to have foam in them.

The stuff we used was the smae thing they insulate houses with, it went in as a liquid and expanded.

If it has plugs you coul dpull one and try to get a wire or something down in the tube, if it goes in no foam if not then you have it.

And no, there is no way to dry the fom, once it is wet it is wet, it is way to solid to get any kind of air flow thru it to dry it out.

 

[Cubbyblue22]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

So i'm hearing a good amount of people have the U shaped toons but without the foam inside. I'm wondering if there is any way of taking out the foam??

 

[OldePharte]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

So i'm hearing a good amount of people have the U shaped toons but without the foam inside. I'm wondering if there is any way of taking out the foam??

Again, no cheap way to do it. It has been a long time since I have been through a pontoon plant, but back in the day, the foam was in rectangular blocks. They left an air space at the bottom, which allowed any water to drain out.

The main purpose of the blocks is to provide flotation should you rip the tube. Say, ya hit a submerged rock while running. The tube would fill with water, but the flotation would not allow that tube to fill completely. Ya could limp back to the dock/ramp and get your toon out of the water.

Round tubes, theoretically have chambers and as long as you puncture just one chamber, the remaining ones will keep you upright.

If you really, really, want to remove the foam - remove the tube, cut through the top weld, take out the foam, reweld it back together, and reinstall the tube. I would not recommend it.

 

[Cubbyblue22]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

Well it sounds like your saying there is space underneat these rectangular blocks where water will drain. So if something does happen would just leaving the boat sit in a heated environment let the blocks dry out. Mine does have places to drain the toons in the back. Then just fix the rip/puncture??? Sorry for asking so many questions about this, just want to know my options if this ever does happen.

 

[5150abf]

Re: Foam filled U-shaped toons

It depends, as I said pull a plug and shove something in there to see if you even have foam, you may be getting in a lather over something that can't happen.

The tubes I built had the foam injected so it expanded and took every bit of space in the tube.

In my opinion, and I have built @ 80,000+ pontoons, you would destroy the tubes getting the foam out, you would need to cut a sizable hole in the tubes to get access and then have to frankenstein it back together.

Pull your plugs on a regular basis, if you get water then worry about how to fix it, there si absolutely no way to avoid getting a leak and foam gets waterogged from sitting in water so as long as you catch it early you are alright.