15' Chrylser Man o War - Newbie with Questions

[99hawk]

Hello - I am new here. My son and I recently purchased a 15' Chrysler Man o War and are eagerly looking forward to our maiden voyage . (Son is at camp for the next two weeks ).

The previous owner essentially resurrected the boat after it had been left on a beach in Wisconsin sadly neglected for several years (hence our name for the boat). He found that the foam inside had deterioated (squirrels ). After doing some research, he filled the hull with 2 liter pop bottles (lids on) for bouyancy and then proceeded to sail the boat for several years.

Question. Should I consider replacing the pop bottles with a spray in foam or other foam system? If so, any recommendations, and has anyone actually done this? I know there are some kits on the market that are recommended for marine use with some purportedly meeting coast guard qualifications.

I also have read some posts on some other forums where folks have used the pop bottle remedy. Water noodles and insulation foam from Lowes or home depot have also been suggested.

I look forward to any or all suggestions. I will be sure to post the results of our maiden voyage.

Thanks!

[hadaveha]

I have heard of the bottles being used, but noway to the cheap spray in foam from lowes, or home depot, that cheap foam will wick water and become super heavy, good luck on your boat
david

[Jmckamey]

First and foremost, welcome. I say, if it worked for the PO, then stay with what works. If they are loose, then maybe something to hold them in place. You'll never have to worry about them becoming water logged. You can check out some older post about guys having to cut up there boats to remove soaked " marine grade" foam. Ouch!! Jeff

[mcrandall]

Jeff is absolutely right! I'm one of them and that stuff will not be going back into my boat!

Thought about empty containers such as you have, but we'll see. I see nothing wrong with using them!!

Jeff-nice avatar, by the way!

Mark

[CaptainScott]

Welcome aboard!
Glad to have you here!


I agree with the pop bottles! If it works and is cheap, Why not?
I would however be more concerned with the boat staying water tight such that there is no real need for the pop bottles! LOL!

Scott

[99hawk]

Thanks for the replies.

A co-worker brought up the concern that the bottles may have become brittle overtime and may be subject to cracking and therefore take on water. I think we plan to take a couple out and inspect them before sailing. Also, would it mater if the lids were sealed with something or not?

If the bottles look okay, I think we plan to sail the boat as is the first time and see how she sails. My neighbors offered to drive the rescue boat. I think they are skeptical.

[Bhacurly]

Welcome Cathy!

I wouldn't worry about them right now either. Sail and have fun! You'll likely find other issues more pressing than the bottles and wan't to getthem done asap...

Is that kinda foam fire retardant?

Soaking up water like a sponge is one thing, your likely to get water inside eventually, especially if you tip the rail, So again, I vote to leave the system in place for now with maybe some tidying it up so they don't rattle or whatever, and no I wouldn't worry about sealing them either, to much work for so little result, check the caps so they are snug, maybe...

Oh yea,, in case you haven't heard, we love picts!

Billy

[cs3079]

Welcome from me too Cathy! I have to chime in with the rest, just sail her! If the sound of plastic bottles rolling around inside the hull starts to bug you, cash 'em in and replace them with some foam swimming noodles. They should be going on sale real soon. I saw some guy on the internet stuffing a bunch of them into the hull of his old O'day Widgeon through an inspection port and it seemed like a good idea. It also seems that they'd be easier to pull out than blown in foam or plastic bottles after another 20 or 30 years. Have fun. My brother has a Man o' War and I'm dying to try it out. They look like a blast to sail

[38 special]

If you can get your hands on some orange foam that is used in floating docks, it can be shaped with a hack saw blade. But I con't to use the plastic bottles. If it works it must be norwegian.

[ginge925]

Greetings from England. I became an owner of a man o war last year and have sailed on the Thames Estuary at Whitstable. I too have filled the bow with 2 litre bottles, just in case I hole the hull. It floats high and does not need them, its quite a reach to climb on the dagger board when capsized!Steve

[maRaider]

A quick note about using pop bottles: make sure you prep them for water the temperature you'll be sailing in. If you seal the bottles at, say 80 degrees and then capsize in water 50 degrees, those bottles will collapse, losing 1/3 or more of their flotation. A 2 liter bottle has about (roughly) 4.4 pounds of of buoyancy (2.2 pounds of water per liter). If you have 20 bottles stashed around your flotation spaces, you should get 88 pounds of buoyancy. Drop that by a third and you may have problems.

We found a simple way to reduce this: Fill your tub with water and add a few handfuls of ice to get it nice and chilly (but don't go crazy; a little goes a long way). Screw the bottle lids on firmly and load them into the water, weighting them down as much as possible to get the most surface area exposed to the water as possible.

Within a couple minutes, they should all have crumpled in on themselves substantially as the air inside cools. Open the bottle lids just enough to get them full of air again (you might have to massage them a little) and screw the caps back on. You want to let air in, but not let the cold air out. A couple iterations of this and you will have pressurized your bottles enough to keep them from collapsing when exposed to colder water.

This does not have to be precise or perfect and you don't want to go so far that they over-pressurize when it gets hot, but just enough to keep around 3.5 to 4 pounds of flotation per bottle.

It's worked well on some small projects of mine, and I will be testing it on a larger scale with my Man-O-War, so I'll keep you informed.

[rcgreaves]

I just dug into a Man of War that has sat abandoned since 1991. I enjoyed the pop bottle suggestions and I'll be sure to probe the floatation material for signs of "visitors"

I am in need of a mast and boom for this C-15 unless the owner discovers it in storage.

[Nicknick32]

Hey......welcome and I really wish the whalers beat the rangers......wedgwood is out standing!

[Leeway]

I used foam flotation noodles in my MOW. About 4 or 5 in each side.

I also have water tight port covers in the bow which prevent water getting in the cavity when capsized.

Lee