Foam

Viscount

Viscount

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Having recently bought a Sealine 285 (1990 boat), I sought advice regarding safety matters thinking about life jackets, fire extinguishers etc. What I didn't bank on was that the foam contained in the upholstry is not up to current standards and burns readily giving off toxic fumes as it does. This seems to mean I need to replace all the upholstry which is going to cost a lot. Anyone else had this experience? Any advice?



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I have also got a 285 (1989) I had no idea about the foam in the seat bases etc..hmm, a bit of a bugger being that I have just re upholstered it all!! Is your upholstery original i.e. lovely pink and grey pinstripe? Even if it is not I supose there is no garuntee that the foam was replaced I guess. All i would say is that if you realy feel you need to replace it (the pink stripes were enough to convince me!) all of the shapes are relatively simple and IMHO it is a fairly realistic DIY job. I looked at getting mine done for me but managed to do it myself with what I think are good results for a couple of hundred quid. Next job is the roof lining etc, not looking forward to that job!!

Would be interested to see what you think of your new toy being a fellow new 285 er!

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I may be missing the point, but if you have a fire on board, smoke from the foam is irrelevant, surely? Have you seen the way GRP burns?

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good point...hmm, yes i knew that, that is why I did not bother replacing the foam in mind, phew, thanks Wiggo, I feel less silly now!

Viscount, what sort of condition are your helm and other exterior seats in?? Are they nice, if so, where are you cos I need a set! :o)

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The upholstry is original so far as I can tell. I took a small piece of the foam and set it alight - it is definitely not fire retardant. I don't intend replacing the helm upholstry as I believe that this will vent safely if it catches fire. I accept the point about GRP but believe that the risk in the lower cabins merits consideration due to the immediate release of fumes if it catches fire.

I've only been out once on the boat for a sea trial and have been working on it on the hard since then. I hope to get her in the water in April.

The linings are a hessian type material and cleaned up well so I won't be replacing these. There will be foam there also but in much smaller volume.

Present plan is to replace the main cabin seating with new foam and vinyl coverings as the cloth marks too easily. For the aft cabin, I'm thinking of using roll up foam and sleeping bags for the moment.

I've rewired quite a bit of the boat as it was tatty in places - managed to get the main power centre panel going again with help from the original designer/manufacturer.

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cool

Sounds like you are working through a similar process to us then, our head lining cleaned up well also I just do not like the hessian stuff absorbs too much light, but that is a job for next year!!

We have done most of the work on ours in the water, we got her cheap as she had laid unused for a long time and had some performance issues. We managed to get the engine issues sorted quite quickly and had her out of te water for a month to scrub the botton, re anti foul and service the legs etc. It was a long month, it is soo much nicer working on the boat in the water, seem less like hard work to me!

We are realy pleased with her, we took a calculated risk in buying her but have no regrets, we can use it now and work on the frilly bits as we go. We have a day skippers course booked in 2 weeks then have another week off to help a mate make up new cockpit hatches (are yours ply, if so what sorta nick are they in as they seem to be a weak point) and teak decking to the cockpit. Ahhh the joys of boating!

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I'm still not sure I'd worry about it. The only place it's an issue is down below, and I can't imagine a source of ignition that you wouldn't notice (unless you're daft enough to smoke in bed). It's not as if you're going to be trapped a long way from an exit, is it? And you do have fire extinguishers and a fire blanket, don't you? If you can't kill the fire, you only need to buy enough time to get on deck and away from the fumes.

If you do intend to replace, be prepared for a shock - fire retardant foam is very expensive. On a boat like this, if you intend to reupholster throughout, expect to spend more on foam than you do on fabric/vinyl.

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The foam should have a fire retardant barrier in the fabric. FP fabrics are readily avail;able to BS 5867 ingintion sources 1-5. I deal with them every day in my job. Wether the foam burns or not is irrelivant. The fabric covers can be reproofed with a treatmant such as Protiflam or some other dressing. If a fire gets through the covering to burn the foam your going to be dead anyway so won't be effected by the fumes!!

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Barry,

This foam is going to set me back a bit. I tried a search on Protiflam but could only find Italian text - where do I get more details about this product? It would seem a lot more sensible to treat my covers than replace the lot. That way, I might still have enough cash left to put some fuel in the tanks!

Thanks for your help.

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