insulation

[larry]

I wish to insulate my Nicholson 38, PBO had an article some time ago in which they used Thinsulate but this is mega expensive. What else can one use? I was thinking about airtec - bubble wrap with foil either side as this would be easy to cut up and stick on but I am worried that it might trap moistue. The cabin head and sides are between 1 and 2 inches deep and paneled with decorative plywood. Any advise would be very welcome /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[mainmarine]

I've thought of trying wimp mats, that camping shops sell for under sleeping bags, cheap ones are only a couple of pounds each
malc
Mainmarine

 

[tcm]

with that rubbish vote you are obviously desperate!

I have several hundred 1m sq self-adhesive backed black foam 1" thick acoustic insulation sheets which would be fine and cost year about umm £1.50 a sheet plus £15 p+p. pm me

 

[Ships_Cat]

If it is going on the hull I would personally only use a closed cell insulation sheet glued to the hull myself (the mats Mainmarine mentions are normally closed cell), but unfortunately they too are quite expensive for a boat sized lot.

The brands I see most often specified for boats (usually larger aluminium or steel ones where insulation is mandatory and where a greater thickness than yours is needed) are Korex and Armaflex. They are both available in flat sheet with a choice of thickness, Korex is (a creamy color, usually anyway) and Armaflex is black. I think in most places Korex might be the cheaper.

Our own (metal) boat is insulated with Korex and is entirely successful, stopping condensation, keeping heat in in winter and heat out in summer.

If the sheets TCM mentions are closed cell (or otherwise incorporate a water barrier) then a real bargain.

John

 

[Abigail]

Hi - we've posted on this before as we have reinsulated our Maxi 120. In general (barring the offer above), it is v expensive to buy a boat size lot as camping mats. We searched through commercial suppliers of closed cell foam and finally bought (price and helpfulness) from Keeling Rubber and Plastics. This is 2 years ago now so I would re-search for suppliers. This meant we bought a huge amount at a feasible price, much less than buying mats!

We got 9mm thickness. In hindsight 6mm would do fine and would be a bit easier to work. Don't both to get it preglued (we did) because it's not strong enough for an overhead hold and then makes it harder to use Thikafix to stick it up with.

We have found it well worth doing but it was a long and messy job.

HTH /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[pappaecho]

You need seriously to consider the type of foam you use. Most of the polyether closed cell foam is quite good as an insulant, but oxidises over about 10 years and then falls to pieces. The net effect is that half remains firmly bonded to the hull and the other half bonded to the head linings etc falls off. Dont buy a Saab car for exactly the same reason!
If I was going to insulate a Nic 38, I would get the best possible insulant, with the best possible lifespan, as the cost of the materials is nothing compared to the sweat and toil of actually fixing the stuff to the boat, so it looks like a proper professional job - I have just done an Evasion 32 with leathercloth/ 6 mm foam insulant, and which is said to be good for 15 years. It took my wife and I, about 1 weeks work (full time) to clean off the old and then fix the new. Not something I would like to do on a regular basis.

 

[Ships_Cat]

I agree on not being influenced too much by price if one wants a long lived job.

The Korex and Armaflex I mentioned as examples will outlast the life of the boat (Armaflex is widely used industrially as an insulation on pipes, tanks, etc such as in refrigeration/aircon systems and I have never seen it fail structurally). I do not live in the UK but I know Armaflex is available there and I assume Korex too.

They, however, are not cheap.

John