82 224 rebuild

[Camd94234]

Since i have a suspicion that i have very wet foam since my boat leans on plane. i want to remove the gas tank. and check for wet foam.

so here we go.

Gas tank coffin lid off. notice the foam missing on the starbord aft side. the coffin lid is also spongy on that side. so now it make sense. i hope you able to see all the standing water on the top of the tank...



So after hours of cutting foam out. i got the electric chain saw out and that became my best friend. i has to cut the filler/vent tube. they look fine but i am in need of help on how to replace them without cutting the deck up.



so gas tank is out. i wish i got a picture of them. it looks brand new on the bottom and the sides. it looks like it has some green coating all around the tank. not sure if this is some type of coating. so the original gas tank will go back in, unless upon cleaning i find something on top bad.

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Notice the cracking in the gelcoat.

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Their was alot of soaking wet foam. so my plan is to cut the coffin out 5 inches from the coffin lid lip, i figure 5 inches should give me enough to glass back in.

my plan is to start digging check the foward fish box/locker drain. replace with quality brass or pvc?. Will also try and route the coffin to drain to the bilge. My questions are what did everybody do with their vent and fill? run rubber filler and vent hose the hole way?

[snappergapper]

You can access the fuel lines through the opening on the port side of the coffin. Clean up the foam and it runs all the way up the side by the fill and vent. There is a lot of foam in front of the console







The wet foam is usually around the rod holders. Feel free if you have questions let me know. 386 four five one 1053

[Camd94234]

10-4 man I appreciate it, weather has really put a hault on this project. I plan on fully removing the coffin, then just tab it in. Do you foam the gas tank completely like it was from the factory or just do front and back and have an area in the middle open for the tank to breath/ any water could drain to the bilge?

[snappergapper]

I foamed all the sides and glassed the seems down. I did have a drain above the tank to the bilge just in case water did get in. I also removed the entire coffin. Re-glassed the edges of the coffin and bottom that needed it. I also took the opportunity to build a bulkhead in front and behind the in floor live well and then pout foam around it for both structure support as well as insulation. Holds all my frozen bait frozen all day fishing.

[Camd94234]

Did some work on the boat today.

the gas tank is junk. the bottom and the sides are perfect but the top is junk. all pitted just needs to be replaced. I have contacted luthers welding in bristol RI. they gave me a quote and seem to know the boat gas tank world.



Coffin removed i have alot of wet foam around the coffin. foam smelled horrible. also noticed that my drain tube was cracked.





so here is a shot of the filler tube area. no matter how far i dig all i do is get wet foam. it has a very chemical smell to it.



So i am pretty sure the boat was sitting bow down from all of the wet foam. all of the foam keeps going. do i keep going from the coffin area or do i pop the cap up and dig it all out that way? do i have to put the same amount of foam back on each side to give it bouncy or will it be fine if i do not put the same amount back.

[snappergapper]

If you pull the foam out you will have a large area not supported by much but glass. If you are not putting foam back in I would suggest additional stringer down the middle and some bulkheads for rigidity.

The smell is the years of water in the foam. It took a full day to dig out all the foam up to the front of the fish box.

[Camd94234]

I will be putting foam back in. Just wondering if I do not get the same amount of foam side to side will it affect the way she rides?

[snappergapper]

Any update on this 224 project?

[mako224]

If you look up my 224 project you will see that I did the same things you are doing. I'd be willing to bet that if you dig your way forward you will find that the 90* drain fitting on the bow locker is broken and letting water go right into the foam.

I can't recommend strongly enough that you put back any foam you remove and that you glass the coffin box back in. The fiberglass on these boats is relatively thin. They are glassed such that the glass relies on the foam to give it an I-Beam effect to strengthen everything much like the foam in a surfboard sandwiched between two thin layers of glass makes it strong. With your fuel tank out of the boat, notice how much give the hull has under foot when you walk on it. That shows you how flimsy these hulls really are without their foam. Without the foam I would expect the hull to eventually fracture along a strake or along a stringer.

[Camd94234]

I do have a lot of progress, I just stripped the rub rail off, I still have to take the bow rail off too, it seems like the previous owner used crappy pair to try and cover up a lot of stress cracks.

Today i took the outer skin off the transom today. Very strange thing is the wood does not go completely so to the side of the boat, I will post pics. The wood seems to be coming apart very easy, as if the wood was not laminated properly. Their also seems to be two inner transom skins around the splash well. Once I get home I will post pictures to show the update.

[Camd94234]

I have been back after getting the boat done. soon to be building a house. i have all the wood stripped off. it has some weird "puddy" from the transom to the splash well. well come to find out the whole splash well is not attached to the transom.

I will try to get pictures to update the thread.

i have ALOT of delam and air voids on the bottom portion of hull. their are so many screw holes it looks like Swiss cheese!

What have some of you guys done for splash guards on the 224? is it needed since it has a flip up door in the stern?

I will also be raising the console about 6".. when im standing i have the top bar of the windshield right at eye level... anybody done this yet??

[1985Mako224]

Guys have used starboard and aluminum channel to make splash guards for the transom. Pretty easy and completely worth it. If you are looking at replacing your transom, good time to build it up. I used my splash guards as a template for the new transom and raised where the motor sits by 2".

As far as the windshield, I had a new one made out of 1 piece acrylic and got rid of the glass with frame. I love it, I can sit and drive the boat without any obstruction. May be a lot easier than raising the console.