Corpusfishing.com

[R.Arnold]

After reading a post on EC about a guy nearly drowning offshore due to a sunken yak... then my yak got a small hole in it a week or 2 ago and sunk, I got to thinking. I can prevent this from ever happening again by filling my kayak with foam. Would there be any downside to this? Storage space could be one, but the way my yak is made (OK Prowler 13) there is only one hatch and stuff always slides way towards the back of the yak anyway making it a real pain in the arse. Any advice would be great.

I was thinking fill it with foam then hollow out a hole under the hatch in the foam for a small storage.

[Oil Field Trash II]

the foam could get water logged and make the kayak a lot heavier.

[BCAKLASH75]

not sure where to get it but i bet if you check with local boat builders majek, stoners ,etc they could point you in the right direction .Closed cell foam would probally work great,but might add a little weight
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Another one bites the deck

[robul]

foam will add wieght.. get yourself a manual bildge type pump for emergencys if you are worried..

[Javelina Russ]

[Fishin Rod]

I was thinking about the same thing,may be a couple of "Strategically Placed" (inside the yak),inner tubes,they can be left inflated or removed,won't add much weight,& they will conform to any shape,plus the shape of the tube will make a compartment under the hatch my 2 cents

[sheepdog]

How about a decent sized round bouy tied to each end of the yak? wouldn't keep the kayak from filling up, but it would prevent sinking. If you tied them close so there was no slack, they wouldn't hang off the side and cause drag.

[Skillzzz9]

[Bigrock]

Try stuffing some pool noodles in the hull.

[Lost Cajun]

I think it might be easier and cheaper to just buy packing peanuts from Staples unless you really wanted to leave space for storage.

[fish camp]

when i got my kayak i paid extra for inflatable bladders, but that was about 18 years ago

[stxoutdoors]

[chuck]

it is fairly common for sit in side yakkers to put air bladders in,

i also have read of some off shore yakkers putting in as many pool noodels as could fit.

but bilge pump would work too, i keep a rudys cup in mine for bailing

[Mad Dog]

This is the stuff you need. http://boatbuildercentral.com/products.php?cat=56

I used it to add bouyancy foam to my rebuild. The two part polyurethane expanding foam is closed cell and USCG approved. Since it is closed cell it does not absorb water. I tested it for myself by submerging a section in a bucket for a day or so. No sponginess at all. The old stuff used in '75 when my boat was built did absorb water and oil and gas... it was crappy to pull out.

The upside is that 1 cubic foot of foam has a bouyancy of 64 pounds. So you can pour some in each end leaving most of your storage space open.

Check it out.

MD
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Ego piscor, ergo sum

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[R.Arnold]

Thanks for all the wonderful suggestions, I finally just decided to do it my way since i like to do stuff the wrong way most of the time so I can only blame myself, so I got a blow torch and heated up around the hole and basically borrowed plastic from some other parts of the yak, melted it and molded it in place, seemed to do the trick. I'm gonna give it a try in the morning hope she holds

I'm pretty confident it will hold, the plastic was the same type and hardened up.