>From: Clair&Edgar@ARCO on 11/09/98 04:05 PM HST
>To: wwpotter@tscnet.com
>Subject: P19 winter 1999 modifications
>6) Fill remaining hull to cabin liner voids with expanding floatation
>foam
Using the expanding foam has to be done VERY CAREFULLY. My early P14 had a
plywood bunk deck and I decided to fill the void beneath it with 10:1
expanding foam. I cut a couple of holes in the deck so I could pour the
mixture in. The risk of getting too much foam was obvious so I used three
separate small applications so I could control the process. Alas, i still
managed to pour a little too much on the third application. The sounds of
splintering wood suggested I should do something, so I grabbed the drill
with the hole saw and began frantically boring 2-inch holes all over the
deck to relieve the pressure. The final result was a curved, convex bunk
deck instead of a flat one, but it resulted in a very stiff hull. The
2-inch cutouts were glued back into the holes in the deck. But the
splintering took its toll later because water penetrated and rotted out the
deck. I removed the rotten deck and sailed the boat for a year with just
the bare foam, and the hull was still structurally stiff. I later replaced
the deck after shaving off the excess foam to make it reasonably flat.
Another problem with the foam is it can be messy and is extremely adhesive.
My second attempt was to pour foam in through vertical openings I cut in
the front of the inside surface of the lazarette. That proved very awkward
and resulted in spills that are almost impossible to clean up. I still have
some of the stains. When I recently made an opening in the seat for my
wiring project I found I hadn't got much foam where I wanted it, and I
fished out several large pieces that had broken loose and were just
rattling around loose under the seat.
>1) I am still wrestling with this 4'-11" headroom issue. I was reading an
>article by Bill Creelock (SP?)( pacific Seacraft designer) regarding pilot
>houses, windage, etc. I am not yet finished trying to come up with a way to
>achieve full standing headroom in our P19. I am tired of having to get into
>spider man configurations each time I've got to pee using the head (peeing
>over the bow pulpit is not popular when you have all daughter's onboard at
>crowded lakes). With one leg propped up on the keel, one hand hanging onto
>the compression post, my head jammed into to the cabin roof corner, the
>other leg propped up on the V-Berth, the other hand hanging on to the
>starboard cabinet and my wife yelling through the hatch from the cockpit,
>"Honey, what's taking you so long?".
That's probably why the rule I've heard used on many boats, concerning
using the head for No. l, is, "Everybody sits!" Not macho, I know, but
probably much safer and tidier.
Since I don't have much room for a head on my P14, especially with my added
batteries, I carry a 2 Qt All brand laundry detergent bottle, the blue one
with a handle and a large yellow cap. It makes a perfect urinal for those
of the male persuasion. It has ample capacity, a good sized opening, a
handle for a secure grip, and can be capped and emptied later, overboard or
into a head. (Overboard is better because it's easy to rinse the bottle at
the same time.) If you're sailing singlehanded, you'll probably have to
heave to or use a tiller tamer to use the urinal since it will be difficult
to hold three things at once with only two hands.
I would use the All bottle even if I had a P19, just to avoid the gyrations
that John goes through. It can be used surreptitiously while seated in the
cockpit if there are no other boats close by.
With the handle and large opening, the All bottle may also be useful for
bailing.
Harry Gordon
P14 #234, Manatee
Mountain View, CA