Here is my .02 on the subject.
First, all foam will absord or hold water over time. The worst is the pour in type, it can be like a sponge, the white bead type is next and the extruded is third. Most of the water issues with foam is when it is installed under a floor or in direct contact with the bottom of the hull. Here is why. First, despite the notion that if you keep your boat inside it will not waterlogged foam, most of the water in the foam is not from rain or being left outside, it is from condensation, cold/warm metal going in and out of cold/warmer water. Most foams only absorb 2-10% water when tested, but over time the foam will develop tiny crack and fractures, these will hold up to 25-55% or more water weight, this worstens with freezing and thawing if you live north of the deep south. Water will find the lowest level as well, when you pull waterlogged foam from a boat it is like a wet sponge, the lower you go the more water you will find. That is why we will not put any foam within 2" of the bottom of our Phowler Hulls, it is all above floor level. Many companies put the foam under the floor to save space in the boat, some boats it is needed there (the pour in stuff) to add structure to the hull or to support a lighter flooring material to save money. The other issue is many companies stuff their foam in so tight it has no air space around it, why, smaller floatation boxes and deck use less material, are lighter and cost less. Problem, when the foam does get wet, it will never dry out, no air to let out the moisture on these warm days. We leave air spaces around our foam and a way for our boxes to breath and decks to vent. Even sealed water tight you will get condensation, it has to have a way to dry out. If you have air space under the foam, 99% of the moisture will drain out, no air, no way to drain, a 2 lbs per sq foot peice of foam will wiegh in at 10-15 lbs when waterlogged down the road.
Now, why do alot of companies not want to mess with floatation, one it is more work to install floatation vs. no-floation, it adds labor and cost. Second, if you make a boat with floatation you better know how to calculate it right, sell a boat that does not pass Coast Guard regs and it sinks you will be recalling alot of boats at great expense, it is not something you can "guesstimate" without opening yourself up down the road. Alot of custom builders and smaller builders just don't want to mess with it.
Floatation/ no Floatation has to be a personal choice and what you are comfortable with. I have run both, down south they are more popular then up north. Why? Go in the water in LA or TX in late November it is gonna suck bad and you will be miserable and get a bad cold, go in the water in the Midwest or North in late November and you got about 10 minutes to get out or you are dead!!! A boat that is floating you can stand or sit in in your waders and try to get help or drift to shore, a boat that sinks and you will be trying to strip out of the waders and get ready to start swimming before you go numb and drift asleep and drowned.
The Coast Guard is still trying to restrict the sale of commercial hulls for recreational use, but to date they have not been able to enforce much. I think the day will come in the not so distant future when they will start cracking down in the sale of commercial hulls. I think the insurance industry will be the first ones to make this an issue, so far they don't seem to care about commercial vs. floatation, but I have seen a handful of the bigger companies writing exclusions on home owners and boat policies for commercial rated boat hulls with a commercial policy rider that they charge more for. Never saw that until the last few years. So if you do get a commercial hull and use it for personal recreation, check to make sure you are covered.
Hope this is helpful in contempating you next hull.
PW
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