Not-So-Great Stuff

[Slavs]

Content removed by Author.

Edited August 8, 2021 by Slavs

[Tdh]

So, I work for a global manufacturer of chemical formulations targeting the building products industry.  I asked the head of R&D (highly educated Chemist with multiple degrees from several Ivy League schools) if he knew of anything that would dissolve foam insulation after it’s been catalyzed. His answer was something along the lines of “nothing I’m willing to tell you about, for your own safety.”   Usually when he says something like that to me he means it.  So my speculation is that anything on the list of items that would successfully dissolve it would do one or all of the following:  explode immediately,  melt my face off, alter my DNA, or possibly reduce my IQ within seconds of being in contact with it.  Anyone who knows me will tell you I can’t afford to lose ANY IQ points. 
 

Just so you know, I’ve personally tried acetone, naphtha and MEK on hardened great stuff and none of those worked.  Acetone works great on non hardened Great Stuff, but sadly you’re  past that.  Good luck. 

Edited July 12, 2021 by Tdh

[visionaut]

Just to be contrary — if it’s not waterlogged, nor deteriorated badly (crushed/urea goo), AND you can prevent any further water ingress, AND if it’s not heavy or inducing anything on its own (being relatively inert plastic unless deteriorating), AND if it’s not doing any harm in situ - why not dry it thoroughly and  clean it and leave it? (maybe add preservative.. srsly)

[Lorin]

Will the whole car fit in your neighbors pool ?

[John76]

2 hours ago, Lorin said:

Will the whole car fit in your neighbors pool ?

Yes, but it would float like a pool noodle.

[Solarphil]

I’m torn between the “leave it” and “mechanical removal” camps. I know there’s no magic readily available Methyl-Ethyl-Kilyakwick solvents that will break down cured spray foam.  First, can you confirm it’s retaining water, can you test with a moisture probe?  If it is then yeah, it really should come out. If not, then perhaps a barrier approach might be worthwhile, unless you have good access to the cavity. 
 

if it needs to come out, then I’d recommend cutting out the big chunks with a sharpened hacksaw blade, then getting the rest out with wire brushes chucked in a drill or similar.  Ive done a lot of foam carving in my previous life, you can create a handle on the blade using multiple wraps of duct tape. The foam itself is pretty fragile, you just need to break it up as best as possible and keep going at it with a shop vac.
 

Good luck…

[7502]

I would probably chip or scoop out as much foam as I could, then do it one more time for good measure and then spray every nook and cranny with 3M cavity wax. Assuming the remaining foam and areas are dry.  After that you can do any metal work as needed when you have the opportunity. 

['76mintgrün'02]

Photos?  Let's see what you're up against!

[7502]

Could you possible employ high pressure air attached to some sort of small wand to cut through the foam and blast it out?

 

Pictures would say a lot.

 

[xderbyx]

20 minutes ago, '76mintgrün'02 said:

Photos?  Let's see what you're up against!

 

13 minutes ago, 7502 said:

Could you possible employ high pressure air attached to some sort of small wand to cut through the foam and blast it out?

 

Pictures would say a lot.

 

I will get some pictures up here tomorrow! They may not reveal a whole lot as you can’t really physically SEE all of it, aside from the few spots I’ll post when I grab pics, but it’ll give ya an idea. Hah

43 minutes ago, Solarphil said:

I’m torn between the “leave it” and “mechanical removal” camps. I know there’s no magic readily available Methyl-Ethyl-Kilyakwick solvents that will break down cured spray foam.  First, can you confirm it’s retaining water, can you test with a moisture probe?  If it is then yeah, it really should come out. If not, then perhaps a barrier approach might be worthwhile, unless you have good access to the cavity. 
 

if it needs to come out, then I’d recommend cutting out the big chunks with a sharpened hacksaw blade, then getting the rest out with wire brushes chucked in a drill or similar.  Ive done a lot of foam carving in my previous life, you can create a handle on the blade using multiple wraps of duct tape. The foam itself is pretty fragile, you just need to break it up as best as possible and keep going at it with a shop vac.
 

Good luck…

so thing is.. it’s not that it’s waterlogged per se. if it’s dry out, it’s dry (at least what I can touch). But when it rains, the water is clearly doing it’s thing—following the path of least resistance, and flowing straight out into the footwells and pooling. To my knowledge though, it does not stay saturated, it simply acts as an express route for water to make its way into places it has no business being! And then it dries up when the weather dries up. So leaving it is definitely out of the question, trust me if I could.. I would lol

[Mike Self]

20 hours ago, JsnPpp said:

This is a first for me. Using cement as body filler!

I once owned a 521 Datsun pickup truck (given to me with a totally plugged up fuel system from rust/dirt in the gas tank) that a PO had done rocker panel repairs by taking hardware cloth and molding it to the rocker panels' shape, the pop riveting it in place at both ends and covering it with bondo, just like you'd do with expanded metal mesh and plaster.  Amazingly, it neither rusted nor fell out in the 5 or so years I owned the truck.  

 

mike

[xderbyx]

First photo is driver side, second is passenger side footwells. Passenger you can see where I peeled back some rust to reveal the super cool reinforced Great Stuff frame rail! (I pulled some out already though clearly). 

['76mintgrün'02]

Thanks for the photos.  This qualifies as one of the dumbest previous owner maneuvers I've seen.  Sorry you have to deal with it now.

 

Tom

[xderbyx]

It definitely hurts my feelings a little to look at lol. My feeling is, unless you plan on keeping your mess and garbage ideas forever, don’t apply great stuff to anything that may become someone else’s problem.. ??‍?

[Son of Marty]

That's going to be a bitch, you could scoop out everything you can from the bottom then maybe drill a hole as high up as you can and try to feed a 1/4" inch nylon pipe hooked up to shop air and see if you can use that to break things up, don't know never tried this just thinking.