How many pool noodles for Trident 13'?

Hi all,
  I'm long over due to add sufficient flotation to my yak (currently have just a couple of laundry detergent bottles in there).  How many pool noodles would you recommend to float a Trident 13 with water in the hull (and my 175 lbs)? 

Thanks in advance,
Wild Oar

I have about 15 of the really fat ones in mine, but it could take more.  Most are stuffed inside the stern.

i have been getting them at wmart for 1.88...get 20 if you got the spare cash...what does not fit will work as pole and acc. floats...but that should all work it's way into the hull....figure 20 to start imo...i got em 10 at time so I could fit shopping in the car too

I waited over a year since starting kayak fishing to finally stuff both of my kayaks...what a feeling of security it gave me....much more so than I had expected...to now know if something goes wrong I have time to get in,and to now  look a mile or more towards land and "know" that I make it back in always.....makes a big difference

I put 24 in there. I think that's all I will do. I get them from Dollar Tree, $1 each. They had hundreds.

I got some at the dollar store here in seaside but they were shorter than full noodle--almost like a half noodle...and just t ad thinner.....then I saw the full size at wmrt and got them....wish I could full size ones for 1$...I'm done now---- with extra left for projects--- but two fish-n-dives ate quite a few noodles....$$$

Correct me if I am wrong.
Do this in case of rollover or when it takes too much water inside.
To prevent it from sinking ???

The noodles take up space, less water gets into your hull, and it helps float the kayak. Makes it easier to recover and to pump the water out with a bilge pump.

My friend JMAirey posted this 7 years ago after the first shark attack:

"the volume of a noodle in cubic inches is length-in-inches*pi*r^2, so call it length * 12 and the weight of water is 0.036 lbs/cubic inch.

if you want to float 150lbs above the water line that is 150lbs / 0.036 / 12 so you want 347 inches of pool noodles.

this assumes a pool noodle weighs basically nothing compared to the same volume of water.

if a pool noodle is 48 inches, you want 7 pool noodles.

call it eight for safety and you are done.

or six and 2 rolleez wheels,  .

somebody better check my math, I suck at arithmetic."

He's kind of a geeky surfer, PhD type of guy. 

I have the 2 1/8" diameter pool noodles with 3/4" diameter hole in the middle, and 46" long. Each noodle provides about 5 pounds of buoyancy.

I have 12 stuffed between the scuppers and sides of my Trident 13, for a buoyancy of 60 pounds.

I ain't got none on my T13! 



-Kiel

I suggest that you start with about 8 noodles then put your yak in some quiet water (a swimming pool, pond, or lake) and fill it with water to see how buoyant it is.  Do it in fresh water because it is less buoyant than ocean water and will require more noodles.  Have some extra weight in your yak to simulate whatever amount of gear you would normally have with you.  If the resulting amount of buoyancy isn't adequate add more noodles until it is.

I was carrying just over ten in a bear hug so we could unload the groceries first from our cart when we got to the car....and I for sure could tell that amount would keep my 310 lbs from sinking to the bottom ...maybe not float like a bobber...but if I jumped into a pool tied to ten noodles all bunched together.....I aint going no where...I have about 20 in each cobra fish-n-dive...for me it is in case the hull had leak or cracked without warning....time to paddle like a mofo...but time just the same imo

Thanks for the great advice all.  I really appreciate this forum! 

By the way, short introduction from me.  I live on the north coast and fish primarily in Humboldt Bay and out of Trinidad.  The ocean has been a beast up here lately.  We've literally had 1 or 2 windows (for those of us with average size cajones) the whole month of June.  Looks like we'll have a short window tomorrow then the north winds are back at it.  I made it out of Trinidad last Thursday evening.  Slow going, for most of the day (a few small lings), but ended with a nice 30" ling followed shortly by a 24".  No rock fish.  Everything I've heard / observed is that the ling population seems to be doing pretty well. 

Have a good one,
Wild Oar 

There have also been discussions in the past whether the noodles should be fixed to the lateral inside hull to provide greater stability when swamped. In my T 15 I have them wedged between the a scupper holes and the lateral hull. This leaves the center of the hull clear for rod storage.