Foam Pipe Insulation over Mast Wiring?

[fox9988]

I rewired my mast 5 months and 2000 miles ago. I used 3 small zip ties, set at 120'° apart, every 4’ to silence the wires. Worked fine for awhile. Now the wiring is banging around loudly inside the mast. Zip ties must have broken off.
My plan is to lift the mast temporarily and slide pipe insulation up the wires to the top.. Anyone tried this? Thanks .

[kayakerChuck]

I did exactly that on my O'Day 22. It was easy and worked nicely.

[Orion Jim]

How will the pipe insulation get past your zip ties? Pipe insulation is very flexible.

[Don C L]

I use short lengths of foam insulation along the wires, but I taped them on and I taped the leading edge into a cone so I could slide them in past the screws poking through when the mast was down. I have not tried sliding the insulation up from underneath. You may have luck sending an electrician's fish tape down from the head, shaping the leading edge into a cone and pulling it up from the top. It depends on how many rivets or screws are in the way. And then there is the issue of the remaining zip ties that may be in the way. If you are really lucky they all have broken.
I know what you mean about the annoying noise. Is it time to drop the mast to do any other maintenance?

[Bowdrie]

Originally Posted by Don C L

Is it time to drop the mast to do any other maintenance?

Many years ago I helped, (just some additional muscle,) a guy in the yard that had an Islander 44.
He was a PE and had it all figured out.
He made-up/fitted PVC pipes to carry the wires.
With the masthead fitting removed we propped-up the top end of the mast against the roof edge of a two-story pole barn.
He then poured a big bucket of two-part foam down the mast.
It worked great, no more noise.
The added bonus?
If he ever lost the mast it would float, and if the boat took a severe knockdown/capsize the mast wouldn't fill with water.

[fox9988]

I think all the zip ties are broken, from the sound of it. Otherwise, they are the 4” very flexible ties (probably the problem).
I plan to use 2 lose fitting insulation runs. One for the steaming/spreader lights. One for the masthead wires.
Very few added screws or rivets in the mast to snag on.
I don’t need or plan to lay the mast down.
A foam filled mast would be great, until I needed to do more wiring.
Thanks for the replies.

[Kd9truck]

As an alternate take a look at lawn sprinkler pipe. It is thin walled smooth and can be purchased by foot. I buried a 70 ft piece then pushed 12 gage wire 70 ft through to my garage, the wire was very easy to pull As the pipe is smooth and has a low friction value. It comes in 4 ft rolls so it had a natural curve that will push up against the walls of the mast.
Just an alternative
Cheers