How to Make a Styrofoam Boat
Styrofoam is readily available in a variety of forms including blocks, boards, sheets and chips. You can even get it for free since it is commonly used as a packing material. This is great because it is a very light material that can float easily so you can make a great toy boat out of it.
Things You'll Need
- A block of Styrofoam
- Either a long pencil or a thin dowel
- Some paper
- Cut out a piece of your Styrofoam block that is the same length as your pencil or dowel. This block should be no more than approximately 1/3 as high as it is long. It also shouldn’t be any more than half as wide as it is long.
- Put the pencil or dowel down into the middle of your piece of Styrofoam where it will form the mast. It should go at least halfway down into your piece of Styrofoam.
- Cut a piece of paper in the shape of a triangle or a square. If you are using a triangle, make sure that one of the shorter sides to measure approximate 3/4 the length of the mast with the other size around half the length of the Styrofoam boat itself. Hold this to the mast with a piece of tape so that the long side facing away from the mast. On the other hand, if you are using a square shape, tape the centerline onto the mast. (Large Styrofoam boats can have multiple masts.) Once you have the Styrofoam boat’s mast in place, you will want to make adjustments to it so that the sail catches hold of the wind.