I'll have to try the water on the foam before torching to see the effect....You would've laughed watching me torch the foam bookcase with REAL FIRE out in the drive way this past summer....There was a couple times I thought the whole thing was going up in flames but in the end it came out really cool...Twisted and warped...Bottom line, Don't be afraid to experiment!...If you explain to people what kind of finish you want, people will give you all kinds of ideas here....Try a couple different approaches and figure out what works best for you...ZR