I'm going to do it!

brokcanadian · Mar 26, 2017

Insulate, that is.

Here's the quick version:

Decided to use Roxul stone wool in the walls, its good stuff...fill all the cavities and vapour barrier it one piece floor n ceiling too...1/2 slab of poly board under a harder thinner plywood sheet...finish the walls and ceiling with 1" polyiso R6

The roxul is mostly for sound at those loud truck stops, I know the foam board insulates better...roxul is also a piece of cake to install in the varying thickness walls

What's a better idea or is this good?

I know about spray foam but have concerns over the application breaking down with toxic dust...has to be done in ideal conditions...and how do I do bodywork with 3 inches of that crap in the way?

brokcanadian · Mar 26, 2017

Just learned the roxul is not formaldehyde free, so it's out. Not a fan if being closed up in a box with that...Changed my mind to roll on steel building insulation that is, and has a built in vapour barrier...I can carve out the support beams and leave just a bit to help thermal bridging screwing the polyiso to the frame

Moot · Mar 26, 2017

This is what I used in my Transit in conjunction with foam board. Denim Insulation - Insulation - The Home Depot
I cut it to fit 13 gallon trash bags and taped the ends making a "pillow" and used these in the walls and ceiling. The reason for using the thrash bags was to cut down on insulation dust and seal out moisture. I also used poly sheeting on the ceiling and walls.

brokcanadian · Mar 26, 2017

Thanks for other ideas...i still don't know what to do...the pour foam expands 30 times and I could fill the spaces behind paneling (and the Sprinter could float!)

The weight of an R10 board at 10 lbs is equivalent to 55lbs of rock wool

brokcanadian · Mar 26, 2017

Moot said:
This is what I used in my Transit in conjunction with foam board.

Checked out the denim. There's more holes in my 2005 than my government's plans for the economy

Not sure what would happen with wet jeans in my walls...

brokcanadian · Mar 27, 2017

So for right this second I'm going to mechanically fasten sandwich layers of 1.5" polyiso board into the walls. It's not sensitive to moisture so much

Condensation problems won't happen if I can manage to seal the walls properly. That stuff Moot mentioned is pretty nice though, check it out if you don't drive something you can see daylight thru

Please leave any suggestions, probably won't get to it this week...fingers crossed, for first work since Feb 28

Moot · Mar 27, 2017

brokcanadian said:
Not sure what would happen with wet jeans in my walls...

Mold and rust. This insulation is treated to prevent mold growth but I still did the sealed garbage bag "pillow" thing.

traacker · Apr 1, 2017

While I have not yet even had one load on board, I have tried via Roadie and started looking at some load boards. I took a trip to Boston from Asheville NC thinking that while the van is still in the process for being converted, I could get some experience sleeping in it on the road at truck stops.

Did that. Froze my butt off! Thought the sleeping bag was going to do it. NOT.
Visited my daughter up in Maine, stopped off at LL Bean and got a sleeping bag rated for 0 degrees, much better but still not good enough.

Insulation shall be done in April.
My plan is to use some of the ceramic paint stuff ( Lizard Skin or a homemade alternative ( Homemade "lizard skin" ceramic sound/heat insulation - Corvette Forum : DigitalCorvettes.com Corvette Forums talks about $7 aircraft stuff mixed with Home Depot paint!) or something similar there is a bunch of folks on the FordTransit Forum USA with a ton of info on insulation types.

On top of the painted on insulation, planning on the Polyisocyanurate Sheathing then finishing off with Great Stuff for doors and windows because it is not supposed to be as much expansion with it.

Been using ear plugs at the truck stops, but insulating ought to make that much, much better, me thinks.

My own research has convinced me to be very careful using any tar based product or some of the off gassing types of compounds inside the van.

brokcanadian · Apr 1, 2017

traacker said:
My plan is to use some of the ceramic paint stuff ( Lizard Skin or a homemade alternative ( Homemade "lizard skin" ceramic sound/heat insulation - Corvette Forum : DigitalCorvettes.com

I forgot all about that stuff, thanks for reminding me. If you get to yours first lemme know how it is

My last van, to avoid the rusty floor problem, I did the floor from firewall to bumper in something like the grace ice and water shield for roofs...not the tar based, it did not smell or drip in hot weather...slight difference in temp, muted road noise although not as good as carpet...definitely waterproofed it, no more seepage at body seams