INTERIOR INSULATION ?

[Shiny Paul.]

Morning all,
With the main build of the Land Rover Defender nearly finished it is time to start planning the interior, firstly I need to sort insulation.
My ideal would be to fit insulation directly to the vehicle inner panels then carpet over, but we are not sure which insulation would be best to stop condensation.
Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[neil2016]

The video below explains the thermal benefits of a solid board type of insulation over the fibre type. The video has been made by a guy who is in the process of converting a Mercedes Sprinter Van.

 

[Chris51]

Pity it doesn't show how proper foam spray insulation is?

 

[Stealaway]

Spray foam is by far the best- IMHO It fills all the gaps and leaves no cold surfaces that can promote condensation.
This one was a bit bigger job than a Landrover

 

[rod_vw]

I have often pondered the various positives and negatives of various types of insulation to use in a camper.

Spray Foam

Thoughts...

• Can be installed to cover 99% of outer surfaces.
• How well does it stick to the metal surfaces? I wonder about this because I remember early foam car under-seal which in time allowed damp to creep against the metal and rot it away!
• Will it part from the metal in time and allow wet to invade the gap by capillary action causing corrosion of metal surfaces?
• What problems arise if accident damage has to be repaired to the panels?
• I assume the gasses given off if it burns are highly toxic!

Man made fibre wadding / sheets.

Thoughts...

• Using propriety insulation fibre it is easy to install but does not fill all gaps however well installed.
• Without careful installation can 'sink' to the bottom of cavities.
• It can be removed (more or less completely) for future repairs.
• Some air circulation allows metal surfaces to dry out.
• The internal surface can be reasonably sealed with adhesive reflective material to minimise heat transfer to the inside of the vehicle.

Solid sheet insulation panels. Celotex, Kingspan or similar.

Thoughts...

• Simple to cover large flat or almost flat areas.
• Not easy to insert into cavities.
• When sandwiched between solid surfaces can be load supporting over large areas.
• Various thickness available although the thinner ones are often not stock items.
• Can be toxic if burnt or from dust when cutting.

My personal preference has been to use sheet insulation between van floor and raised floor ( I only raise floor to the height necessary for sliding seat runners). Use any surplus of this in larger side cavities where practical. For roof and sides between outside surface and inner trim panels I use 3M Thinsulate which provides good thermal and sound insulation.
As above from experience many years ago with foam car under-seal I have always shied away from spray foam despite its ease of use and obvious initial benefits. Similarly vehicles of the late 80s & 90s also had foam filled cavities and I know how car body shops dreaded the thought of work in such areas.

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[andy63]

I use 3M Thinsulate which provides good thermal and sound insulation.

Thats the stuff i used on a panel van conversion... really easy to use and apply... the only downside to the stuff was the price... eyewateringly expensive at the time... not sure how much it is now or how easy to obtain in smaller quantities..
Andy

 

[scotjimland]

How Possl / Globecar do it .. may get some ideas..

 

[Pausim]

Another vote for 3m Thinsulate. As a part time retirement job I sold Thinsulate to some boat builders and some motorhome converters. This was a few years back and the price meant it had a limited market but those who were building premium products were happy to use it. Easy to cut to fit shapes and panels, a bit of adhesive to the inside of the outer surface and job done. At that time there was nothing with better thermal and sound values per millimetre.

 

[Chris51]

Properly sprayed foam insulation bonds directly to the metal (must be absolutely clean)and sticks really well .It also makes the van a lot quieter as it stiffens the body up and stops some "drumming rattles".Also solves the problem of fitting to curved surfaces.Downside-expensive/preparation and not many firms do it.

 

[Colgil]

We used 25mm celotex throughout our boxer conversion. After 2 years use in a variety of weather', we have yet to suffer any condenation issues. I was pleased that we were easily able to remove some when retro fitting a bike rack . I think it would have been more difficult with spray foam. Best wishes . C.

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