Sprinter Thinsulate Installation
An album of our installation process.
A few sample pictures of our process:
Some of the most important links on the subject include:
- https://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/97447/what-insulation-materials-for-converted-vans
- http://www.buildagreenrv.com/design-and-build-information-for-camper-vans/install-insulation/
- https://sprintervanusa.com/2016/06/25/comparing-van-insulation-options/
- http://skoolie.net/forums/f13/does-spray-foam-cause-rust-12335.html
I’ve considered it all: spray foam, polyisocyanurate, eps, xps, wool, bedliner, a composite box instead of the steel one, Armaflex, Thinsulate, and Primaloft One.
Engineers will tell you should jam in the most R-value per inch. Hippies will tell you to use things that will attract rodents. You’ll get a different opinion from as many people as you ask.
In the end, I went with my gut / experience born from the Pacific Crest Trail (http://www.trailjournals.com/I3enhamin) and life in the Pacific Northwest and with a “pessimistic” option that everybody uses “up here”, synthetic insulation.
This led me to choose something that does not even attempt to keep moisture off of the van walls. In fact, it goes so far as to put fibers right up against the wall. Some would have you believe that this is dangerous, but I think that MOISTURE WILL GET IN EVERYWHERE and that what is more important is whether it can get out. What materials are best known for insulating while damp? Just ask Ray Jardine… errr… ask Jenny… we all know she’s the one that really is steeing the ship. They are huge fans of synthetic insulation.
I saw so many pictures of rusted out foam insulation / steel hulls in the marine world, I just can’t go that route.
I couldn’t get over the warped skin and the mess of spray foam, the mess of the “Great Stuff” associated with Polyiso. And neither of these is particularly low in VOCs either.
EPS and XPS foam just seem like a pain in the ass to try to fit into the complex webbing that is the interior of a van skin.
Wool was expensive, I think?
Bedliner requires that you get a flawless (read: clean room) bond between the van’s first layer of paint and the second.
Armaflex is super expensive and heavy.
This kind of just “leaves” us with Thinsulate and Primaloft One. I’ve purchased 50 linear feet of 3M Thinsulate (TM) SM600L Acoustic Thermal Automotive Insulation form these peeps and some Primaloft One from Seattle Fabrics. I will stick them in with 3M™ Hi-Strength 90 Spray Adhesive. I got this amount from this blog: http://www.pointsunknown.com/blog/2015/12/our-very-own-sprinter-adventure-van-part-iii-sound-deadening-insulation/.
A few more pictures of our process:
