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epowell
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Joined: September 23, 2015
Posts: 4733
Location: Czech (mostly) Vancouver (sometimes)
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 Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 11:24 am Post subject: Re-making my interior |
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This will be a BIG thread in which I fully document all of the work I will do re-making my interior. I will start off by posting a few fotos that I have collected as inspiration. My goal is to end up with something like a small cozy apartment on wheels... very ZEN, very clean... a little 'home' that I can call my own. I already have a nice home but I love the idea of being able to just drive away at anytime and have my own little home parked anywhere...
...and of course to have a nice camper for trips with my GF 
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epowell
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Location: Czech (mostly) Vancouver (sometimes)
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 11:41 am Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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SO.... where to start???
Well..... the first thing obviously is to do something about the leak I have in the front (most likely from the windshield?). Problem is that the windshield seal seems excellent and so does the antenna seal... (see pics) ...so I'm not sure how to deal with this problem.
But it must be dealt with cuz it is leaking and this leak has already cause a certain amount of rust in the front - - - I today ripped out all the old carpets and flooring BS and the metal is now naked. . . no hiding nothin'! And there are a couple of rust holes I will have to deal with.
Near the gas pedal is an actual hole... I know that the BEST way to deal with this would be to cut out the whole section of rusted metal and weld in a new piece... but I don't yet have a welder. I DO INTEND on getting one, but am wondering if for now I might get away with a less respectful but still tolerable 'wimpy solution'? ...such as grind out all of the rust and reinforce the area with fiberglass?? ---any comments or suggestions here?
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metropoj
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Joined: April 23, 2004
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 12:32 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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In one of my bay windows vans, I had a leak that was coming from somewhere around the top / side perimeter of the windshield seal itself, even after brand new, no rust in the channel yet it made its way in. Using a silicone sealant under the lip provided me with many years of leak free windscreen after that.
I have used Por-Putty for small areas that are not completely obliterated and structural for a fix similar to your issues.
You gotta make sure you treat that rust first however or you just mask the problem for little time, neutralize it well.
For your floor, I have also neutralized and covered the area with fiberglass cloth completely like a floor mat and used POR-15 instead of resin with fantastic results. 10+ years on that van never had an issue.
But, rust around the dog legs or body panels, window sills, etc. the only way is cut and weld those in and then properly treat them to prevent new rust IMO.
Depend how deep you wanna get in but that's what I've done for the small and not so small stuff in the past.
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86 TiiCo powered Westy. |
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MidwestDrifter
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Joined: June 13, 2012
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Location: Kicking Around Australia
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 1:42 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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| epowell wrote: |
SO.... where to start???
Well..... the first thing obviously is to do something about the leak I have in the front (most likely from the windshield?). Problem is that the windshield seal seems excellent and so does the antenna seal... (see pics) ...so I'm not sure how to deal with this problem.
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I suggest using a sealant around the entire perimeter of the windshield to body seal. This is the best way to guarantee no leaks. Even if the seal looks good it can still easily wick water through a tiny gap.
| epowell wrote: |
Near the gas pedal is an actual hole... I know that the BEST way to deal with this would be to cut out the whole section of rusted metal and weld in a new piece... but I don't yet have a welder. I DO INTEND on getting one, but am wondering if for now I might get away with a less respectful but still tolerable 'wimpy solution'? ...such as grind out all of the rust and reinforce the area with fiberglass?? ---any comments or suggestions here?
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There is no need to weld the area around the pedal. Remove the rust and prep/prime the area. Make a doubler for the same or thicker sheet metal for the weakened area. Bond the doubler with structural epoxy (panel adhesive) or rivet it down with a polyurethane sealant (seam sealer or similar).
You will need to drill/cut the doubler to allow for mounting the pedal. The result will be just as strong as the original. If there is room you can attach the doubler from below. However given the coverage from the carpet, you should have no problem doing it from above. The doubler/patch needs to be primed prior to attaching.
This same approach can be used for other damaged areas (if the rust is severe enough). I have seen entire floor pans replaced using structural epoxy and rivets. With proper consideration of galvanic corrosion its possible to use aluminum instead of steel for added resistance to corrosion.
For small holes a metal patch and epoxy will also work. This method is not pretty, but under the floor mats, does it matter?
Edit: Make sure to completely remove the accelerator pedal to check for corrosion damage. Having the mounting fasteners pull through would be brutal...
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IdahoDoug
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 1:56 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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Agree with various non-welding techniques for little things like this. However, be sure the bottom of the floor exposed to the road is sanded, primed and properly painted after the repair to ensure water does not wick into those holes. If they are unprotected, it may still cause problems shortly.
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epowell
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Location: Czech (mostly) Vancouver (sometimes)
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 2:02 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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Thanks guys!!
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epowell
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Location: Czech (mostly) Vancouver (sometimes)
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 2:05 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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| IdahoDoug wrote: |
| However, be sure the bottom of the floor exposed to the road is sanded, primed and properly painted after the repair to ensure water does not wick into those holes. If they are unprotected, it may still cause problems shortly. |
...yeah I was going to ask about the bottom surface of the flooring. I assume that also needs to be equally RID of all rust, and then smoothed out, and properly coated and protected.
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Zeitgeist 13
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 2:24 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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You're gonna want to remove the throttle pedal base prior to rust treatment. That's a pivot point, and notorious for coming untethered from the floor when the rust takes its toll. It might need reinforcement.
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epowell
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Location: Czech (mostly) Vancouver (sometimes)
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| Posted: Mon Feb 01, 2016 3:00 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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| Zeitgeist 13 wrote: |
| You're gonna want to remove the throttle pedal base prior to rust treatment. That's a pivot point, and notorious for coming untethered from the floor when the rust takes its toll. It might need reinforcement. |
The that is a major consideration.
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epowell
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| Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2016 2:05 am Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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| IdahoDoug wrote: |
| However, be sure the bottom of the floor exposed to the road is sanded, |
one general question about rust:
- if there will remain a bit of surface rust, but on top of this it is well primed, painted, and covered with protective wax, will that old remaining surface rust still keep eating away like a cancer, slowly... or will that protection, which will prevent water from again contacting that old rust, effectively HALT that old rust in it's tracks?
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epowell
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| Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:17 am Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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I just checked out my windshield seal up-close... and SIDE "B" (the outer side of the seal) seems to be totally glued down tightly almost all the way around - so tightly that I really don't think I should mess with it (or should I rip it open??)
However there are a couple of spots in the upper corners that look slightly slightly opened (see fotos)... and slightly along the top seam might not be so sealed up --- perhaps this might be where the problem lies?
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epowell
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| Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:22 am Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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| IdahoDoug wrote: |
| ...be sure the bottom of the floor exposed to the road is sanded, primed and properly painted after the repair to ensure water does not wick into those holes. |
I had a look UNDER there and it really looks like the underside for a large part is quite inaccessible... ...or very difficult to access. . .
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Merian
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| Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:39 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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I like the wicker look, but it fairly 'busy, not 'clean' - also it will bounce noise around a bit and leave dust in the interior as it decays (and it WILL)
how about filling the floor with raked sand and setting up a standing stone in the middle? |
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epowell
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| Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:02 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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yes that wicker is totally overkill... but I am thinking to use it in a more restrained/Zen fashion
back to reality: here are some fotos of the underside of my van near the driver's side... quite a few little spots of surface rust... I would like to know how to best deal with these before they become an unstoppable cancer.
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Merian
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| Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:52 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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Lightly sand & then hose it down with a rust convertor. Follow the directions they give & don't put it on too thick. Top coat with a good paint, then undercoating.
cancer is the right analogy - want to be scared? it is now known that certain bacteria enhance rusting... think about them spreading all over...
for some components, it will be easier to just replace |
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epowell
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| Posted: Wed Feb 03, 2016 2:43 am Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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| Merian wrote: |
Lightly sand & then hose it down with a rust convertor. Follow the directions they give & don't put it on too thick. Top coat with a good paint, then undercoating.
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Just to re-confirm - You mean "lightly sand" rather than completely get rid of the rust? Obviously I think what you are saying is to grind off everything which is possible to access - and that which is not accessible, then light sand... etc etc and anything which is too far gone should be replaced?
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Merian
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| Posted: Wed Feb 03, 2016 6:28 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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| rust convertors need some nice fresh rust to function |
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epowell
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| Posted: Wed Feb 03, 2016 6:36 pm Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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got the stinky old kitchen cab pulled free today... tomorrow will pull it out completely, then strip open that infamous kitchen wall to see what surprised I hope I won't find back there...
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epowell
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| Posted: Thu Feb 04, 2016 8:05 am Post subject: Re: Re-making my interior |
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Ok, today I removed all of the old kitchen stuff (fridge, stove, sink, cab paneling) to get a look at the FEARED Kitchen wall which usually harbours a lot of well hidden rust... and guess what? I did find some nasty rust back there, but actually a bit less than I feared I might find.... still it is significant and I am not yet sure how I will deal with it.
First thing is to buy a grinder and get busy grinding out as much rust as I can... and the when that's finished - re-assess.... I don't have a welder and don't yet know how to weld - but I know it is only a question of time - and that time might well be now.... but if I can delay any welding, I will....
Here are some fotos of the rust I found, and now I will go out to remove that floor board and HOPE I don't find anything overly nasty under that!
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