[strokendiesel00]

Evening all!

So this evening I gutted my cab to insulate it and when I pulled the front floor mat up it is soaked?! Has anyone ran into this before?

Crazy how there isn't a lick of insulation in these things!

I'm very surprised about all of the water, as 2 weeks ago we drove it 5 hours and the floor was so hot that my wife couldn't put her bare feet on it. I haven't left the windows down or doors open and it's primarily the front that's wet. It didn't seem to be that the pillars were wet and I didn't see any signs of the cab lights leaking.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[ronjhall]

Evening all!

So this evening I gutted my cab to insulate it and when I pulled the front floor mat up it is soaked?! Has anyone ran into this before? View attachment 635812 View attachment 635813 View attachment 635814

Crazy how there isn't a lick of insulation in these things!

I'm very surprised about all of the water, as 2 weeks ago we drove it 5 hours and the floor was so hot that my wife couldn't put her bare feet on it. I haven't left the windows down or doors open and it's primarily the front that's wet. It didn't seem to be that the pillars were wet and I didn't see any signs of the cab lights leaking.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Windshield leak.

 

[Krazy Ken]

Windshield leak is a good suggestion. Does it have any dexcool/ coolant odor?

Edit: Keep us updated on your insulation project. It's something I would like to do also.

 

[mp06011999]

Over the years of trucks I've seen leaks from the back window, heater core, missing firewall plugs, third brake light and windshield.

 

[strokendiesel00]

All, thank you for the replies and suggestions!

Ken- thankfully it doesn't have even the slightest color, odor or... Taste... I checked.

The front is definitely wetter than the back and we did just have several inches of rain overnight.

The headliner is bone dry and doesn't have any staining, so windshield is looking like the culprit. I'll get the hose on it to confirm.

 

[strokendiesel00]

Ken-

I will post updates on insulation - new thread or continue this and retitle... "C5500 Interior maintenance"?

The interior is surprisingly easy to remove. Tools I've used this far-
1/2" drive-
*18mm deep impact
*Impact swivel
*3" impact extension
*1/2" cordless impact
*15" long ratchet

3/8" drive-
*12" long flex head ratchet
*T50 Torx
*10mm deep

1/4" drive-
*Ratchet
*T20(I think, I'll have to double check) Torx socket

#2 Phillips screwdriver

1/4" tip straight blade

Very small "spoon" pick

Body clip remover

7mm nut driver was a little loose on the 2 rear rear hear duct screws but it worked

I haven't removed the rear heater core and blower yet, nor the dash. I can update with required tools when I do if anyone is interested.

I did have an incident with the overhead light. I broke it. Tip - pop the lens out and remove the 2 T20 Torx screws and the larger trim piece with map lights will come down.

This truck, when pulling my 5'er was just ungodly loud. Really hoping this helps, and I think it may as the 5 hour return trip was actually much better just by shoving a couple moving blankets between the rear seat and panel.

 

[OkDually]

Dynamat is a good insulator/noise-reducing material to install

 

[strokendiesel00]

I pulled the rear heater today- 3, 10mm bolts and 2 hose clamps. I was able to place a drain pan up on the step brace to catch most of the coolant released. I did clamp off the soft lines.

I ordered 3 boxes of the Kilmat 80mil. 1 box covered the roof and almost 1 row across the back. Had I not gone as far into the corners, I believe it would have covered the roof plus an entire row.

I got into the second box and about finished the back wall before dinner and mosquitoes shut me down

The cooler provided an excellent seat for me to do the rolling after placement, without cramping haha.

If you look at the past photo of the back wall, I covered the gap that exists between the outer skin and the horizontal brace. Prior to covering I did apply the mat up into that space. I have not yet cut any holes for the mounting clips. I'll do that as I install the panels. I am also waiting on some spray in stuff from Amazon that I intend to apply inside of the cavities of the rear corners, middle pillars and front pillars. I will then cover all of the massive openings with the mat.

I think I'm going to stick some bubble foil in between the headliner and mat for insulation and use the foam 150mil Noico on the walls and floor. May add some of the bubble foil up by the passenger and driver footwells if I have enough. It's leftover from a concrete insulation project.

 

[Krazy Ken]

Superb job! Keep track of how much mat you use so I know how much to order.

 

[strokendiesel00]

Thanks Ken!

Will do. The Kilmat kits I've ordered 3 of are the 36sq ft each, as are the Noico kits. Arriving Friday are 2- 3 packs of boom mat 18oz rattle cans.

Hopefully get more done tomorrow. I'm certain that I have enough for finishing the pillars and floor, but not confident about the doors, so I might just pick up an extra box of each.
Hopefully it's a significant improvement.

 

[strokendiesel00]

OKDually-

Thank you for the suggestion on the dynamat. It is the best, but not in the budget, as new seats will be getting ordered if this quiets down the cab to an acceptable level

 

[strokendiesel00]

Well, I didn't get a whole lot done today, but did a little before work this morning. I put the foil with bubbles on both sides up on the roof. I used 3M 90 spray adhesive to keep it in place.

I did slide it between the horizontal brace in the middle of the cab as well as into the for and aft "pockets" if you will, between the outer skin and bracing. This stuff is amazing. Even in the early morning sun I could feel the sun radiating through the roof (with the foil backed butyl applied). As soon as I got half of this up in place it felt cooler in the cab. Once I had it all the way up I felt like I was under a nice talk tree and was able to enjoy the steady breeze that was passing through all four open doors. I will look to see where I bought this and post. I will be buying more of it to use in my trailers and a few other places.

I put 3 of the 150mil Noico sheets up above the back window. After opening the package and feeling the difference between this foam and the butyl, I had 2 thoughts. First was that it is more pliable than I feared, so that was great! Second was that cutting the necessary holes for the clips would be more difficult if I didn't cut them through the butyl prior to applying the foam. This set me back a few minutes, but I think cutting the required holes before applying the next layer is going to provide the easiest install and chance of clean removal in the future. You really only need to bring the panels in one time to locate the required holes. After cutting the first layer, you should be able to feel those holes with the next and just re cut.

I wish I'd have just taken the clearance lights out when applying the butyl, as I wound up removing them for the bubble foil, and since the wires were moved I patched in more butyl where I had left untouched initially.

 

[654L80]

Subscribed Looks great👍 !

 

[strokendiesel00]

Well, I've used 108sq ft of the Kilmat 80mil Butyl, 36sq ft double bubble foil, and 72sq feet of 150mil foam insulation. I did not get the windshield pillars or doors done yet. Very glad that I ordered another box of the butyl, but probably could've gotten away with a smaller quantity of the additional foam I ordered. Thinking about it, maybe I could've ordered less butyl also, but now I can seal the doors up real well and have some left over.

Pictures:

 

[strokendiesel00]

More pics:

So the biggest lesson in this is that you should NOT expect the little panel clips to hold well through the foam and butyl. As I'm typing this it's occuring to me that it's most likely the butyl that gives the clips a hard time snapping into place, but with just a slot cut out, it really doesn't like to clip in. I wound up spending quite a while trimming back the foam so there wasn't so much outward pressure on the clip stanchions. Also, with the butyl and foam, expect a very tight, almost to tight fit. I wanted to put butyl on some of the trim pieces, but didn't have any extra, so I may be popping panels and some more around the clips slots when I do that.

I'm very excited to get the seats put back in and take her for a drive, even though the tin can doors are gonna be noisy

Thanks for checking in!

 

[Krazy Ken]

Nice pictures. I have never done any sort of insulation like this. Can you explain the differences in the materials? For example the kilmat vs the bubble wrap/ foam?

 

[strokendiesel00]

Yes!

Kilmat is a Butyl- similar to dynomat which adheres to and absorbs vibrations. Car audio enthusiasts I believe we're the first to really take to this in the aftermarket realm. Given the massive amounts of thin sheet metal in our vehicles, plus the stuff suspension I believe a lot of what we hear is harmonic vibrations from the tires to the frame. Now I'm sure engineers can figure out just the right amount to use and where to use it, but I didn't want to keep gutting the cab.

The 150mil foam is for thermal and higher pitched noise insulation.

The double bubble foil is a thermal barrier. As well as the roof, I put some down by the passenger footwells and the aisle between the two front seats.

 

[strokendiesel00]

I put everything back together and took her for a drive. With no trailer and bouncing off the governor at 77ish, 67db. Definite improvement, but I still hear enough tire noise that I'm nervous once the trailer is hooked up, as it was louder when pulling the trailer.

I haven't done the doors yet, so I'm really hoping that knocks it down further yet. Even so, it's much nicer to have a conversation in than before. Think carpeted bedroom vs empty dining room with hardwood.

I'll report back after I do the doors and change the speakers, as the factory speakers are blown

 

[Ironhydtxatmvt]

Hey just in case. I had a water leak as well. And I found it after I put the truck back together from painting it. And I had this truck I’m building COMPLETELY stripped apart. So anyways, with new urethane and the original windshield, it leaked. My glass guy helped me re urethane it again, still leaked. New windshield and a bunch of urethane, still leaked. I put silicone around the small holes under the weatherstripping that goes around where the door closes. No more leaks.

 

[OkDually]

Hey just in case. I had a water leak as well. And I found it after I put the truck back together from painting it. And I had this truck I’m building COMPLETELY stripped apart. So anyways, with new urethane and the original windshield, it leaked. My glass guy helped me re urethane it again, still leaked. New windshield and a bunch of urethane, still leaked. I put silicone around the small holes under the weatherstripping that goes around where the door closes. No more leaks.

Thats odd. Was there any surface rust/cancer in the channel ?
I have seen some surface rust cause sealing issues.