Maintenance & Restoration

neauone · 06-29-2013, 10:11 AM

Because it will be around October sometime that I will begin my restoration. I have taken it upon myself to look at all the options and cost effectiveness in revamping my Scamp.
While I don't like the "rat fur" and the elephant hide seems to be quite expensive for the material itself.
I began my search for alternatives to both including indoor outdoor carpet and marine carpeting.
I also am not opposed to reinstalling the rat fur IF it can be dry cleaned (haven't got that far yet) and I don't know if there will be glue on the rat fur, but I have to believe it will.
So we will put that possibility on hold.
Which brings me to a quite affordable alternative, which, now get this, will not have to be painted and comes in other colors.
The real question is, will it break down if I glue it.
The material is closed cell foam.
Why closed cell foam? It is water resistant and acts as both a insulation and sound deadening material.
There is a company I found (Foam Factory Inc.) which sells it rather reasonable and it comes in red ,deep purple, royal blue, green and yellow, you can also get it in white.
Hence if it sticks, I will not need to paint.
If anyone has any feed back let me know. In the next week I will be testing with a marine glue to see if there is any adverse effect on the material.
I will keep you posted.

jwcolby54 · 06-29-2013, 10:26 AM

My only concern would be durability. It would rip and tear easily if stuff snagged it as you move around. Now I could see using UNDER a tougher material.

neauone · 06-29-2013, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwcolby54

My only concern would be durability. It would rip and tear easily if stuff snagged it as you move around. Now I could see using UNDER a tougher material.

While I agree with you, it is a closed cell foam product, its not going to tear so easily. I had a few samples sent to me, they are quite dense.
The cost for a 6'/4' peace in the color choices I gave is 26.99 for 1/4 inch.
I actually painted it with plasti dip and it held up, so I just have to wait and see how the adhesive works out.
I don't see it being snagged with anything in particular as it will be on the walls and overhead.

Glenn Baglo · 06-29-2013, 10:48 AM

If you have one of those ensollite camp pads laying around, have a look. You'll find that after use, it is full of chips and tears. Not an issue for that application, but sure could be a problem as a wall covering.

neauone · 06-29-2013, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

If you have one of those ensollite camp pads laying around, have a look. You'll find that after use, it is full of chips and tears. Not an issue for that application, but sure could be a problem as a wall covering.

I'm sorry I don't, but again, its an alternative to what we have. Something else I am considering is purchasing the less expensive closed cell product attaching it to the walls, than attaching a material over it like a leather type product which can be wiped down. Upholsters use the glue to attach material to foam than attach the material to make it adhere to the foam.
I'm still in the processing stage at this point.

jwcolby54 · 06-29-2013, 11:18 AM

The other thing to keep in mind is that closed cell foam has about R6 / inch, which is quite good but 1/4" will not be that much R value. And (in theory) the Scamp already has R15 so you would be adding very little percentage wise. I do think it would be a very nice "feel" under a leather kind of material.

I'm not not in love with rat fur that is for sure. My understanding is that it is supposed to prevent condensation on the interior walls when the walls are very cold and high humidity inside the TT. I can appreciate your search for alternatives!

Donna D. · 06-29-2013, 11:23 AM

True ensolite IS closed cell foam, it's just covered with vinyl or some other coating. All four corners are going to be tough to get smooth unless the material is soft and stretchy. Or can be heated for forming.

Have you looked into good ole normal car headliner material? Certainly comes in a number of colors. BUT, rat fur is a MARINE headliner material and that's why it resists odors and moisture.

Good luck in your decision.

neauone · 06-29-2013, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwcolby54

The other thing to keep in mind is that closed cell foam has about R6 / inch, which is quite good but 1/4" will not be that much R value. And (in theory) the Scamp already has R15 so you would be adding very little percentage wise. I do think it would be a very nice "feel" under a leather kind of material.

I'm not not in love with rat fur that is for sure. My understanding is that it is supposed to prevent condensation on the interior walls when the walls are very cold and high humidity inside the TT. I can appreciate your search for alternatives!

I wouldn't be replacing the Scamp insulation, but adding the closed cell material on top of it ( replacing the rat fur).

neauone · 06-29-2013, 12:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donna D.

True ensolite IS closed cell foam, it's just covered with vinyl or some other coating. All four corners are going to be tough to get smooth unless the material is soft and stretchy. Or can be heated for forming.

Have you looked into good ole normal car headliner material? Certainly comes in a number of colors. BUT, rat fur is a MARINE headliner material and that's why it resists odors and moisture.

Good luck in your decision.

Donna, I thought about what your saying, the way around that is to copy the open spaces onto a piece of paper (template) and cut the fabric accordingly. This would eliminate the need to fill in as it were.
However what is really nice IMHO is that they come in assorted colors and I wouldn't have to paint.
The only issue I see is if the material will decompose in some fashion after applying a glue to it.
The material is actually a polyethylene foam product, SO, until i can put some serious glue to it, the jury is out.

boley · 07-31-2013, 07:28 AM

Did you give the foam a try? I am actually considering the same material for my Casita, so I wondered if you had any luck.

My assumption is that you are working with one of these products
Cross Linked Polyethylene Foam - Closed-Cell Foam Padding, Packaging, Foam Sheets
Foam Insulation, Padding, Closed-Cell Foam - Polyethylene Roll

GMike A · 07-31-2013, 08:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boley

Did you give the foam a try? I am actually considering the same material for my Casita, so I wondered if you had any luck.

My assumption is that you are working with one of these products
Cross Linked Polyethylene Foam - Closed-Cell Foam Padding, Packaging, Foam Sheets
Foam Insulation, Padding, Closed-Cell Foam - Polyethylene Roll

Wonder how flexible it is? Per the site it almost looks fairly rigid.

floyd · 07-31-2013, 09:06 AM

How about Ozite?....

Ozite (Head Liner) : RV Parts Nation

and...

http://www.yourautotrim.com/80wideozite.html

stevebaz · 07-31-2013, 12:38 PM

You might look at the material they use for mouse pads. foam with a fabric top avaliable in a varity of colors.
One thing I would worry about would be the adheasive. the stuff Scamped used in my trailer from 1986 is holding up well but it isnt stuck that solid. When I put in my Fantastic fan it wasnt very hard to pull apart the layers of insulation, rat fur from the trailer. They used just enough to hold up the insulation and the rat fur. The weight your adding isnt going to work too well without pulling it all down seperating the layers and respraying everything with something you know will work.

neauone · 07-31-2013, 01:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boley

Did you give the foam a try? I am actually considering the same material for my Casita, so I wondered if you had any luck.

My assumption is that you are working with one of these products
Cross Linked Polyethylene Foam - Closed-Cell Foam Padding, Packaging, Foam Sheets
Foam Insulation, Padding, Closed-Cell Foam - Polyethylene Roll

What I did currently to test the glue and material was to spray the glue to a surface and than spray the glue on to the closed cell foam sample I received from a company. I am happy to say it is holding like "iron".
Furthermore, I took a smaller sample, say about 2 inches square and sprayed both the fiberglass inside the scamp and the sample.
Again the results were the same.
So I think this is the road I'm going to go down. However I think I will go with 1/2 inch foam.
Again, whats so cool about this is I will not have to paint over anything and instead of having an insulation than some kind of marine grade carpet over it I will only have to install the one item.
Lastly I think where the tail lights are and where any electrical wires may run, I'm not going to glue in the pieces but simply cut out the sections and just lay in the foam without gluing it.
So I would have a stretch of say 4 inches X 3 OR 4 feet, etc. (just as an example).
I don't want to restore everything only to have a problem 2-5 years down the line and not be able to address the issue.

neauone · 07-31-2013, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GMike A

Wonder how flexible it is? Per the site it almost looks fairly rigid.

The pieces are quite flexible and come in something like 4x6 foot pieces. I sent for samples. So for arguments sake I may need 10-12 sheets to finish the interior of the scamp at 15 dollars a sheet ( could be 20). Nonetheless the cost with the benefits outweigh the replacing of the Scamp with the material being used now.
Besides being a good insulator (I'm going with the 1/2 inch) it is just as great as a sound deadening material. It comes in about 6 different colors beginning with white.

boley · 07-31-2013, 02:41 PM

Thanks for looking into this neauone. Based upon the product description, photos, and listed applications I had a pretty solid assumption I had encountered this product (life jackets, backpack strap padding, etc). So my guess was the material would be flexible.

I know most folks seem to like a fabric as the outer layer of wall material. However my goal is a non-fabric surface that can be easily cleaned and wiped down. Really all I am after is a condensation prevention layer. This foam sounds like a great option when I get to that stage of my reno.

neauone · 07-31-2013, 04:46 PM

The closed cell foam I looked at seemed to have a shine on one side, the colors were white, blue, yellow, green, and perhaps black.
But before you jump into it, the companies will send you samples, get some and do a test like I did. So that you are sure. They will even send you sample sizes that you think you will ultimately use.
Best to you
Guy

Seldomseensmith · 07-31-2013, 07:48 PM

After reading a bunch, I bought reflectix and am going to cover it with a material that is used to cover musicians amps and is also used as a trunk liner for cars. Ill let you guys know how it goes.