Cheap And Easy Ways To Sound Proof A Bus

[stevo_2006]

yeah im on a limited buget and wanted to sound proof my bus is there a cheap way i know dynamat is pretty expensive all help would be nice thanks

[chopper76]

Heard good things about fatmat - a cheaper version of dynamat. www.fatmat.com
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73 Westy
so what if its handpainted and rusty.....where's yours ?

[DurocShark]

Ouch. $18 shipping.
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No boom today. Boom tomorrow. There's always a boom tomorrow.

[westy demi-god]

[TimGud]

I have seen more than a few buses with rust all the way through from insulation that collects and keeps moisture in it. The neatest idea I have heard for avoiding the moisture trap and soundproofing was from Clara (who sells bus door panels) who buys (big bubble) bubble wrap and glues or places it behind the panels for soundproofing and I guess insulation to some extent. I intend to do this on my doublecab when the time comes.

[static]

[TrickyThom]

[westy demi-god]

[Hippopotabus]

First layer against the bus's metal skin (dynamat or what ever other sound proofing material you want to use). Then I would use insulation to fill the space between, lets say the door skin and the door panal. For the insulation I used water heater (the kind you have in your house) insulation wrap. This stuff comes in smaller rolls and is easier to manage. I've also used the bubble wrap insulation in places like the space between the roof and the ceiling board. It sound proofs and helps keep it cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
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Celer, Silens, Letalis
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[moyneur]

I have used spay foam. You can get it at Home Depot or Lowes. Took everything out of the bus, seats & panels, and spay it in all the hollow spots that was possible and if I couldn’t get to some of them I would drill some small holes to access them. You need to drill multiple holes to fill the voids and allow the air to vent out. It’s a little messy and you need to let it dry completely before trimming off the overspill.
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[Zeen]

Timely thread. If I can slightly redirect, has anyone measured or experienced specific results with soundproofing specific areas? Should you do the engine compartment? Take out the cabinets and do the metal in there? What I know about noise control says you can waste a lot of time and money in areas that don't matter, and miss the 10% of area where the noise is really coming from.
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[panasonic90]

I would imagine that bubblewrap gives good thermal isolation but not much against noise, has anyone tried it?
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"May the fweem be with you"
Obi Volks Kenobi
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[Hippopotabus]

[Greggyboy]

I used "Great Stuff" cans in the sliding door, rear cargo door, and engine lid. It is VERY quiet now in the doors. I also insulated the whole car with pink "cotton candy" insulation. The way I did it was to cut the insulation in small pieces and make a complete vapor barrier wherever it was going to go. I even put it up front by the headlights. A trick is to cut up small pieces of insulation and go around the pieces with plastic OUTSIDE the car. Then pack the insulation wherever. The resemble little plastic wrapped, insulation pillows.

Also, before I did ANY of this. I put down a layer of snow roof for rust proofing. Its everywhere. I am not concerned about rust.

[IFBwax]

I kind of like the noise. I mean... it probably would get old having to drive it everyday, but as my fun ride, I like the sound of the V'dub engine and the vibrations. Part of what brings back all the memories of having a bug as a kid growing up.
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www.partypickle.blogspot.com

[Bottomend]

Hey Gregboy, I'd be VERY CAREFUL about useing 'cotton candy" insulation. I tried putting it in my bus when I first bought it (2.5 years ago). I placed it in front of the kick panels near the headlights just like you too.

I found that water had seeped in to the trough near the floor and had started to rust. I live in So Cal and it's hot here most of the time so there is plenty of time for stuff to dry out. It hadn't rained in more than a month and I still pulled out soaking wet "cotton candy"!

The basic priciple of sound absorbsion is to allow air to ( sound waves) to pass through material in order to dampen it's engery flow on it's return trip back towards it's source. Covering the " cotton candy" with plastic to prevent moisture from entering will limit this to a large degree.

The sound dampening benifits you're hearing are most likely due to resonance dampening thats occuring because the "cotton candy packs" are pressing against the metal bodywork ( this is the source of the resonances).

A better alternative it to uses a non absorbant weighted material ( dynamat ect) that kills the resonances by dampening the metal it's attached to. I'm looking into magnetically attached products. permanant or semi permantantlly attached materials can only invite moisture to take up residence.

If your bus is sealed tight ( I mean really sealed tight) there wont be a problem but a few drips can start the process in motion...

[TrickyThom]

Hmmm, I have been thinking about how I will go about this.
How about the styrofoam type house insulation? Cut it into big peices,maybe use aluminum tape to get them together once inside door panels?
Does that stuff absorb moisture?
Not so good for engine compartment or floors, but other areas maybe.
It is cheap and light. You could double it up.
Save the pricy stuff for where it counts.
I am haveing a hard time commiting permanatly sticking something to the metal. I would like to be able to check on the rust possability every once in a while.
Just a thought.

[freshvw]

I used a product that kinda looks like bubble wrap with aluminum foil on both sides. You can get it at Home Depot or Lowes. Not too expensive, won't collect water and works pretty well.

[Devon-Dyno-Soar118]

Styrofoam is extremely bad in this type of application as it is flammable and also very harmful to the environment, both in its manufacture and in biodegradability. The foil bubble wrap stuff is no better, but is supposedly the equvalent of 115mm of conventional insulation. The stuff made of re-cycled rags is good, but it does absorb water. In theory there should not be water inside the bus anyway. I used some of the bubble wrap stuff to make curtains, they work really well, reflect sunlight and keep you warm on cooler days. I just cut them out and used sticky velcro to hold them on. My bus is a bit of a rat so I didn't mind the bits of velcro at each window corner.
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71 West coast Kombi
54 Oval, 60k km from new
Daves 68 Bug Project
Rust Collector.

[TrickyThom]