Sound proofing and insulation

With the floor up and the bulkhead out, it's time to look at the interior panels, sound-proofing and insulation. To reduce the echo of an empty van you simply have to add some weight the bare panels. Road noise and vibration travels through the panels and becomes amplified, to reduce this resonance effectively and efficiently I like to apply self adhesive flash banding as used by roofers.

The first step is to remove all the interior panels:

If you're familiar with VW interior trim, you'll be friendy with those little clips that can be such a hindrance to progress. I've found the perfect tool for coaxing them out without wrecking them:

Next we add the flash banding in strategic positions on bare, open areas of panel:

Followed by a high-grade, flame retardant insulation material:

Then a final layer of polythene to seal it in:

Finally it's just a matter of replacing the interior panel.

I've not shown the panel back in as it's just raw ply. Watch this space for more details on interior fabrics soon...

To end the day's work I thought I'd have a trial-run of the type of load the rear will be carrying. Again, more details on bike mounts are to follow...