camper insulation upgrade

[SSure]

Hi folks.  I'm hoping to get some comments on my insulation upgrade for my old (60's I think) camerette or small slide in camper without the cab overhang part.  It has a double layer fiberglass roof with about 1 inch airspace between the two layers for 1/2 of the roof, and then there is a single layer fiberglass (the outside layer) with a wood panel covering the inside layer for the other 1/2 of the roof.   So from the door at the back up to about 1/2 way the ceiling is wood and then fiberglass for the last 4 feet up to the back of the cab.  The whole outside part of the roof is fiberglass.  The walls are wood panel.  It gets cold in there and I was thinking about drilling holes and spraying cans of that expanding foam in there to increase insulation.  There is fiberglass pink insulation in there now but it is so thin that it does almost nothing. On sunny days the sun shines through the 1/2 of the roof that is fiberglass and you can see that there isn't much insulation in there.  So I was thinking about carpeting on the walls and ceiling once I spray the foam in.  Any comments / suggestions appreciated as I'm not much of a handy man. Thanks

 

[TrainChaser]

I've only seen the inside of two of those, ever. I wasn't really impressed. One of my brother's (many) idiot girlfriends ran her cabover camper into a low glass building-to-building walkway. The only real memory that I have of it was a truckload of splinters. Don't remember much insulation.

That spray foam isn't very good to be surrounded by it.

Here is the Material Safety & Data Sheet (MSDS) on the Great Stuff brand. Note on the first page, it says "OSHA Hazard Communication Standard. This product is a "Hazardous Chemical" as defined by the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, 29CFR 1910.1200."

Some people say it's okay after it cures. But all the original ingredients are still there.

But questions keep coming up. Check out this page of "EPA Raises Health Concerns with Spray Foam Insulation": https://www.buildinggreen.com/blog/epa-raises-health-concerns-spray-foam-insulation

Go down to the section title "We don't know much about SPF offgassing" after it has 'cured'.

Do you have any other options?

 

[SSure]

I've only seen the inside of two of  those, ever.  I wasn't really impressed.  One of my brother's (many) idiot girlfriends ran her cabover camper into a low glass building-to-building walkway.  The only real memory that I have of it was a truckload of splinters.  Don't remember much insulation.

That spray foam isn't very good to be surrounded by it.

Here is the Material Safety & Data Sheet (MSDS) on the Great Stuff brand.  Note on the first page, it says "OSHA Hazard Communication Standard.  This product is a "Hazardous Chemical" as defined by the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, 29CFR 1910.1200."

Some people say it's okay after it cures.  But all the original ingredients are still there.

But questions keep coming up.  Check out this page of "EPA Raises Health Concerns with Spray Foam Insulation":  https://www.buildinggreen.com/blog/epa-raises-health-concerns-spray-foam-insulation

Go down to the section title "We don't know much about SPF offgassing" after it has 'cured'.

Do you have any other options?

Hi, thanks for your reply.   I hear you - I haven't seen many of these old camperette things around with a roof like that.  I guess it was a 60's thing.  They've all died off over the years but this one somehow survived.  It's a beater but then so am I so I kind of like it.  

When I first got the old fiberglass roof camper I went through the Starbucks drive through thinking it would fit under the canopy at the window like my old one did.  It didn't.  I know what you mean about the splinters.  I had to fiberglass it up to plug the big holes and it looks like hell up there.  I've never been too good with that sort of work.  But holds water so I'm good with that.

I did read through most of the info here before posting this.  I'm not married to spray foam and open to any ideas. I thought about the board type insulation and gluing it on but that would probably look terrible.  and there are curves to the inside fiberglass part of the roof that would mean that wouldn't work too well unless they were really thin.  Gluing on some carpet would look ok but do you imagine it would provide much R value?  has anyone tried it and noticed a difference?  In the 80's I used thin plywood covered with carpet in a van and I thought it worked ok.  I can't recall if I put fiberglass pink insulation behind that or not. I like Bob's insulation board comments and I'd go with that and then cover with carpet so it looks nicer but due to the curves in the fiberglass part of the roof, it won't work.

 

[Almost There]

  In the 80's I used thin plywood covered with carpet in a van and I thought it worked ok.  I can't recall if I put fiberglass pink insulation behind that or not. I like Bob's insulation board comments and I'd go with that and then cover with carpet so it looks nicer but due to the curves in the fiberglass part of the roof, it won't work.

Back in the 70s and 80s we did the pink insulation covered with thin plywood and then carpet because a) we didn't have the availability of better insulation back then so pink was the standard and b) because we were going for a different look - think shaggin' wagon....

Today we tend to think things through a whole lot more - the carpet will absorb every bit of dirt, fumes and moisture that we throw at it and the pink insulation, well it's just 80's...

That spray foam insulation in a can isn't really meant for insulating a whole area it's meant for sealing small gaps around windows and doors in conventional housing. Used in small quantities it's kind of okay but used in a large area...I sure wouldnt' want it around me long term.

There is 2 part professional spray foam insulation but I don't think that's what you were referring to.

1/2" thick polyiso is quite bendy and if necessary can be put in in smaller strips if you're going around a real tight bend. Or 1" thick can be cut into to make it bend without breaking.

You might want to think about gluing or fiberglassing in 1 x 2 strips of wood and then insulating with the polyiso between them. That would give you pretty good insulation and something to adhere plywood/panelling over top of to finish it off.

 

[jimindenver]

That two part insulation is nasty stuff requiring a special mask. It's some nasty stuff.

 

[highdesertranger]

Ensolite foam. Ensolite is a closed cell foam that is flexible, lightweight, and waterproof. it can be glued in place and contours to corners easily. carpet or hull liner can be glued to it. true Ensolite is expensive but there are many substitutes. army surplus stores often have sleeping pads made out of it. a quick search turned this up, http://stores.alleghenywholesale.com/usgi-military-sleeping-foam-mat-very-good/ . highdesertranger

 

[TrainChaser]

Either AlmostThere's suggestion of 1/2" polyiso or HDR's closed-cell foam are probably your best suggestions.

You could apply two layers of either one (offsetting the seams), gluing the second to the first to give your rig a solid inch of insulation. Check out the flexibility of the thinnest luan wood paneling as a cover. Or, glue some fabric to it and coat it with a few coats of shellac. (I have considered buying a few boxes of brass thumbtacks and sticking the fabric to foam board with them instead of gluing, but I haven't actually tried it.) But I wouldn't leave the fabric 'raw', or it will absorb odors and everything that hits it that isn't perfectly clean will show a mark. When the alcohol base of real shellac is dry, it's non-toxic.

The closed-cell matting would also be good on the floor. Lay a piece of plywood or carpeting over it. Carpet is a filth magnet, so if you use it, don't anchor it much (if at all). When filthy, just toss and replace.

 

[SSure]

Thanks much for the comments. You've all given me some good ideas to work with.