Spray Bed Liner?

[Ridunnekulous]

I was considering getting my van's floor and wheel wells covered with spray bed liner.  Rust, moisture, sound dampening, and aesthetics are the reasons that came to mind.  From what I've read, it looks like it'll cost upwards of $400-$500.  I just wanted second opinions on whether or not this is a good idea or worth the money.

 

[Canine]

Regular old plywood is cheaper and better.Put a coat of good quality porch paint on the ply and you are good for years.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Depends on what you want.

Pro's:
 - Durable.  Bitch to get off if you ever have to.
 - Protects as well or better than paint.
 - non-slip; even when wet & stuff won't slide around on it (neither will you).
 - damps out medium and high frequencies.  Won't do anything for low frequencies.
 - Can DIY, but the durability and thickness is not as good.

Con's:
 - minimal insulating value.  Cold floor.  Could put rug over it (won't slip!)
 - hard to clean.  Need to be real aggressive with broom to sweep out sand and dirt.
 - Not smooth; ruff.  Would not be comfortable for me to walk around barefoot.
 - Expensive.  Pick-up bed is ~$1000 for Line-X.  A lot of that cost is masking off everything.
 - Some outgassing when new.  Don't know how much or how long.

-- Spiff

 

[SoulRaven]

Are you wanting to put this inside the van or on the underside like an undercoating? I wouldn't want to use it inside the van and be in there all the time with it and would check carefully to see what the health implications might be to doing that since usually in the truck bed, there would be ventilation.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

A fair number of off-road types do this to their four wheel drive rigs IF their plans include fording rivers and streams.  These people often get water inside their rigs during such shenanigans, and they find the expense well worth it.

If you're NOT planning on fording deep streams, you're probably better off with the plywood.

On the other hand, if you plan to hose the inside of your van out as part of your once yearly van cleaning . . .

Regards
John

 

[Ridunnekulous]

Well I already have a rug for the floor, so the comfort/insulation factor is something I'm not worried about. Like I said water proofing, rust protection, and aesthetics. After offgassing, are there still health concerns? Never thought of that..

 

[GotSmart]

Well I already have a rug for the floor, so the comfort/insulation factor is something I'm not worried about.  Like I said water proofing, rust protection, and aesthetics.  After offgassing, are there still health concerns?  Never thought of that..

I heard of a guy that did that.  He could no longer live in it. 

Clean and paint. Save yourself about $975.00

 

[akrvbob]

I can only say there isn't a chance in hell I would ever do that. Very little gain for a bunch of money.
Bob

 

[MrNoodly]

Clean and paint. Save yourself about $975.00

Regular old oil-based semi-gloss exterior house paint. Or if you want to get fancy, deck/porch paint. And for super fancy, epoxy garage floor paint (speckles unnecessary).

 

[GotSmart]

Regular old oil-based semi-gloss exterior house paint. Or if you want to get fancy, deck/porch paint. And for super fancy, epoxy garage floor paint (speckles unnecessary).

Rattle can Rust Oleum.  

 

[TravelDerby]

I was considering getting my van's floor and wheel wells covered with spray bed liner.  Rust, moisture, sound dampening, and aesthetics are the reasons that came to mind.  From what I've read, it looks like it'll cost upwards of $400-$500.  I just wanted second opinions on whether or not this is a good idea or worth the money.

  
           Well, I did it and I don't think I would do it again. 


 I didn't have it done, but instead purchased a 2 part epoxy kit and sprayed it myself (Here's the product I used http://sprayonbedliners.info/home.html ).  I sprayed the entire floor, over the wheel wells and halfway up both walls in the back of an E-350 van. The prep work was extremely time consuming and like most things I probably went overboard a bit. Lots of sanding and an absolute ton of taping and masking (Which I later found out I really didn't need to do).  This stuff comes out of the gun thick as heck and there is very little over spray. I've painted a few vehicles before and expected the over spray to be similar, it wasn't even an issue.
 
 The advantages (IMO).

  1. It looks great!  That being said, I covered most of it up with plywood floor and a rubber mat, so in that way it was a bit of a waste.

  2. It does an awesome job in protecting the metal from scratches and scuffs, but it would have been a lot easier and cheaper to just throw the plywood and rubber mat down in the first place.
 
 
  The disadvantages or cons
 
 1. Cost and time.  The product was less than $100, but add another $50 or so for sandpaper, the spray gun and the misc tapes and items to do the job. You also need a compressor and many other tools to do it right. 

 2. Very little sound or insulation difference.   I added insulation, a plywood floor and rubber mat afterwards, that made a HUGE difference!

 3. Rust protection.  Well little to none really.  I guess if I was working with the van and using caustic chemicals or salt it would offer some protection, but most floors rot from the outside in, not from the dry interior out.

 4. Fumes.   It took about 6 months or more for mine to stop off gassing.  I wasn't sleeping in the van then, so that wasn't an issue, but it would be for many.

 
  I'll try to post some before and after pictures of mine before I built the interior.
 .

 

[Ridunnekulous]

Thanks for the input guys. Glad I asked here before going through with it!

 

[Wanderer]

I was considering getting my van's floor and wheel wells covered with spray bed liner.  Rust, moisture, sound dampening, and aesthetics are the reasons that came to mind.  From what I've read, it looks like it'll cost upwards of $400-$500.  I just wanted second opinions on whether or not this is a good idea or worth the money.

Knew one guy who did it to the exterior of his car. Inside? Nah, not something I'd do personally.

Not worried about health reasons just don't think it's worth the price.