Delica Canada | Mitsubishi Van Club

has anyone ever insulated an L300 and still used the stock interior panels/upholstry?
what material did you use to insulate? spray foam, reflective, or batting?

Al,

If youve done a speaker re & re in the back you will have probably come acroos the black "lava" looking foam they used as anti vibration for the cross brace on the big wide panel of the exterior. When I did the speaker change , this stuff just crumbled . I took expanding foam in a can and replaced it. The foam is a little hard to control, but can be trimmed. There is tons of room in behind every original piece of interior Ive taken off so far.

IF I was going to insulate the van, I would use batting in the big areas, foam in the lower reaches ( it also acts as a sealer for little holes that will let dust in) and that sticky sound insulator for the floors.

All that being said, the big culprit to heat loss is through all that glass looking stuff they call windows.

Cheapest way to get around this is to get a sleeping bag good to -40. I was up in the Kettle at our place last weekend and the mercury dipped to -13. I slept in my van with my -40 bag , and had no problems at all...........til I had to get up and stoke the coffee.

Good Luck

Careful with the expanding foam.
It leaves little pockets and dips where moisture and
water can be trapped against metal etc.
Great way for rust to start. Sometimes you want
a more breathable option.

J

Por15 + insulation + foam = happy

I would think that the easiest way to get a good result is to insulate under the carpet and make insulating pads that you can stick in the windows. if that doesn't work well enough you could drape heavy blankets over the sides and hold them up with rare earth magnets or Velcro or what have you.

Use the reflective thin bubble wrap sheets for the windows. Just and cut to shape.

thanks for your input guys. really appreciate it. more mods to think about.

thanks for the link. i think i was there before. i was hoping to see pics of turtle when it was finished.
so jfarsang, after doing the turtle 'camperization' is there anything you would've done different?
how long did it take you to do the insulation and sound deadening?
and most importantly, are you planning on converting your new L400?
inquiring minds want to know. lol

I passed Turtle onto his new owner before I finished.

What I did was a very expensive way to cut down noise and provide insulation. There are many oher ways. The stuff I used was not tar based/toxic which is what I wanted and it cost a few limbs more than the typical ram insulation.

A good and fairly inexpensive way would be to buy a few 4ft rolls of that reflective insulation (about 1/8" thick and is made of thin bubble wrap).

You can find it at home depot.

Pickup a few cans of 3M super adhesive.

Take off all the trim from inside

start cutting the insulation to fit. Spray the adhesive on the insulation facing the stick-to area and a light spray on the body metal. Press and hold.

Do that for the whole rear and it will be very noticeable (warmer) in the winter.

I use the same stuff for the windows. Cut to shape.

windows :

I am still very early on in my camper Delica project, but I had really good luck with "Durafoam" for the floor and ceiling. It is closed cell foam with just enough flex to fit the contours of the roof, and the 3/4 inch sheets tuck into and under the side roof beams well. I sealed the seams with foil tape. The foam has plastic on one side and reflective foil on the other. Much warmer already, and not expensive, 4x8 sheet was $12 at Home Depot. This foam is not as resilient as some closed cell foams, so I will not use it as my flooring, there will be a layer overtop and some cabinetry to follow.

I would like to finish the interior as shown on the excellent site for DinoEvo, ( http://dinoevo.de/ ) It is a very inspirational and well done job, the site and the van! However this roof and floor insulation could work with the standard plastic interior panels with a little creativity.

Best Luck to anyone converting their van to a camper.
Adam

Dickson heaters are awesome. We have an Alaskan in our cabin.

I've never seen one in an L300. Good job !

Spmethingove seen done far to often is to fill just the grooves in the floor so the seat sliders will still work. Don't even bother, it does absoloutely nothing, you can't allow for any bridging. I just didn't do anything to mine and I've camped at -14 using a 0 rated sleeping bag and merino wool long underwear. Even wit the window cracked I was nice and toasty.

I am just finishing the second part of my Delica insulation, the pillars and panels. Next will be window covers. My goal is to have a really comfortable, warm interior, suitable for extended winter use. I also want to make maximum use of potential living space, so insulating the cavity inside the panels and pillars was the best route for me. In regards to the original posting, this method would also be compatible with the stock interior plastics and panels.

Of course, access is an issue. I got around this by using a 1.5" and 3" hole saw to drill access holes in the tricky to fill sections. Good accessibility and the ability to visualize the work surface meant that there was no guess work in how the spray foam was being dispersed; I wanted full contact with all metal surface areas to eliminate air pockets and potential moisture traps. The foam is applied in layers, from exterior metal to interior, to minimize voids against the outside sheeting. Once in place and cured, the foam is essentially waterproof, and has an R-value that is very desirable. Removing the interior panels, wires, and tail-lights gives pretty much full, if sometimes awkward access to the areas needing insulation.

The holes end up neat and tidy, once the foam is trimmed. The panel sections could be sanded smooth, but I don't mind the lumpy appearance as everything is going to be under the finishing work, eventually. Panels which used to hold vents and controls will be replaced with flat closed cell foam insulation; more on that later.

Best of luck on your Delica mods;
Adam

I would strongly discourage others from cutting large holes in the primary structure of the vehicle unibody. Based on the photos its too late to do so for AJ.

Rich D has a very good point, and anyone considering a mod like this should think carefully about it. It is a tough decision to make, but my needs for insulation are very high compared to most. My van will never carry passengers in the back, all rear seating has been removed and will not be replaced. I did not drill into the pillars or beams above the driver and passenger area, all roof supports were left in place, and the location of extra stiffeners and thicker potions of metal were noted and avoided. Basically, I am treating my van's rear cabin as though it were structurally a truck box and cap, a space to haul and camp in, but not for use while in motion. Plans are to put a roll bar behind the driver/passenger area where the rear ac/heater duct work used to be.

I should have put the caution Rich did, along with my post.