Welcome to the first instalment of our camper conversion series! In this post, we’ll walk you through the process of removing the ply lining and adding sound deadening to your van. We’ll provide a step-by-step guide along with tips and tricks that will be helpful if you’re planning your own conversion.
What You'll Need
Item List
Tools Used
Hand and electric screwdrivers
Stanley blade
Drill (for stubborn rusted screws)
Measuring tape
Gloves
Step one: Removing the Ply Lining
Removing the ply lining from the van's walls and doors can be done fairly quickly with the help of an electric screwdriver. Along the bottom of the doors, there were a few screws that had to be removed by hand due to lack of space.
Beneath some sections of the ply lining, you’ll find additional layers held in with expansion clips. These clips can be a bit fiddly but are removable by hand.
Some of the doors had a thin felt-like cover glued on them, which could also be removed by hand.
Tip: Be sure to keep all the screws and clips for reinstallation. If the wood is still in good shape, you can reuse it after varnishing, painting, or carpet lining.
Step Two: Installing Sound Deadening Mats
For this step, you will need:
Sound deadening mats
Sharp knife
Gloves (mats are sharp when cut)
We initially ordered 20 sound deadening mats but soon realised that we needed more for adequate coverage. Ultimately, using 40 mats provided generous coverage for our van.
Use a Stanley knife to cut the mats to fit into hard-to-reach areas. Gloves should be worn when applying the mats, as the edges are sharp after being cut.
Step 3: Removing the Ply Floor and Applying Acoustic Thermal Insulation
The final step in soundproofing the van is adding acoustic thermal insulation to the wheel arches to reduce road noise. I'd recommend removing the plywood flooring for easier access and to make way for future work. However, this may not be necessary for all builds.
Removing the Ply Flooring
We found that the screws in the metal trim were only connected to the plywood flooring itself, while the screws in the wood were fastened to the van's floor.
A few of the screws were rusted and required drilling to get out.
The ply floor came out in two sections, making removal easier. There was one section of metal trim that had to be removed to separate the pieces.
Note: Flooring can vary from van to van; some are glued down, which could affect your removal process.
Cutting and Applying Acoustic Thermal Insulation
Items Used:
10mm thermal insulation sound deadening roll
Knife
Tape measure
Cardboard and a pen - to measure shape and copy to insulation
Aluminium foil tape
We started this step by measuring the wheel arches with cardboard to create accurate templates for the insulation. This was useful as the wheel arches are non-uniform shapes.
We then copied these over to the sound deadening insulation to get a good fit without wasting any materials.
After sticking all the sections down we used aluminium foil to mask the gaps, creating a complete reflective surface. This also serves as the first step of insulating the van.
Whats next?
The next step of our campervan conversion will be the bulkhead removal. Stay tuned for future updates; or become a member for email notifications.
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