My tin foil hat...

So after I flopped my Jeep, I gutted the interior to save a few bucks at the body shop. I spent the day today putting it all back together (that only took a year...)

Well because I live in So Cal, I decided to add some insulation so when I get in my Jeep after work it's not the temperature of a blast furnace.

A while back I bought some EZ Cool insulation. They use it on hot rods to keep the floorboards cool.

It went really quick. I used 3M 77 adhesive to mount it.

While I don't have any real world results I'll give you an observation....

Before installing it, I used my uncalibrated, freakishly strong, blue collar hands to check the temp. While it was about 85 degrees outside today, and the Jeep was in full sun, I could not keep my hand against the bare roof for more than 10 seconds... So I would guess it was about 110-120 degrees. After installing the EZ Cool, I could keep my hand against the material indefinitely. So I would guess it was about 80-90 degrees.

Pretty substantial I'd say. I'll find out tomorrow when I get off work.

Anyway, If you live in the desert you might want to consider this mod.

Next is window tint.


(Don't click the pics, It will just take you to an ad site...)






EZ Cool:

http://www.lobucrod.com/


Oh, and by the way.... I used an awl. It helped me align the the holes in the sunvisor mounts...

I think you need to calibrate those hands. Generally the pain threshold is more like 140-160 degrees in most people.

Seems like a pretty cool mod, literally. They use it on floorboards? I might have to get some and lay it down on mine, with my AC not working I end up baking in the jeep if I am stuck in traffic. Anything that helps is worth a try.

Thanks for sharing - my headliner is out, and the price is right. Hopefully that'll help the new headliner hold on for a long time.

How well will the headliner fit over that? How thick Is the material?

kastein said:

I think you need to calibrate those hands.

Click to expand...

Yeah, it's been a while.

bluejeepkid said:

How well will the headliner fit over that? How thick Is the material?

Click to expand...

It's 3/16" thick. You'll have no problem getting the headliner back in. Believe it or not, there's gobs of room up there. In the rear where the roof meets the hatch there's almost 2" of clearance. (Well on mine anyway... '98 with rear speakers)

I also went back and looked at at the website again and was reminded why I bought this product. They say it reflects almost %98 of radiant heat.

Did you purchase the 4x10? Also this would be great on the floor too. My muffler creates a lot of heat during the summer. With a new kid on the way this is moving up on my list to do.

adrenalinepirate said:

Did you purchase the 4x10? Also this would be great on the floor too. My muffler creates a lot of heat during the summer. With a new kid on the way this is moving up on my list to do.

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Yes. The width of the roof inside the gunwales (for lack of a better term) is 45 inches.

As I recall, I used about 75 inches overall length so there is plenty left over for other projects or if you goof.

my dad used a similar product in his hotrod, we did the whole floor, the roof, inside the door skins, the firewall, everywhere we could reach. by the time the interior was all back in you could shut the doors and it was every bit as quiet in there as a luxury car. it stayed nice and cool with the windows tinted and the insulation everywhere too.

pretty good stuff, it really makes a difference.

I forgot to mention that I did this in steps. No way was I going to try and handle one big sheet by my self.

I measured between the front edge and the first cross rib for the first piece. Then measured between the ribs for the second. And then the third between the last rib and the rear.

Then I went back and covered the ribs separately. As luck would have it the ribs are 3" wide! So I used the remnant pieces cut from the 48" wide material.

I used plastic drop cloth and masking tape to cover everything in the Jeep that I didn't want sticky and sprayed the inside of the roof. I did that in sections too.

When I did the ribs I just sprayed the insulation and applied them.

Also, I had to make a cut out where the bracket is for the dome light. After I got the first sheet glued up I glued the cut out piece back into place.

Hmm this sounds pretty great. I don't really car to insulate my Xj, but for my classic car it could make the ride a lot more pleasant!

GrimmJeeper said:

my dad used a similar product in his hotrod, ...

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Yep. They state on their website that this stuff is good for sound absorption too.

I would say it is, but then again, I've been driving around without a headliner for the past year.

I was doing this to make my rig cooler in the summer as it's my daily driver. Anything else is icing on the cake...

We have an IR temp sensor here somewhere at work. If I can get it, I'll get some readings after work today.

Okay, got some real world numbers yesterday with an IR temp gun.

Took three readings each and averaged.

Outside on the roof top I got 124 degrees.

Inside on the headliner I got 102 degrees.

And the ambient temp of the interior was right at about 101.

I'd say it was worth the effort.

Probably be good to put some of that stuff underneath the hood as well. In my experience, even after driving around in below freezing temps, the hood will still be too hot to sit on comfortably for more than a few seconds.

Thanks for the info.

Hey Mudbutt - any follow-up thoughts on it? My 4x10 roll and headliner adhesive arrived today... Wanted to see if you still like the results before I install it.