Where I stash my Rust! All jokes aside, I have discovered, to my horror, how serious a topic this is. Had no idea our campers could rust as readily from the inside out as they do from outside in - my rust might just meet in the middle if I don’t take precautions. So. From what i’ve read, a good idea is to spray Waxoyl or Dinitrol in to cavities during the summer. In advance of that i’m formulating a plan to access mine and not make a mess...there seem to be a lot! (The only one I’ve found to be quite bad is above the rear hatch where it connects to the roof) Having done a test with a bottle pretending to be one of the above, it seems quite a few access points at different heights and angles are required. There are also an extraordinary number of holes (purposeful ones) that I have no clue what they are for...something I’ve always meant to ask about at a Techenders but some other drama has taken priority. What I intend to do is: •Put Capping Grommets on unidentified holes...those that are visible can be used as points-of-squirt •Where there are no such points-of-squirt I’ll put Rivnuts at various places with a plastic bolt in them. To get the Dinitrol nozzle in they have to be m5. That’s an m7 hole Some places there will be/already are holes with bolts or screws in e.g. mosquito nets at rear and sliding door...panel cards etc. Any hole I drill, from now on, will be painted. What are folk’s thoughts on the above so far? I suppose my main concern is putting so many holes in that I structurally destroy the van in an attempt to save it! Another question is, are there any cavities that I really shouldn’t be putting Dinitrol in? Oh, I’ll also tuck dehumidifying bags in various places. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
My Dynax 50 cans have extra long hose with a diffuser at the end that stops the direct spray pattern.
From the above pics you have a good plan, you cant protect it enough, you can do this job from now on wards, obviously if your doing it outside then leave it. But spray it everywhere. Rust come from the inside out ,so any box section , out riggers,sill,doors ,behind the kick panels etc. I have to leave my VW in the garage september to april. bloody salt haha
They definitely rust from the inside out. Many factory holes will have a use for allowing water to escape especially at the bottom of doors for example. It’s normal for water to enter the doors. I think Ive successfully waxed mine without drilling any more holes but I did have access to a ramp. With the best will in the world they will rust in time so I try and get my head around that fact and enjoy it for what it is.
Remember if it needs welding do it before cavity waxing as it burns like a roman candle. It also reacts with paint if applied beforehand so get any painting done before too.
I always cringe when I see people painting the underneath of their bus to a shiny finish - not always going for the blast it with cavity wax using a compressor on the inside of things. It still rots, and the brilliant paint job ensures trapped water really spreads too...
The area pointed to by arrow 14 should have a couple of plastic stoppers just above the tyre on the outside of the wheel arch on a Late Bay, at least there were in October 1973. So you can get between the body skin and wheel arch .
Translation from Swedish on my Galaxy S10..chopped out all the digits by hand.. DINITROL treatment according to ML-METODEN VOLKSWAGEN Bus / Van -68 (Single bottom) Existing holes Existing holes like pluggos Hole being drilled Hole being drilled and plugged AB lIKAMIN Special company for rudder protection
Great tips and advice guys. Thanks. So perhaps not best to apply near the rear of the fridge or engine bay then. I’ve looked up the Dynax 50 - sounds good. This is the sort of area where dehumidifier bags can go: My boxing out of that area will allow for reasonably easy access, as they require drying out in sunlight every few months. Perhaps I should put the shiny tin of Rust-oleum paint away that I was going to do the wheel arches in! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I wouldnt be using chemical dehumidifiers long term... Once the dessicant is used up it becomes bags of hydrated calcium chloride. Or road salt in other words. Leave it out mate!!! Wax will just penetrate better if its a bit warm. Paint burns pretty well too, so I wouldnt be scared of wax except where it gets so hot its pointless .. tinware and maybe the bottom of the rear valance.
The dehumidifier bags I intend to use are filled with bamboo charcoal, so in theory that should be ok Apparently all they do is absorb all manor of things, contain it and then periodically need drying out. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Somehow I just have to question whether it has to be bamboo charcoal.. ..maybe crushing and baking local UK produced charcoal in the oven then putting that into fabric bags might be just as effective..
Possibly being that it is a rapid growing, highly flexible grass rather than dense wood it is more porous. I don’t really know. Sustainable source so a good eco choice too. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Coppiced trees making charcoal is also pretty sustainable. I dont think there will be much in it between birch or beech and bamboo.. And local so you arent paying for the fuel that brought it from China. Oh well its going in a 20ish mpg / 600g CO2/km bus so green thoughts are a bit spurious... Main thing is making sure its properly painted and you dont do what I did and end up with a slow roof leak keeping the inside of the bus damp , the Flotex carpet seems to have kept the water above it, but my Decathlon chipboard camping table has swollen up where it was on the floor. And every time you camp the inside gets soaked in condensation.
