At Vanlife Conversions we take great pride in our method of building insulated walls. Although it sits beneath the surface, the insulation plays a key role in transforming your van into a home on wheels. The PIR boards offer unrivalled insulating properties and when combined with foil tape, forms an essential vapour barrier. This how-to guide will take you through our 6 step method so you can do it too.
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
•Drill
/ impact driver •Jigsaw •Circular Saw (not essential) •Stanley / Crafts Knife •1m Steel Rule •Trim Router •“V-groove” Router Bit •Straight Edge / Fence •G-Clamps
MATERIALS REQUIRED
•5 x 4.2m Roof Battens (25mm x 50mm)
•3 x 25mm, 3 x 50mm thick Insulation boards (Celotex, Kingspan…)
•Soft Wool insulation (for voids)
•5 x sheets of 9mm plywood
•2 x rolls of foil tape
•40mm Self-Tapping Screws
•Sikaflex 221 adhesive
•10 Ltr white emulsion paint
•5 Ltr egg white acrylic paint
1. ATTACH THE BATTENS
Glue and screw the roof battens to the horizontal ribs of the van at floor, waist and shoulder height.
2. TIME TO SHAPE
Use a Stanley knife to shape 50mm insulation boards to fill in panel voids (base layer).
3. MEASURE TO THE MM
Friction fit 25mm insulation boards over the top of the base layer. Wedging it in place between the horizontal battens.
4. IT’S VAPOUR BARRIER TIME
Foil tape the seams to create a vapour barrier to stop condensation. Ensure all gaps are sealed!
5. CREATE A PANELLED LOOK
Use a “V groove” router bit to create vertical grooves in the ply. Half-groove the edge of each board to hide the join.
6. SHAPE THE WOOD & PAINT
Cut-out boxes in the plywood using a drill and jigsaw. Apply white emulsion and finish with eggshell acrylic paint.
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