Buzzkil Body Insulation Installation
SEALING THE DEAL: BUZZKIL BODY INSULATION INSTALLATION
I have some very fond and not-so-fondmemories of my first '57 hardtop "hot rod". One that sticks in my mind was when I volunteered to transport my mother to the grocery store (less than a mile away) in it I was so proud that this car actually ran and drove, had seats and a legal license plate! Less than ¼ mile from our house, mother said "That's it! Let me out, now!" Devastated that she was not enjoying the ride, I asked why she wantedout. "This car is too hot, too noisy and it smells bad!" was the reply. No carpet, no firewall pad, no floor insulation - that didn't bother me at all. That was then. Now, I think I have turned in to my mother because I won't put up with all of that heat, noise and smell nonsense either! Not many of us will.
This article will outline how simple and inexpensive it is to greatly reduce some of that heat and noise by installing some new BuzzKil Body lnsualtion.
You'll need to have a pair of heavy-duty scissors or a box knife to cut the insulation material. You'll also have to have clean, dust and dirt-free inner body surfaces for the self-adhesive insulation to adhere properly.
We are starting with a brand-new Real Deal Steel '57 convertible bodY, so remnants of old sound deadener is not an issue. We had a bit of colorsandign and compoudndust which wiped up easliy with some Purple Power. Our car has no seats or other interior items installed yet, however, BuzzKil can be installed with the front seat still installe.dThe rear seat should always be removed On original cars, just be sure the inner surfaces are clean. If you are unable to achieve a perfectly clean, smooth surface - dont' despari. For best adhesion on a rougher surface, install using some57-2536321- 3M Spray Super Trim Adhesive to supplement the adhesvi e on the BuzzKil.
We continued with the toeboard portion of the firewall and the rest of the main floor You don't need to install BuzzKil on the inside face of the firewall - your firewall pad will be sufficient there. You will notice that we do not cover every square inch of the floor with BuzzKil. Leaving small gaps along the edges is fine and will speed up installation time. If you wish to take more time, you can cut the material to the exact shape and fit the pieces like a puzzle to eliminate any and all gaps. The additional heat and sound deadening with a precise fit will be minimal over the gap-fit method.
Now we will install BuzzKil inside the door skins and quarters. We have seen other installers apply sound-deadening material to the actual inner door and quarter structure surfaces instead of inside the skins. This is unnecessary, wasteful and will cause grief when attempting to install the inner door panels! We find it works better to place the insulation inside the door or quarter with the adhesive release liner still in place. That allows you to roll your cut-piece up and stuff it in the access hole, then unroll inside the cavity. You can then remove the liner and stick.
These images show our completed floor installatio.nBuzzKil, unlike other products, has a dull gray painted surface that will not show like the bright aluminum finish products if there is an area not fully covered by the carpet or interior panels. You can even paint right over BuzzKil with your interior color or primer if you wish to hide it even more.
Since our installation is in a convertible, we did not have to insulate the package tray or underside of the top/roof skin. If you are applying BuzzKil to the underside of your roof, proper adhesion is especially important. You don't want the insulation coming loose after the headliner is instalel d. We recommend pulling the car out into the sun after the top is insulated and let it sit for 3-4 hours to heat up. That way you'll know for sure you have it stuck down well!
BuzzKil - How much do you need?
1 roll for a complete floor pan
1 roll for the complete trunk floor or cargo floor and walls 1 roll for the top skin
Or, tor complete cars:
2 rolls tor convertibles
3 rolls tor coupes and sedans
4 rolls for station wagon, sedan delivery & Nomads