I am looking for some thick radiator sealing foam for a v-mount install. Online all I can find is 1" thick stuff, whereas 2" would be much better for some of the gaps in have in my install. Looking for something as thick as the stuff on this radiator (ignore the text and arrows):



Any ideas?

 

Roll bar padding would be more durable than the foam. Comes in 36 in. lengths and is easy to cut odd shapes with a razor knife. I use weatherstrip adhesive to attach it to the raditor.

Jack

 

I used that exact same stuff in my ducting. I find it at home depot in the weather sealing section for window A/C units. You may or may not find it in CA... I looked for it when I was down in FL and they did not carry the large foam, however all the stores up in the Northeast where it gets cold have it.

It is made by Frost King.


http://www.google.com/products/catal...MAg#ps-sellers

 

So this stuff can take the heat from a radiator?

 

I have had it pressed directly between my radiator and frame rail for years and it still feels the same as it did when it was new.

 

Same here. I used the same product from Home Depot for radiator ducting. I was doubtful that it would survive but it is holding strong.

 

Regular foam or foam rubber seems to work fine. I've also used shipping foam blocks that I have accumulated, most of it was closed-cell, IIRC. You can easily cut large or heavy foam to whatever size/shape you need on a bandsaw; it works much better than a knife. Fix it with weatherstrip adhesive (Scotch 847) or contact cement; e.g., Gasgachinch. Fast, easy and the results are great. Pipe insulation also works well to take up large gaps; either hard or soft, depending on your requirements.

I've been using these techniques to seal things up for years and it has held up fine.

 

I bought a few sheets of 3" thick closed cell upholstery foam at a local sewing shop. IIRC it's about 24" wide. Comes thicker if you want and IIRC, white, greenish-blue or black. Carve it with an electric knife to shape and a little silicone caulk to hold it in place.

 

I found some of the recommended foam in Home Depot but was not very fond of it. Maximum thickness is 1", which is not really enough for some gaps, and I was not keen on the idea of messing around with adhesive.

After some searching, I found the following 1" wide self-adhesive tape, which expands up to 2" in thickness:



http://www.drillspot.com/products/56...r_sealant_tape

Easy to install and also looks a lot less ghetto than the Home Depot stuff. Much heavier foam than the Home Depot stuff too.

It is $25 shipped for a 12' roll from the above site.

 

Nice find! Bookmarked that page for later .

Dale

 

crlaurence.com has some high quality stuff when it comes to foam tapes and weather stripping, as well as other stuff too...

http://www.crlaurence.com/crlapps/sh...&ModelID=20961
an ex of 1/2 sponge rubber tape

http://www.crlaurence.com/crlapps/sh...&ModelID=20960
an ex of neoprene version.

 

The problem with all the sealing foam on that site (and many others) is that its maximum width is an inch or less, which is not enough for the type of sealing that will be required in typical v-mount installs.

 

This is just like the stuff I've use in the past, and it's held up well... http://www.onlinefabricstore.net/foa...tery-foam-.htm
I suspect it's a bit denser/heavier than the stuff linked above, but it wasn't hard to work with. An electric knife will make nice clean cuts. Depending on specific areas your trying to fill, you can go denser still with the high-density foam which is a light blue color.
Comes in lengths of 54" which should be plenty for continuous strips. If it's visible, I've used simple black shoe polish or rattle-can paint designed for interior plastics. And as I mentioned earlier, a little clear silicone caulk works well in keeping it in place, but easy to remove if needed.

 

Have finally used this in my v-mount install and the stuff is amazing.



It is very easy to work with. Starts out about 1/2" thick and expands up to 2" (over about a day) to fill whatever gap it is in.

Worked really well at filling an almost 4" gap between my radiator and the body (fixing one side to the body and the other to the radiator and letting them meet). See picture #2.

An extra bonus is that it can still be compressed when expanded so hoses/wiring etc. can be run through the gap it fills.

Have been running with it for two to three weeks and the adhesive seems to hold up to radiator temperatures.

 

Subscribed.

 

Here is what I used, I can't find the package again but it can be found at Home Depot/Westlakes like all the other options. It has worked pretty well so far.