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Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

I parked my Grand Villa at dry storage over the last week, so rodent repellers (110vac) were off. Rodents entered from underneath the engine compartment and chewed up the batting above and on the sides of the compartment. I'm seeking current advice on how to address this.

Is the latest consensus to use the marine heat shield products as set forth here in the archive?

Also, and comments on how to dal with the old heat/noise shield material would be welcome.

Thanks!
1989 Foretravel U300 Grand Villa
Build #3410

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #1 –
Quote from: RandallBrink –
I parked my Grand Villa at dry storage over the last week, so rodent repellers (110vac) were off. Rodents entered from underneath the engine compartment and chewed up the batting above and on the sides of the compartment. I'm seeking current advice on how to address this.

Is the latest consensus to use the marine heat shield products as set forth here in the archive?

Also, and comments on how to dal with the old heat/noise shield material would be welcome.

Thanks!
Rodents like things like our HDMI cable and toilet paper but have never touched the Hardie Backerboard in the engine compartment or fridge and never will. I can't imagine anything better.

Get rid of what you have and cover a layer of R19 fiberglass with Hardie Board.

Pierce
Pierce and Gaylie Stewart
'93 U300/36 WTBI
Detroit 6V-92TA Jake
1140 watts on the roof
SBFD (ret)

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #2 –
Hardie Board. Never heard of it, but it sounds like you have had success with it. I'll find some.
It looks like the great joy of this project is going to be getting the old, dirty padding off and out. It looks like a fiberglas batting of so e kind,

Thanks, Pierce!

P.S I realized what the Hardie product was as soon as I looked it up. Do you put that over anything?
1989 Foretravel U300 Grand Villa
Build #3410

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #3 –
Quote from: RandallBrink –
Hardie Board. Never heard of it, but it sounds like you have had success with it. I'll find some.
It looks like the great joy of this project is going to be getting the old, dirty padding off and out. It looks like a Fiberglas batting of so e kind,
Thanks, Pierce!
P.S I realized what the Hardie product was as soon as I looked it up. Do you put that over anything?
Here is the photo album link to all the installation photos as well as showing what a fire risk the OEM installation is.
U300 Engine Compartment Fire Insulation - Google Photos

As a retired firefighter, I was always worried about fridge and engine compartment fires plus, nothing worse stopping for the night with a hot engine wanting to share the warmth with you.

You need about 3 sheets of the Hardie board. A little learning curve for cutting, trimming, etc. but you don't need a saw, only a box cutter to score, bend and break it. The edges have to be smoothed with a body file.

So, I removed ALL the old insulation, bought longer stainless screws and larger washers and then PARTIALLY compressed R-19 Fiberglass insulation under the Hardie Board. I painted the board with latex white so I could keep it clean.

If you have a Detroit with the turbo on top, I would recommend a turbo blanket on the turbo as there in not much clearance stock and even less with the Hardie board on the ceiling. Or, a thin stainless plate with a quarter inch space between the stainless and the Hardie right over the turbo.

You have probably seen the YouTube videos of the blowtorch, water, etc test of the Hardie board. What most people don't realize is Fiberglas insulation will not burn as it's made from sand and has no petroleum products of any kind in it. I can't think of much else that will pass the blowtorch test without conducting heat through it.

The bedroom is now cooler, less noise gets through and the engine compartment is easier to keep clean. Replace the block heater receptacle with a 20 amp metal box and plug while you are at it. This is a several day job and requires lots of body flexibility to drill and set the screws. You paint and pre-drill the holes first.

The fridge compartment is much more important compared to the engine compartment. The Hardie board if installed right, makes a fridge fire that spreads to the coach just about impossible. PM for photos of this too.

Not to say this will stop a fire in the engine compartment as the flames may go back to where the burnable stuff is but it will give you more time to stop and get everyone out and perhaps if lucky, to fight the fire with an extinguisher or two.

Pierce
Pierce and Gaylie Stewart
'93 U300/36 WTBI
Detroit 6V-92TA Jake
1140 watts on the roof
SBFD (ret)

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #4 –
Pierce, when I select the link for the " ...U300 Engine Compartment..." I see only the title, but no text or illustrations.
1989 Foretravel U300 Grand Villa
Build #3410

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #5 –
Quote from: RandallBrink –
Pierce, when I select the link for the " ...U300 Engine Compartment..." I see only the title, but no text or illustrations.
Others have said the same. I downloaded them off Google Photos and attached them.

Pierce
Pierce and Gaylie Stewart
'93 U300/36 WTBI
Detroit 6V-92TA Jake
1140 watts on the roof
SBFD (ret)

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #6 –
Wow. Very, very nice. It's odd—and a shame—that Fore didn't use a firm, fireproof installation like this to begin with.

Yours, in the "before" pictures looks a bit worse than mine, although mine also had material hanging down onto the turbo, or dropped there by filum rodentia. I would love to figure out a way to do this; am not set up right now to be able to do it myself, but now thinking of a temporary solution for the top engine cover until I can get into the shop in the Fall. I wouldn't operate mine the way it is with that cotton batting coming loose above the turbocharger!
1989 Foretravel U300 Grand Villa
Build #3410

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #7 –
Our OEM insulation was a petro black flexible foam that is very flammable. You can see with just plywood, how the heat and noise get through. It's not an easy installation as you need support to work at the difficult angles. I blew a umbilical hernia and had to head straight to the hospital. That really hurt.

Generator compartment is the same foul stuff.

Pierce
Pierce and Gaylie Stewart
'93 U300/36 WTBI
Detroit 6V-92TA Jake
1140 watts on the roof
SBFD (ret)

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #8 –
I found, before you suggested Hardie products, two types of products that many likely use, the marine "heat shield" sheets, and various fire retardant shield. I'm interested in both—but fire retardant/proofing is by far my greatest concern.

The sound-deadening products don't mention whether or not they are fireproof. The fireproof ones don't seem to dampen sound.
1989 Foretravel U300 Grand Villa
Build #3410

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #9 –
See if you can find a video for the fire restive qualities of the others. Yes, fire was my #1 requirement and with the Fiberglas under it, it keeps the noise and heat at bay. The test is to take a propane or mapp gas torch and put it right on the material for a couple of minutes and see how it does. A flame from wood or anything else is no substitute for a blow torch test.

The fridge is not a as hard to protect as the flame is not that intense and not for very long. It's only a half day job to do right.

Pierce
Pierce and Gaylie Stewart
'93 U300/36 WTBI
Detroit 6V-92TA Jake
1140 watts on the roof
SBFD (ret)
 

Re: Latest on Engine Compartment Shielding

Reply #10 –
Once I'm back at the shop, doing both jobs will be no problem; it will likely take me a lot longer, because I don't have the contortion ability to work in the engine bay like I used to in my yacht days. But once it's there, I can take all winter if necessary.

In the meantime, I think I'm going to remove the urgent problem of the old engine ceiling and replace that with a temporary mat that is fireproof. When summer ends here in Oct., I'll return to the shop.
1989 Foretravel U300 Grand Villa
Build #3410