INSULATION
STEP 5
TEMPERATURE & NOISE REGULATION
It was an easy choice for us when deciding which insulation to use for our van conversion. We were mainly drawn to the eco friendly and non-toxic features of sheep’s wool. That being said, it’s not necessarily the right answer for everyone. Below are factors to consider when choosing your insulation. But let’s start covering the basics.
There are 3 types of heat transfer: radiation, conduction, and convection.
RADIATION: is heat transferred through electromagnetic waves. The biggest source of radiation heat is from the Sun. The number of windows you have will impact your insulation. It’s imperative you have reflective window coverings to keep the heat out during the summer and cold temps out during the winter.
CONDUCTION: is heat transferred through solid surfaces. When your van is sitting out in the snow or in the sun for long periods of time it will either warm or cool the outside of the van. The van’s surface will in turn affect the temperature inside the van. The best way to prevent this is by insulating the walls and ceiling of your van.
CONVECTION: is how heat moves through a liquid or gas. This is the air inside of your van. Heat rises so having durable insulation in your ceiling will keep the heat inside your van during winter. And when it’s hot you can release the heat through a ceiling ventilation fan.
R-VALUE: is a measure of insulation's ability to resist heat traveling through it. The higher the R-Value the better the thermal performance of the insulation. This is one of the main things you’ll want to look at when choosing your insulation however not the only thing.
COST: Everyones’ van builds run with different budgets and luckily there are reliable insulation sources in all price ranges. You’ll want to choose material that is within your budget, temperature regulating efficient and friendly to your heath.
VIBRATION: If you plan on driving in your tiny home on wheels, you won’t want to skip noise insulation. Driving causes tons of vibration inside your van. “Noise deadening” material can be used to alleviate these rattles. And you’ll want to make sure your insulation of choice can handle the vibration inside your van.
MOISTURE CONTROL: You’ll want to confirm the insulation you choose has properties resistant to moisture, mold and mildew to avoid a huge headache and costly repair of water damage or mold in the future. You do not want insulation that absorbs water like cotton or denim batting.
NON-TOXIC & ECO FRIENDLY: If you are keen on only purchasing sustainable, eco friendly insulation, there are options for you as well as if you don’t want harmful gases or microscopic particles inside the walls of your van.
AREAS NEEDED TO INSULATE: You’ll need to thoroughly insulate your van’s ceiling, walls, floors, windows, and small holes and cracks. Because each area is different expect to purchase multiple types of insulation to accommodate your van’s specific structure.
LIFESTYLE: Will you be traveling in below freezing temperatures? This may impact how many windows you want in your van. The more windows, the harder it is to keep your van warm throughout the winter.
OUR VAN INSULATION MATERIALS:
STEP 1 : Noise
STEP 2 : Floor
1/2in Rigid Polyiso Foam Board & Glue
STEP 3: Walls & Ceiling
STEP 4: Holes, Cracks & Small Areas
STEP 5: Windows
If you’d like to insulate with Havelock Wool be sure to use our link:
We’ve curated a list commonly used insulation materials to help you get started.
KILMAT - SOUND DEADENING
After throughly cleaning your empty van, the first thing you’ll want to seriously consider is applying a sound deadening material to your van. It’s job is to dampen rattles and vibrations while driving which keeps your home more quiet and feeling calm and comfortable. Some insulation materials have some sound deadening properties to them but if you apply an initial layer of sound deadening material you’ll be taking an extra step to assure your van will be nice and quiet while living on the road. We are so happy we installed this.
R-Value Per Inch: 6.5
Cost/sqft: $0.60
Max Temp: 270F
Thickness: 0.92 inch
Absorbs Water: No
Where to Buy: Home Depot or other main hardware stores.
We used this material to insulate our floors however it can be used to insulate the walls and ceiling as well. This is a rigid foam board insulation that has the highest R-value per inch (R-6) of any common insulation. It’s also affordable and easy to work with. It is completely non toxic and more environmentally friendly than styrofoam products (EPS & XPS). When applying this type of insulation you can adhere and fill in cracks with Great Stuff Gaps & Cracks. There are different sizes with this foam board. We only used 1/2in on the floors to factor in head room for Sunny to be able to stand upright as he is quite tall. If you can comfortably stand inside the van using 1-2in polyiso board then you will be better off. If you’d like extra insulation when using Polyiso board you can add Reflectix on top of it, just be sure to apply it properly and not put in on any metal frame as it will completely defeat the purpose.
*Please do more research as to how to apply Relectix properly if you plan on using it.
SPRAY CLOSED CELL POLYURETHANE
R-Value Per Inch: 6.5
Cost/sqft: $1.80
Max Temp: 270F
Thickness: 0.92 inch
Absorbs Water: No
Where to Buy: Sprayfoamkit.com or
most hardware stores
This high R-value insulation is impermeable to water vapor and reduces the changes of mold, yet it’s one of the most expensive insulation options as it can run around $400 to DIY. Another downside is it’s not the easiest to work with and if not installed correctly, you can distort the van or mistakenly fill the entire van without keeping room to run wires. If you go this path it may be worth hiring someone with experience doing vans otherwise if you DIY be sure to do tons of research before.
FIBERGLASS BATTS
R-Value Per Inch: 3.7
Cost/sqft: $0.03
Max Temp: 1000F
Thickness: 3.5 inch
Absorbs Water: Yes
Where to Buy:
Most main hardware stores
This is one of the most common materials used when insulating houses. However the main upside is the low cost. Some negative side effects when using this material is that it soaks up moisture and is toxic. It’s not the easiest to work with as it’s imperative to wear protective gear during installation to avoid itchy skin and breathing in the toxic fibers. Micro fibers can also get into the air while driving
3M THINSULATE
R-Value Per Inch: 3.2
Cost/sqft: $2.13
Max Temp: 200F
Thickness: 1.8 inch
Absorbs Water: No
Where to Buy: Amazon
This non water absorbing product is flexible and non toxic. It also has sound deadening properties within it. It’s easy to work with as you simply glue it up with spray adhesive. It’s not as high in R value so expect to add extra thickness with foam board. Downside, is it’s on the expensive side.
R-Value Per Inch: 3.6
Cost/sqft: $1.55
Max Temp: 1100F
Thickness: 2 inch
Absorbs Water: No
Where to Buy: Havelock Wool
This sustainable and non toxic features of sheep’s wool is it’s main appeal. On top of that, it insulates well and is super easy to work with. Simply rip it with your hands, no safety gear needed. It has some moisture management and sound deadening properties. It helps purify the air in the van so you can sleep sound at night knowing no toxic chemicals will get inside of your home.
HOLES, CRACKS & SMALL AREAS
R-Value Per Inch: 6
Cost/bottle: $15-20
Try Gaps & Cracks. This product is easy to work with and will expand to fill, seal and insulate any small space. It’s weather resistant and keeps out moisture, condensation and allergens. You’ll want to buy more of these than you think as it runs out quickly, filling all the small spaces inside your van. One you fill a space it will expand considerably and once fully dry you will need a flat cutting tool to cut off the excess. We ended up going through 8 bottles of these so be sure to buy more than you think to save you many trips to the hardware store.
WINDOW COVERINGS
R-Value Per Inch: 4.4
Cost/sqft: $0.39
Where to Buy: Most main hardware shops
Try Reflectix & other radiant barriers like EZ-Cool to DIY window covers! It’s very effective at reflecting radiant heat, but this goes out the window as soon as you put something on top of it so no need to cover your whole van in this. If you’re on a tighter budget, this is the material you can buy to DIY window covers throughout the van. Simply trace and cut out the shapes of your windows, glue strong magnet around the corners to stick to the metal frame of the van. You can add fabric to one side if you’d like to and it’s black out so you can stealth park!
We ended up purchasing some pre-made window covers from these three sources and have been very happy with them!
* We would suggest avoiding using Polystyrene (Styrofoam) which includes EPS expanded polystyrene and XPS extruded polystyrene foam. Their max temp is only 165 F making it quicker to be flammable and is toxic and uneconomical.