CaveVan Forum
VW T4 "Eurovans" => Interior! => Topic started by: rcowan on August 12, 2015, 12:47:42 pm
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Well, my heater is blowing foam out the vents. I've seen a couple "how to" pages online to fix this problem. This one is probably the best: http://1705.net/archives/1085. I believe the person who wrote it up is even on here. I was going to do a basic copy/paste on our van. I started by ordering up the foam from McMaster Carr but when I saw the total I hesitated. A little over $200 in FOAM!
I'm looking for a little feedback from those that have been there/done that. Some of the other write ups suggest an aluminum tape. How's that holding up? How about the originator of the 1705 post, how's that foam holding up? I don't mind paying if that's the best option. I just want to look at my options first. If there is a cheaper, quality way to do it, I'm all ears. However, I rather pay $200, than do it again next year. ;D
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I went through foam "sticker shock", as well - here was my reasoning (keeping in mind I am NOT a very reasonable guy! :) )
- Never wanted to do this again
- Did not want it to fail is extreme temps (desert travel)
- Did not want it to "whistle" (AKA not seal well)
- Wanted it to be easy to install
Did I get all 4 points? YEP!! Only one I have not confirmed is the extreme temp point, but if you look at the specs on the foam - OMG!!!
If you have ANY questions about the project, do not hesitate to ask - the post on my blog was NOT designed to be all the information I lgeaned from this job - just the highlights.
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Thank you for the reply David. I'm glad to hear it is still working well for you. That is one strong vote for paying a lot of money for..... foam. Still can't believe it. ;D Did you go with soft, firm, extra firm foam?
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Thanks for pointing out that the part numbers I listed on my post required you to select the firmness. I updated my post, and the answer is "soft" !
Hey - for $200 you also get the adhesive! ;D
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Any other experiences?
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I had the opposite experience as you did. My heat wouldn't work in the winter. When I took the dash off the blend box looked just like the blend box in the link that you posted. I never considered using foam to cover up the holes. I did't want to do this fix again, and I thought if foam didn't work the first time why use it again. Instead I used adhesive metal tape to cover the holes, and put adhesive foam around the outside of the flaps to ensure a seal; something like this: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Frost-King-E-O-3-8-in-x-17-ft-Closed-Cell-Weather-Seal-Tape-V443H/100205904
I didn't remove the blend box like the guy in the link did. I probably would have had to if my wife wasn't around. She's got a lot skinnier arms than I do, so it was much easier for her to reach down inside and put the metal tape were it needed to go.
After doing this fix the heat and A/C have been working great, no more foam blowing out of the vents. All in all I did this over a couple of days. I'm not a mechanic by any means, but I can figure things out. I'll look and see if I have any pictures of the project.