What do you think? Input wanted.

[crazycal]

I have 2 items I am considering for my bus. The first one is this electric marine water heater that has a heat exchanger hat can be hooked up to the engine. It will give me hot water while I'm driving. It also has a 1400 watt element that runs off 120v. The unit is brand new and priced at $299 plus tax. OTD price would be about $325.

http://www.amazon.com/Atwood-EHM-11-...d+water+heater

The second is something that I saw at Tractor Supply. They have 4x6 rubber stall mats that are 3/4" thick. I think this would be good for the floor around the driver seat for sound proofing and insulation from the heat. Then I though it might work well for the whole floor. What say you?

http://www.tractorsupply.com/rubber-...-6-ft--2219003

[somewhereinusa]

I have that water heater, although I haven't gotten it plumbed in yet. I've used those stall mats for lots of things, I plan on using one at least on the first step inside the entrance door.

[sdwarf36]

I had 1/2" stall mat on the floor in the back of my cube van. Took all the abuse you could throw at it for 20 years. Things dont slide on it well. (good thing till you try to drag a fridge-engine block-etc across it. ) Non slip even in the wet-and if you do spill oil on it, a quick shot of carb cleaner cleans it up np. Only bitch is its tough to cut.

[crazycal]

Originally Posted by somewhereinusa

I have that water heater, although I haven't gotten it plumbed in yet. I've used those stall mats for lots of things, I plan on using one at least on the first step inside the entrance door.

Are you using a different water heater right now?

[crazycal]

Originally Posted by sdwarf36

I had 1/2" stall mat on the floor in the back of my cube van. Took all the abuse you could throw at it for 20 years. Things dont slide on it well. (good thing till you try to drag a fridge-engine block-etc across it. ) Non slip even in the wet-and if you do spill oil on it, a quick shot of carb cleaner cleans it up np. Only bitch is its tough to cut.

Do you think it would cut down the noise from the engine?

[crazycal]

I just read this review. This lunatic used it for his house. I love it. Maybe I'll do the whole bus.



"Put it in the house!
April 28, 2011

My wife and I covered the floors in our living room, formal dining room, kitchen, dining area and master bedroom with these mats. After tearing out carpet and tile, we cut to the mats to fit. We love it.
We used some black sealant on the borders to give a nicer finish, but the weight of the mats allowed us to avoid using anything on the backing to hold the mats in place.
It's easy on your feet when you're working in the kitchen. It allows us to get down on the floor and play with the kids and the dogs. It cleans up easily and looks high-tech, which fits with our decor.
Some of our friends think we're crazy, but a few have considered doing the same.
The Tractor Supply folks were great at helping us load, although they got really curious about how big our horse barn was before they finally asked us why we were buying so many mats."

[ol trunt]

CC, Those mats are good for sound control and are like what I used around my genny box. Because they generally don't have "trapped air" they are not good for thermal insulation other than that they are thick and heavy and take a while to heat up (or cool down). Jack

[crazycal]

Originally Posted by ol trunt

CC, Those mats are good for sound control and are like what I used around my genny box. Because they generally don't have "trapped air" they are not good for thermal insulation other than that they are thick and heavy and take a while to heat up (or cool down). Jack

So you think they wouldn't be good for the driver area?

[somewhereinusa]

Are you using a different water heater right now?

No, I just haven't gotten that far yet.

[ol trunt]

CC, They are great for noise control but only fair to poor for heat control.

Dig around under the floor mats of a SUV (over the muffler area) at some pull-a-part operation and take out the white foil lined padding for heat control. Being an old guy, I lament the loss of asbestos, cough, cough. Jack

[sdwarf36]

The stuff I had had ribs in in-dunno how fun it would be to roll around with the kids on it.

[crazycal]

What kids?

[sdwarf36]

""It's easy on your feet when you're working in the kitchen. It allows us to get down on the floor and play with the kids and the dogs. It cleans up easily and looks high-tech, which fits with our decor.""

[crazycal]

Oh, those kids.

[Tyania]

Having a similar idea with the flooring... Using rolled rubber gym or weight room flooring to use for the bus floor or sub floor straight on the metal floor.

How did this work out if you did it?

My bus with be in the tropics and U.S. Bound only for summer and fall so I dont need much in the way of insulation, just enough to take the cold metal bite off and give a tiny bit of cushion.

Any thoughts?

[BlackJohn]

About 40 years ago my bro-in-law rode on a bus for school. In summer holidays the driver removed the seats and his hogs rode there to market. They had the rubber stall mats and not one complained of sore feet.
In fact they squealed with delight!

John