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Old 12-16-2019, 11:51 PM   #1
Skoolie
 
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Black tar removal from inside walls and ceiling

I am currently raising the roof of my 2000 Bluebird RE. I plan to spray foam, my question(s) are...
1 - Do I need to remove the black tar from the inside that appears to be a form of sound deadening / insulation adhesive before I can spray foam?
2 - If yes, how do I remove it? I have tried a paint scraper (useless), an oscillating saw with scraper blade (doesn't work), sawzall with scraper blade (not working), grinder with 3 different types of wire wheels (works somewhat but makes a horrible sticky mess).
Thanks for any help!

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Old 12-16-2019, 11:56 PM   #2
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If it was mine I would leave it alone.
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Old 12-17-2019, 06:32 AM   #3
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Originally Posted by o1marc View Post
If it was mine I would leave it alone.
Leave it alone how? Leave the tar and spray over it or leave it alone like don't mess with the factory insulation and tar at all?
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Old 12-17-2019, 06:57 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bridg73988 View Post
I am currently raising the roof of my 2000 Bluebird RE. I plan to spray foam, my question(s) are...
1 - Do I need to remove the black tar from the inside that appears to be a form of sound deadening / insulation adhesive before I can spray foam?
2 - If yes, how do I remove it? I have tried a paint scraper (useless), an oscillating saw with scraper blade (doesn't work), sawzall with scraper blade (not working), grinder with 3 different types of wire wheels (works somewhat but makes a horrible sticky mess).
Thanks for any help!
I had to remove mine. Took a LOT of work. Mine was causing moisture to get trapped between it and the steel.


Easiest was to carefully use aircraft stripper.
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Old 12-17-2019, 09:36 AM   #5
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Originally Posted by EastCoastCB View Post
I had to remove mine. Took a LOT of work. Mine was causing moisture to get trapped between it and the steel.


Easiest was to carefully use aircraft stripper.
That ceiling looks like my floor! Bleh!
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Old 12-17-2019, 09:43 AM   #6
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i was so glad i pulled the ceiling!
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Old 12-17-2019, 09:57 AM   #7
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I removed the tar off of my ceiling and walls. It was a miserable job but now that it's done I'm glad I did it. Mine was especially thick up to 1/4 inch in places and sticky when it was hot. Some people only have a light spray that is not tacky.

Ted
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Old 12-17-2019, 10:07 AM   #8
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i was so glad i pulled the ceiling!
Was this on your FS65?
I'm pretty sure I have nothing up there -- no insulation, no tar.
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Old 12-17-2019, 10:15 AM   #9
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naw, it was on a 1992 Ward Senator. Same bus as an Amtran Genesis.

Not planning to pull my steel headliner but my bus is just a toy for fun on weekends at most.
May do it eventually but I'm feeling lazy about it. Glad its not perforated. I just like the look of the plain steel better and my bus is already real quiet.
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Old 12-17-2019, 10:56 AM   #10
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I removed the tar from mine and it was a miserable job but now that it's done I'm glad I did it. Mine was almost 1/4 inch thick in places and sticky when it was hot. That caused me concern for sprayfoam adhering to it. Other people have buses where it more of thin overspray and not sticky. I think that would be OK to foam over.

Ted
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Old 12-17-2019, 12:22 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by bridg73988 View Post
Leave it alone how? Leave the tar and spray over it or leave it alone like don't mess with the factory insulation and tar at all?
I removed the insulation, but saw no issue with leaving the "adhesive" alone. It doesn't look like it has deteriorated at all in the last 20 years, so spraying foam over it would not be an issue for me, Cleaning it off would be a major pain for little gain if any.
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Old 12-17-2019, 12:58 PM   #12
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Unfortunately the biggest problem is probably that you're trying to do it at the wrong time of year. July is much better than (nearly) January: the tar stuff removes much easier when it is warm and soft.

Soften it with a hot air gun and then use the powered or manual scrapers to remove the bulk. There'll be some residue left behind; it can be wiped away with a solvent. I like VM&P Naphtha for this because it's very slow drying.

I haven't tried ECCB's aircraft stripper method. Note that it isn't the same stuff it used to be. My paint supplier told me that the methylene chloride based formula couldn't be sold after August (I think?) of last year.
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Old 12-17-2019, 01:26 PM   #13
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You guys are glutons for punishment. It seems to me that the "tar" should make a good sealer, we put it on our concrete walls to keep water from penetrating. I see one case where it is claimed it traps water, sounds highly unusual. Unless I knew of a negative reaction with the foam that has been proven I would not subject myself to that torture, just saying. It's a process I doubt will make a difference and no one will ever know if it was done or not, other than that bad memory of the job. There's enough of those jobs as it is.
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Old 12-17-2019, 01:47 PM   #14
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You guys are glutons for punishment. It seems to me that the "tar" should make a good sealer, we put it on our concrete walls to keep water from penetrating. I see one case where it is claimed it traps water, sounds highly unusual. Unless I knew of a negative reaction with the foam that has been proven I would not subject myself to that torture, just saying. It's a process I doubt will make a difference and no one will ever know if it was done or not, other than that bad memory of the job. There's enough of those jobs as it is.
Mine was totally disgusting with rot and rust. Asphalteum can and will trap moisture as the condensation happens over the years. Your bus may be fine but that's not some gospel truth for everyone. WHat's in your bus clearly isn't the same as what some of us have dealt with.
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Old 12-17-2019, 01:51 PM   #15
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Mine was totally disgusting with rot and rust. Asphalteum can and will trap moisture as the condensation happens over the years. Your bus may be fine but that's not some gospel truth for everyone. WHat's in your bus clearly isn't the same as what some of us have dealt with.
I haven't heard anyone else with the rusty roof issue you had. It doesn't seem to be a common issue. If the roof and tar look like mine, I would leave it alone. Obviously if you have an issue, deal with it. But I still see no issue with leaving it alone if it is intact.
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Old 12-20-2019, 08:57 PM   #16
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Thanks for the replies and discussion everybody. For some reason I stopped getting alerts on this thread and thought nobody was responding. My tar and metal are in good shape, I was just worried that the spray insulation would not stick to the tar and would later release.
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Old 12-20-2019, 11:04 PM   #17
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Thanks for the replies and discussion everybody. For some reason I stopped getting alerts on this thread and thought nobody was responding. My tar and metal are in good shape, I was just worried that the spray insulation would not stick to the tar and would later release.
You could always spray some Great Stuff on it and see how well/long it sticks compared to bare metal.

Ted
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Old 12-21-2019, 12:21 AM   #18
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You could always spray some Great Stuff on it and see how well/long it sticks compared to bare metal.

Ted
Not a bad idea, thanks!
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Old 12-25-2019, 07:14 PM   #19
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I removed mine because i read it was extremely flammable and id seen many skoolie fires that looked pretty bad anfld i suspected this is why. It is a huge mess. Also saw a dude who ignited his while welding and burned a hole in the bus. Anywho i used Turtlewax Bug and Tar remover which worked well aside from being messy. No toxic fumes from the aerosol airplane cleaner
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Old 12-25-2019, 07:17 PM   #20
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I removed mine because i read it was extremely flammable and id seen many skoolie fires that looked pretty bad anfld i suspected this is why. It is a huge mess. Also saw a dude who ignited his while welding and burned a hole in the bus. Anywho i used Turtlewax Bug and Tar remover which worked well aside from being messy. No toxic fumes from the aerosol airplane cleaner
Oh wow! It would be nice if that would work. I'll pick some up tomorrow and try it, thanks.
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