Order of operations?

[chromaglow]

Hey Everyone,

Fall is coming here in the PNW and that means rain so my idea is to get the bus sealed up nice and dry so I can keep working on it all fall and winter. It's been a minute since I posted but I have been busy taking out 1131 rivets by hand and raising the roof 27inches on The Heart of Gold.

I have some questions about what to do next. I have been so focused on getting the demo and roof raise heavy lifting done in the last 4 months I am not sure how to proceed in a way that will minimize duplicate work.

Here is my plan please tell me if this makes sense.
So the roof is raised (photos coming soon) all the metal sheets are tacked in.

1. Drill and re rivet metal sheets in place.
2. Wipe the oil from the sheets inside and out and paint with oil based primer to protect from rain
3. Use hanks 212 to seal all the sheet metal seams and blind rivets from the inside of the bus.
4. re-seal all existing ceiling seams with hanks 212 from the inside.
5. spray foam my roof and walls while the moisture level will allow proper curing
6. figure out my roof rack for solar panels and deck
6A. Clean and paint the roof
7. drill, mount, and seal all roof rack holes in the ceiling
8. Finalize where all holes need to be in the floor for toilet, water etc and cut them
9 Seal bolt holes in the floor
10 build subfloor
11. Frame walls and ceiling with wood and drill holes for propane, water adn electric
12 finish insulation of walls and ceiling
13 run water gas and electric in walls

Thoughts? What am I missing?
Time-saving ideas?

Just trying to make sure I don't have to undo or redo things unnecessarily

 

[rffffffff]

Definitely move the insulation until after the roof racks and solar mounts are done and the roof is rain tested, and think about wires for fans or roof a/c units and ceiling lights before insulation too.

 

[musigenesis]

For (2) you might want to prime and paint, depending on what primer you're using. Some primers do not have UV protection, and some primers (like Rustoleum automotive primer, in my experience) are not fully waterproof by themselves and over a prolonged time period of exposure to rain will start to show corrosion underneath.

 

[musigenesis]

Additionally, I think you're better off sealing leaks from the outside than from the inside. If you seal the inside that can still leave small external openings and gaps that will trap water and promote corrosion even if the openings are not all the way into the interior.

 

[chromaglow]

Additionally, I think you're better off sealing leaks from the outside than from the inside. If you seal the inside that can still leave small external openings and gaps that will trap water and promote corrosion even if the openings are not all the way into the interior.

I was going to seal from the inside first so I could paint and then seal the outside later.
Basically, because the outside wasn't going to be ready to seal I thought I would seal inside to hold things temporarily.

Question? I was planning to use 3/8 blind rivets to secure my metal sheets to the structure in addition to the tack welds holding it now. Is this a bad idea? Is there a better rivet to use that can be put in pneumatically? People keep saying blind rivets leak because they are not solid. SO I was thinking I would have to seal around each one, any idea about this?

 

[Kentucky Dreaming]

Question? I was planning to use 3/8 blind rivets to secure my metal sheets to the structure in addition to the tack welds holding it now. Is this a bad idea? Is there a better rivet to use that can be put in pneumatically? People keep saying blind rivets leak because they are not solid. SO I was thinking I would have to seal around each one, any idea about this?

https://smile.amazon.com/Closed-Sea...ivets&qid=1631031216&s=industrial&sr=1-5&th=1

These are closed end stainless steel. It may take a pretty strong riveter to pull them.

 

[musigenesis]

https://smile.amazon.com/Closed-Sea...ivets&qid=1631031216&s=industrial&sr=1-5&th=1

These are closed end stainless steel. It may take a pretty strong riveter to pull them.

The Harbor Freight pneumatic riveter (either the 3/16" or 1/4") has enough strength to pull them. I've done quite a few 3/16" and 1/4" closed-end SS rivets on my bus (I have the 1/4" riveter which can handle both sizes).

What really limits me is my pancake compressor which can do 120 PSI but doesn't have a lot of capacity, so I can only do a few rivets at a time before I have to stop and let the pressure build back up. Fortunately I don't really work all that fast anyway.

 

[Kentucky Dreaming]

Fortunately I don't really work all that fast anyway.

That's what my bosses say about me!!

 

[musigenesis]

I was going to seal from the inside first so I could paint and then seal the outside later.
Basically, because the outside wasn't going to be ready to seal I thought I would seal inside to hold things temporarily.

If you use a sealer like Dynatron-550 (the only one I recommend - because it's the only one I've used :biggrin, you can apply it to bare steel or old paint and then paint over it later on (like, weeks or months later). I would just seal the outside because there's not really any reason to seal both the outside and the inside and it would save you some work and money.

Question? I was planning to use 3/8 blind rivets to secure my metal sheets to the structure in addition to the tack welds holding it now. Is this a bad idea? Is there a better rivet to use that can be put in pneumatically? People keep saying blind rivets leak because they are not solid. SO I was thinking I would have to seal around each one, any idea about this?

I assume you mean 3/16" rivets? 3/8" pop rivets are pretty monstrous (if they even exist). Open-end blind rivets will of course leak through the middle so you don't really want to use those (although I suppose you could goop up the opening with sealer). Closed-end blind rivets will not leak through the center, but they might/will still leak around the rivet and through the rivet hole itself. The proper technique is to put them in "wet", which means you put a little dab of sealant around the rim of the drilled hole, then place the rivet and pull it and wipe off the excess sealant that squeezes out around the edges. Not really very difficult to do at all, just slightly messy.

For riveting body panels, if one panel overlaps another you want to run a bead of sealant underneath the edge of the panel on top, such that you get "squeeze-out" of the sealant when you pull the rivets joining the two panels. With a seam done like this, you get a layer of sealant pinched mechanically between the two panels and you are not reliant on the adhesive properties of the sealant to keep things watertight. If you've already tacked the panels in place, though, this won't really be possible.

It does seem that solid rivets are inherently less prone to leaking, but I don't really have any experience with them other than helping BrewerBob put in a few of his. They can be (in fact must be) applied pneumatically (with a different type of gun), but you need a helper holding a bucking bar on the opposite side of each rivet, so it's not a one-person job.