Side Exhaust Cover Insulation Alternative?

[MAMBA]

I have been speaking to a representative of Thermo Tec Inc. which makes exhaust and heat protection materials for the automotive industry. They have a product called Aluminized Heat Barrier which comes in a 36" x 40" sheet and can be applied with their heavy duty adhesive. It protects against temperatures up to 2000 degrees and the rep. said it would work as a replacement for the bulky foil insulation in the stock side exhaust covers. The aluminized side faces the exhaust. I dislike the bulky and heavy stock set-up so much I think I'm going to give it a try. I have the Random Tech hi-flow cats which should keep temperatures cooler anyway.
Does anyone else know of this product and whether it is in fact an alternative to the stock foil insulation?

 

[THOR]

Interesting.... please keep us posted on this effort.

 

[Ratech]

I have used the product that Roe sells. I purchased mine from one of our industrial supplier about 2 years ago. I works great. I banded it over the exhaust the way it is shown in the Roe picture.

 

[FLX109]

Definately keep us posted

 

[Don Hiltz]

Several years ago, I had Roe high flow cats installed. Like you, I searched for a product which was less bulky and could withstand the heat generated by the exhaust system (Roe's cats & Borla mufflers). At a friend's suggestion, I purchased aluminized heat barrier (Cool It) from Thermo-Tech" The wrapper advertised that it could reflect 90% of radiant heat, up to 2000 degrees.

It seemed too easy, and it was.

Within 3 days, I began to smell the matieral as the exhaust system heated up. When I had it removed, it was clear that it was not reflecting the heat; it was burning!!!!

Now, I'm not an engineer so the experts may tell me that radiant heat (by definition) implies that it travels through an air medium. Mine may have failed because I placed it directly over the exhaust system.

Nevertheless, I thought my experience was worth repeating.

I should say that I called Sean Roe and he explained that my original insulation was still functional, notwithstanding the burned areas which had originally made me seek out a replacement.

Don

 

[MAMBA]

The guy I spoke with said to apply it to the inside of the exhaust cover with the aluminized surface facing the exhaust. He also stated that moisture would not affect it. As you said, it sounds to easy and it may be but for the small investment, I'm going to try it. It should be here in 4-5 days and we shall see what we shall see!

 

[hemibeep]

I do have the thermo tech, but I think it is different. Mine has adhesive and is smaller sheets. I am also adding the roe wrap around. Thermo tech also now sells a heat-mesh type screen that I am mounting at both ends.....to let the heat out. Too soon to give results, let's see if this is a $250 solution to the factory insulation

 

[kARLUG]

I have always had good luck with DEI products. Their floor and tunnell shield is good stuff and has an aluminized reflecting surface with thin insulation and a strong self adhesive backing. I'm in the process of installing Autoform fiberglass side sills. Going to use the DEI shielding on frame side and inside the sill. Purchased some neat stainless sill vents from DC Performance that are very high quality and will give a good airflow through the sill. Also purchased Roe's thermal blanket to wrap the exhaust system. I'm no heat specialist but have used many products and experimented a little. Some of the "so called" 2,000 degree stuff reflects heat but allows the heat to soak through and still burn your sills. I wouldn't get rid of the factory stuff and rely on a thin sheet of Thermo Tec shielding. I don't think it will work very well by itself. Here's a simplistic test: Take your factory shielding, use a good lighter on the reflective side and touch the opposite side and see how much heat you can feel.
Then take the Thermo Tec stuff and do the same. This will give you a pretty good idea of how much heat its going to shield. The airflow through the sills is important and the exhaust system mounting position is also significant. Every little bit of tweaking to keep the cats away from the sills is worth doing. I'm going through the same process as you. Trying like hell to cool the sills. Good luck!!

 

[Ron]

Red is correct, though only real solution is airflow. You could pack the sill with space shuttle tiles and eventually the heat would soak through. All insulation does is slow down the heat transfer, not stop it.

I tried everything, ceramic coating the exhaust system with the same stuff used in F-22 afterburners, directed airflow via ceramic coated tubing, 3M Nextel ceramic cloth (2,500 degree F rated), Thermotec aluminum coated cloth, etc. Documented everything with thermocouples while idling, driving, etc. When I have a spare hour I'll post what I found, but trust me, don't take off your existing insulation and 2, figure out how to get airflow.

Do that and your problems are solved.

 

[hemibeep]

Follow up.
thermo-tech stick on and the roe's wrap around will NOT do it alone. Just a 15 min normal drive and the cooking began. This is on composite sills with both ends left open.
Seems like the factory part is the way to go.

 

[99 R/T 10]

Hemibeep,
Are you using the fibre glass sills? I have a set of Gen II covers that are converted to side exhaust. They have the factory insulation.

 

[hemibeep]

99 r/t 10 you have PM.
Yes, I am using fiberglass sills and need to get back to at least factory insulation