Openings on Door Frames

[pn15 10+ year member]

I plan on covering the inner door frames (the layer the speaker mounts to) with deadener but there will be some sizable holes left over. I'm not going to do a sheet metal/mdf/plexi cover for the holes but I was thinking maybe a bit of closed-cell foam could help seal out a some road noise. Maybe the hardware store has something I could duct tape/glue over the holes, I don't know.

I'm can't afford to buy expensive materials for this.

Any thoughts?

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[disturbed471985 5,000+ posts]

Great stuff will wrk. There are other things you could buy and use but nothing thats as cheap as great stuff like $6 a can. You can also paint and sand great stuff if you need to.

 

[pn15 10+ year member]

I'd like to steer clear of anything toxic. Maybe just some thinner, sound blocking foam glued over the holes would help prevent road noise from entering in through larger holes. Not sure if it's worth the trouble at this point.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

Just about any material you span the hole with will help block noise. Anything > nothing. But you really should consider covering the holes with one of the rigid materials/techniques you mentioned in your original post. It will help block rear waves much more effectively than simply covering the hole with some foam, and it will increase the rigidity of the entire door which will reduce vibration noises.

 

[VWBobby 10+ year member]

Great Stuff, expanding foam, open cell foam rubber are all poor materials for use in automotive. They hold moisture close to the panel and cause rust/rot.

You can get closed cell foam from several upholstery suppliers, boating stores and possibly a well stocked fabric store (JoAnn's). Of course you can always buy it online in bulk.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

Great Stuff, expanding foam, open cell foam rubber are all poor materials for use in automotive. They hold moisture close to the panel and cause rust/rot. You can get closed cell foam from several upholstery suppliers, boating stores and possibly a well stocked fabric store (JoAnn's). Of course you can always buy it online in bulk.

All the expanding foams Ive ever used (out of aerosol cans) was closed cell, not open. It even floats. But I do believe its uses are limited, and trying to use it to fill gaps in the sheet metal on your door seems like a poor application for it. You would at very least having to apply some sort of backing material for it to stick to until it cured, if filling wide gaps.

 

[pn15 10+ year member]

Great Stuff, expanding foam, open cell foam rubber are all poor materials for use in automotive. They hold moisture close to the panel and cause rust/rot. You can get closed cell foam from several upholstery suppliers, boating stores and possibly a well stocked fabric store (JoAnn's). Of course you can always buy it online in bulk.

Thanks, I'll look into the closed-cell option since I've already mentioned the plexi route is not going to happen. What about material used in recording booths? I'm sure there are closed-cell products from that application that might work well.

 

[dumple 5,000+ posts]

The mdf you'd need would be cheap as heck it's only 25 bucks for like a 4 foot by 8 foot sheet, do it right the first time so you dont have to redo it later

 

[VWBobby 10+ year member]

Every Beetle from the '60's - 2000's had spray foam or expanding foam applied to the C-pillars. Every single one rusts out in this area, except in desert climates.

Do yourself a favor and follow my advice about not using spray foam. I used to restore these for a living. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[pn15 10+ year member]

The mdf you'd need would be cheap as heck it's only 25 bucks for like a 4 foot by 8 foot sheet, do it right the first time so you dont have to redo it later

I appreciate the advice to do it "the right way", but it aint gonna happen! Just looking for a quick something. Thanks though.