How good is my insulation?

[gusman99]

Hello all, new member got our first camper, a couple months ago, t6.1 converted T32 kombi. Great van and by all accounts a good DIY conversion. It's insulated and sound proofed, but having used it a couple of times I've noticed it gets really hot inside when the sun's on it. Is that normal - how cool should good insulation keep it??
Good vanshade blinds, down all day. Thermal shades over the front windows - sun coming from behind the van most of the day anyway. And on a sunny but not hot day - talking 19,20 degrees, cool breeze - open the van and it's roasting inside. I would estimate easily 28-30 degrees in there. Don't have a thermometer but i do in my office and when that gets to 26 its sweltering, the vans definitely hotter. Not as much as a tent or a normal car - obvs - but i was expecting it to be possible to keep it relatively cool, when it's locked down? Does it sound normal, or like I've got sh--t insulation?!

 

[Matt-T68]

Sounds normal. Mine sits in the car park at work and easily 40 plus when i open it up with the current weather. Insulation is more for keeping it warm when it's cold outside I think.

 

[DXX]

It will partly depend on the colour of the van body, mine is fully insulated including the pop top roof lid but importantly it’s Reflex Silver.
If you have a dark coloured van it will be a challenge to keep it cool.

 

[JumpShip]

Yes it'll still get damn hot .

 

[gusman99]

It will partly depend on the colour of the van body, mine is fully insulated including the pop top roof lid but importantly it’s Reflex Silver.
If you have a dark coloured van it will be a challenge to keep it cool.

Thanks Indium Grey , but with a white pop top and we're shortly going to wrap the top half white

 

[Matt-T68]

I've found shutting my blinds helps a lot.

 

[Salty Spuds]

Insulation doesn’t stop things from cooling/heating, all it does is slow down the rate of change. The better the insulation the slower the heating/cooling on either side of the insulation. If insulation was perfect, then a flask of coffee would never go cold & ice would never melt in a cool box.

 

[DXX]

As @Salty Spuds said. If you have a tailgate you can use the difference in temperature to your advantage by cracking open the cab windows an inch and using a tailgate latch bar.
If you have wind deflectors on the cab windows the van will still be 99% weather proof and you’ll get a strong flow of air due to convection.
All covered elsewhere on the Forum.

 

[david173]

Don't forget too that the van is basically a tin box in the full sun. It has very little thermal mass to 'stay cool' and therefore it will respond quite quickly to the external temperature / heating of the metal. The insulation will help slow this down but its never going to really be good enough for it to stay really cool. As others have said it will be exacerbated if you have a darker colour.

The good news is that on the other hand it should cool down pretty quick if you can get some breeze through it or external shading.

 

[TallPaul_S]

Thanks Indium Grey , but with a white pop top and we're shortly going to wrap the top half white

Indium grey is pretty much the 2nd darkest colour behind black.

Mine is black, and with it parked pointing south, this week with the hot weather it's hit 44, 45 degrees inside.

A windscreen cover is meant to make a big difference as it cuts out the 'greenhouse' effect of the windscreen and front windows.

 

[oldiebut goodie]

Bamboo Green is darker than grey, my van was 41 the other day. Only 33 today.

 

[Salty Spuds]

One of the main reasons we bought a white van for our camper conversion.

 

[DXX]

It’s natures way of saying ‘get your arse out of bed and do something’.

 

[gusman99]

Thanks for all the replies, useful stuff. Just glad to know I've not got shonky insulation and it's normal. Got a front window cover and a tailgate latch, and wind deflectors so should be able to manage as we are, got a white poptop which helps massively, and better once the top half is all wrapped white too

 

[Lubrown]

Here’s a calculator for you…

Link

As others have said the insulation will slow the rate of change but this calculate is interesting none the less.

You can see why dogs get into trouble pretty quick when shut in cars, especially as they don’t sweat like we do.