Date:         Tue, 2 Jun 1998 09:20:17 -0800
Reply-To:     Shawn Wright <swright@MAIL.SLS.BC.CA>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <Vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Shawn Wright <swright@MAIL.SLS.BC.CA>
Organization: Shawnigan Lake School
Subject:      Rusty front footwells?
Comments: To: Vanagon@VANAGON.COM
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII

Is rust a common problem in the front door footwells? My '88 Westy has a lot of
rust in this area. It seems the rubber mat secured through holes in the metal
is a very poor idea, since the rear holes are subject to water/dirt splashing
from the front tires.

Anyway, I went ballistic with my dremel and removed nearly all rusty metal,
leaving a 3-4" diameter hole in the inner rear corner of the footwell. I used
rust mort and a wire wheel on the surface rust, then a layer of fiber glass on
the inside, covering all but the front two holes, which were free of rust.
Another layer of fiberglass was added to outside, and the patch appears as
strong as the original metal. Now if I can keep moisture from seeping under the
fiberglass, this should last another 10 years (I hope).

Any ideas for coating the surface of the fiberglass to keep water out?
(fiberglass was placed over bare metal, since this was what the package called
for... hope this wasn't a big mistake...)

========================
Shawn Wright
Computer Systems Manager
Shawnigan Lake School
250-743-6240
swright@sls.bc.ca