Interior wall/ceiling covering

Inyo_man

Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining.
Now, if you survive or chose to go with a different source, I have used and would recommend what are known as "countersunk or finishing" washers which would work very well on attaching Coroplast. Good luck!
I considered using the finish washers, but thought the lath screws would be a more inexpensive solution and work just as well.

ABS is still on the list of possible material...thanks for the thickness spec., tirod3.

Cheers
 

86scotty

Cynic
destefan, Thank you for the great feedback on Coroplast.
I'm starting to lean in that direction a bit now that I've heard that it is standing the test of off-highway travel.

How are folks adhering it to the walls and ceiling?
If I go this route, I'm thinking about screwing it with lath, self-tapping screws (they are affordable and the large head will hopefully keep it from pulling through the Coroplast).

Cheers

Industrial rigid velcro, the stuff that is hard on both sides. It has a name that escapes me. Works great for stuff like this is rarely or never removed. People even do solar installs with it.

Personally I would use stainless screws if you can do it without drilling lots of holes in sheetmetal.
 

plh

Explorer
Coroplast has a small thermal break property as well. Back in the 1980's I worked for an air-to-air heat exchanger manufacture and we used this stuff for the exchanger core. I'm going to evaluate this for my walls. Thanks for the reminder. It looks easily available at Home Depot, and probably a lot of other places.
 

Inyo_man

Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining.
Industrial rigid velcro, the stuff that is hard on both sides. It has a name that escapes me. Works great for stuff like this is rarely or never removed. People even do solar installs with it.

Personally I would use stainless screws if you can do it without drilling lots of holes in sheetmetal.
I do have "heavy duty", sticky backed velcro that claims to hold "up to ten pounds".
I was considering using something like that, in the event I need to add more wiring or have access to wiring.
However, the ridged velcro is something that I haven't looked into yet. Thanks for the suggestion.

I thought about using stainless screws instead of lath screws, but the price point of the stainless is persuading me to use the zinc coated screws and just paint them.

Thanks again for all the suggestions and ideas!

Cheers
 

dstefan

Well-known member
destefan, Thank you for the great feedback on Coroplast.
I'm starting to lean in that direction a bit now that I've heard that it is standing the test of off-highway travel.

How are folks adhering it to the walls and ceiling?
If I go this route, I'm thinking about screwing it with lath, self-tapping screws (they are affordable and the large head will hopefully keep it from pulling through the Coroplast).

Cheers
I have used both VHB and lath screws, mostly VHB, but some screws in corners. The lath screws work well, just be gentle as two agressive screwing will crush the Coroplast and you’ll see dents or lines. I typically used a drill driver with the torque set very low.

VHB works very well, but it’s hard to get the panels off, though where I used an Amazon knock off versus the good 3M stuff it was much easier to take off without damage. No problems with it staying up! Suggest NOT lightly scuffing the Coroplast, just wipe with isopropyl. Makes it it much easier to take down. The Velcro idea is likely best for removability, but I was too lazy to do that, stupidly!
 

Inyo_man

Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining.
Thanks again for all the suggestions and replies!

Wiring and insulation is completed.
Settled on using Coroplast for wall/ceiling covering and affixing to the structure with 3/4" lathe screws.
I only got a bit done on the ceiling so far (working on it between jobs and chores). I'll cover the ceiling panels with marine carpet using 3M spray adhesive. The Coroplast is very light weight, inexpensive, and the areas not covered by low-nap carpet will be easy to clean.

Cheers
 

plh

Explorer
I bought coroplast & a roll of rigid velcro (Dual Lock) this week. Not installed yet.
 
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Ozarker

Well-known member
Thinking ahead, coroplast on the walls or even ceilings might be supported by other elements used in the project. Window frames, valances, light fixtures, curtains/shades, speaker facings, hooks/hangers, and various trim pieces all go on top of a wall covering or under the ceiling and will hold the covering against the vehicle.

I'd suggest you use some type of trim strip screwed to some backing instead of using washers against the coroplast, the head of a screw or bolt would work through the coroplast, so would a smallish washer.

For trim, get a pvc rain gutter, cut out strips of pvc, attach with flat head wood screws to backing, then you can cover the pvc strip with a trim material. Round the ends of a 1" strip for a more custom look, add salt as needed....lol.
 

NOPEC

Well-known member
I would be interested to know if anyone has concerns with the potential delamination of the coroplast in the event that you ever had to "unstick" the hard Velcro, like misplacement during initial laying down ....
 

Ozarker

Well-known member
I would be interested to know if anyone has concerns with the potential delamination of the coroplast in the event that you ever had to "unstick" the hard Velcro, like misplacement during initial laying down ....
I wouldn't have any concern with delamination, I'd use a razor blade to remove glues off the surface. Like any material, if you screw up, you screw up, but you'd have to screw up big time to destroy the coroplast. If you drill a hole in it the hole cannot be removed!
 

Mules

Well-known member
I used automotive stretch carpet and luan plywood. Alternatively, you can glue the stretch carpet directly onto the camper shell. It's able to be stretched around corners.

Also, the carpet is one giant velcro surface that you can attach anything to. I also wrapped the carpet around foam for floor pads which are great to walk on and can be pulled out to clean the floor.

Screen Shot 2024-10-05 at 7.53.19 AM.pngScreen Shot 2024-10-05 at 7.53.52 AM.pngScreen Shot 2024-10-05 at 7.54.05 AM.png
IMG_7195.JPG
 
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aaaslayer

Active member
I had coroplast for 2 years and finally removed it early this 2024. After a few summers and winters in Southern CA, it started to warp. Especially during summer, it bows out. I had it attached to the framing of the camper with velcro. No screws. I removed it all. It worked great and looked good when flat up against the walls with 1" foam underneath. But in the summer when it bowed out, it looked ugly to me. I took it out and used FRP wall paneling from Home Depot in white. Easy to clean, sturdy and a bit heavier but stays nice and straight and doesn't bow out. I used sheet metal screws to retain the walls, no VHB or velcro this time around. My ceiling is still Coroplast, it is bowed down looks like a ceiling that just underwent a rain storm and is about to collapse. It's held on with velcro only. And because they only sell coroplast in 4x8 sheets I had to use multiple sheets and the seams are hideous. OVRLND didn't have a headliner option back in 2021 when I bought my camper otherwise I'd have gone with that instead. I plan to remove the coroplast up there and run carpet tiles likely.


For screws I used something that looks like this:

screws.jpg
 

dstefan

Well-known member
I had coroplast for 2 years and finally removed it early this 2024. After a few summers and winters in Southern CA, it started to warp. Especially during summer, it bows out. I had it attached to the framing of the camper with velcro. No screws. I removed it all. It worked great and looked good when flat up against the walls with 1" foam underneath. But in the summer when it bowed out, it looked ugly to me. I took it out and used FRP wall paneling from Home Depot in white. Easy to clean, sturdy and a bit heavier but stays nice and straight and doesn't bow out. I used sheet metal screws to retain the walls, no VHB or velcro this time around. My ceiling is still Coroplast, it is bowed down looks like a ceiling that just underwent a rain storm and is about to collapse. It's held on with velcro only. And because they only sell coroplast in 4x8 sheets I had to use multiple sheets and the seams are hideous. OVRLND didn't have a headliner option back in 2021 when I bought my camper otherwise I'd have gone with that instead. I plan to remove the coroplast up there and run carpet tiles likely.


For screws I used something that looks like this:

View attachment 863636
That’s unfortunate, and a bit puzzling too. It’s a shame cause Coroplast is really durable and superlight weight. I have had my Ovrlnd interior finished with Coroplast sitting in the Phoenix heat for 3 years and have had no problem at all with warping or sagging. I personally wouldn’t give up on it as a lightweight covering with some cautions that I learned over time working with it. Off the top of my head I can think of a couple issues that could have caused @aaaslayer’s sagging/warping:

— I mounted mine with VHB, and even used some 1/4” wide Amazon knockoff VHB that has held up really well. I always prepped well with isopropyl alcohol, both before and after scuffing with 80 grit sandpaper. I also anchored some panels, not all, with self tapping lathe screws in the top corners. I didn’t use really big sheets (I bought two big ones and cut to fit on each frame section). I also mounted the sheets with the channels going vertically. When Coroplast is heated a lot (eg, I’ve used a heat gun to shape it) it will curve readily on the axis 90º to the channels. I think the support of the channels aligned vertically and the tight attachment with the scews and VHB around the whole perimeter may have kept mine flat. BTW, It’s not that hard to pull back off with the 1/4” knockoff VHB.

— I have had Velcro fail that I used to attached things to the Coroplast: a screen around my window hatch and a reflective/insulated cover to my rear window. In both cases the Velcro has failed in that it creeped and buckled, though it still stayed up. In both cases it creeped a good 3/4” leaving a sticky trail. I believe this is due to two things:
1) Heat and the fact that that sticky Velcro, even good 3M brand, doesn’t have as good adhesive as actual VHB, or apparently the knockoff stuff either since it hasn’t crept and wandered on me.
2) Coroplast is LDPE and like just about any plastic with heat and time will react with adhesives causing them to let go a bit. Heat makes it worse. 3M makes a so called low surface energy, white colored, VHB that can stick well to plastics and vinyls. You can also use the 3M primer before applying VHB and/or flame off the subsurface plasticizers. I have had great results using both techniques and regular VHB, depending on just how permanent I want the bond to be. Flaming is as easy as running a BIC lighter quickly across the surface a couple of times. I have treated NON-stick bulk velcro also with these techniques and usedreal VHB and it has held up.

Sometimes I wish I had used Velcro on some of my Coroplast panels for easier off and on, but if I do, I will use non-sticky velcro and use primer and flame treatment and real 3M 5259 Edit: 5952 VHB (dang, I always do that) to make it stick. Corner self tapping screws are a good idea and easy to remove and replace too. I agree that Coroplast is too heavy for a headliner to avoid sagging.

Hope this is helpful to others.
 
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