attaching ceiling panels?

[Indigo Crow Weaver]

Good morning all,
I'm still working on spiffing up the interior of my RV ('77 Dodge Champion) and right now I'm working on the ceiling. I've ripped out all the ugly painted "foam" the made up the ceiling and now have exposed a basic wood ceiling. It looks like your basic plywood. I plan to cover it with:
a "3-layer 3mm underlayment laminate foam" for insulation and then lay over the top of that a marine-grade upholstery vinyl.  Here's my question... should I use a staple gun? Molding and finishing nails? What do you think?
Thanks for all of your collective wisdom.
Ingido


   

[gadgetman]

If you do have to use strips, you can use the ones with the plastic insert that covers the screws. They make that for the exterior body seams and its 1.5 in wide and 3/16 high, then there is the interior one that is 3/3 wide and almost flat.

Another option is to use the electrical wire plastic track stuff. It is 1.5 in wide and 3/16 thick but ................You can also use it to run lighting wires if needed Down side is it only comes in 4 ft sections so you would have some seams to deal with.

I used it for lighting on mine. Here is a pic of the stuff.

[smg id=4356]

[Oz]

Depends on how "permanently" you want the material up there.  A good adhesive, spread evenly on the backing would be the best (IMHO) for a permanent attachment and there won't be any sagging anywhere in the middle of the panels, which will happen as time goes by if it's not evenly secured across the whole panel.

"T" strips can be just tack glued every few inches and pressed in at seams making a neat finish, without any dimpling from staples or nails.

[Indigo Crow Weaver]

Hi Mark... Tell me more about T-Strips... I don't know what they are.
Smiles,
Indigo

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Just be careful that the adhesive you use is compatible with foam...a lot of adhesives will eat/melt foam and styrofoam.  The ceiling in our RV is factory upholstered with padding and vinyl...looks really sharp and is cozy, and easy to wipe clean.

If you use any nails, screws, or staples, just make sure you use short ones!  Don't wanna poke any holes in the roof!

Kev

[Oz]

That's a very good point Kevin remembered to point out and there are adhesives which are specifically for your use which won't dissolve the foam backing.

T strips are plastic strips which, when you look at them straight on, are molded like a "T".  The top of the T hides the seam while the leg of the T goes into the seam.  The panels on each side provide the pressure on both sides of the leg of the T to hold it in place.  Actually, there is no adhesive needed to hold them in place.