Hello, continuing getting my 84 back on the road, a lot of the paint on the roof is very thin, but luckily, not much rust (yet)....My van isn't worth the expense of a nice paint job and I can live with the dated and flat paint on the lower part, but want to do something on the roof. I also intend to camp a few days out of the year (at most). I have considering painting it with gloss white Rustoleum and also considered Koolseal or some similar mobile home roof coating. Would like to prevent top from rusting and hope a white color (or maybe silver) would help keep temps lower, it's hot here in Bama many months out of the year. Thoughts?

 

I have the similar issues with my van. I would go with some better paint then Rustoleum. They make some higher quality paints in quarts intended for farm tractors, etc. Two quarts should be enough to cover the roof. If you thin the paint a bit and use a narrow fiber roller you should get a smooth finish, a foam roller is good to but depending on the type of paint and thinner you use it can react with the foam.
Foam rollers work good with latex paint and some oil based paints but not so well when you thin the paint out.




And white or silver to compliment the lower color is the way to go.


Surface prep is just washing it with a good detergent and then scuff it with a Sotchbrite pad to dull the surface. If you have rust you will need to clean that off and prime.

 

I totally agree. Sand the old paint, remove all the rust, cover all the rust holes if any, and prime the surface.

I painted my chateau roof silver to match the lower using Rustoleum. Not bad, but if I were to do it again I may look for that tractor paint. I used brush an roller. As tall as these vans are, few people are going to see the details..

 

And who cares what NBA players think!!

 

If this is a vehicle you'll be keeping a while longer I'd strongly suggest either POR-15 or one of those relatively inexpensive DIY bed liner kits. POR-15 speaks for itself, at least to those who know it, like me.

I did have a '97 E250 where Ford had first begun using water-borne primer so naturally the metallic dark blue paint was peeling off----looked like a pinto pony--horrible. Roof was fully covered in surface rust, not one body shop would touch it due all the labor of removing that rust. A friend had lucked into something like 24 kits of a no-name bed liner he'd used to great effect on several of his own projects.

His son sanding the entire roof just enough to remove the loose scaly rust then applied the bed liner. It was black and slightly textured but we'll all agree its on the roof, WTF cares?

For three years after that the roof was solid; no runs, peeling, nothing. Snow and ice could kinda cling to it but again WTF cares---its on the roof.

Just another way to go..................

 

My 1992 150 Chateau has some rust issues on the roof, but I would rather try to do the repair correctly (remove the rust, prime the area, sand, lay down several coats of color, then several coats of clear.)

The rest of the body has no rust, but does have decals (it's a conversion van) and I'd like to paint the entire body while I'm at it. I think I could get by with a coat of sealer, followed by color, then clear.

Could someone give me some direction on how to do this? I've been a cabinetmaker for over 25 years and I'm pretty good with a cup gun but a gravity feed gun is new to me. I have a Devilbliss Finishline gun in mind to use for this project. Any other suggestions would be welcome.

 

When I see rust on a vehicle, I stay away from it. It's a cancer.

 

This guy just jumps right into rust.

The 1959 Ford Thames campervan restoration begins.
Trailer Life Magazine Open Roads Forum: The 1959 Ford Thames campervan restoration begins.

 

I like the bed liner idea but would the black on the top help draw heat during the summer? Can you get that in different colors?

 

I bought my van new and it has a bit of rust. Staying away from it won't help the rust and would defeat the purpose of having a van

Surface rust (like paint peeling off the roof or surface rust on the frame and underbody) is not cancer. Rust inside body cavities that perforates metal is definitely cancer.

George

 

I'm spoiled living in Ca.
Rust is cancer, I don't want to deal with it nor do I have to.
I do not see how rust makes a van more anything except more of a hassle.
There are so may clean , rust free chassis here , why bother?
Even my old GMC was rust free and it "lived to be " years old.

 

We've owned this van since it was new, so this isn't a van I'm buying. I have no choice except to junk the van because of the rust issue (or sell it a ridiculously low price), or deal with the rust. Since the van runs very good except for some minor issues (needs a muffler and tailpipe, which I have on hand, and the A/C system needs some work.) The van has been serviced regularly, and has 4 nearly new matched tires, a new starter, oil pan gasket, brakes, front end, battery, a new radio/CD/MP3 with Bluetooth (on hand), and so on. There is no rust anywhere on the van except on the roof. It seems foolish to junk this vehicle because of a relatively minor rust issue. (BTW, I live in an area that very rarely uses salt on the roads in the winter.)

The rust I'm talking about is in the "valleys" on the roof and on the edges of the roof and is very thin ("surface rust"?) I've sanded the edges and primed it but didn't topcoat it because I would like to do the entire roof at once. The rust came back through the rattle-can primer.

What is was trying to find out was the procedure for applying a sealer on the body after I sand (or scuff?) the rest of the body. I'd appreciate some guidance here.

 

Yeah, you are married to it.......try something like this then.


or

Eastwood Rust Converter | Rust Converters | Auto Rust Converter

sanding and just painting doesn't really work.

 

Not sure how long you plan to keep your van but it takes a while before the rust causes problems. If you sand it smooth and prime/paint the whole area with decent paint you should have plenty of time to wear out your new parts. Ain't gonna last forever though unless you really want an ongoing project.

 

Same issue with the Quadravan I just bought. Rust on the drip rails and bondo on the back where someone probably caved the roof in from standing on it. I think im going to go with bed liner as I've heard great reviews on it and you can get it in many colors. Are there any tricks to reinforcing the roof so you can stand on it?