Gaps in Bed construction
Elder User
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 633
Likes: 2
From: So. Utah
Man am I stupid, I totally ignored where that pictured gap was, thought it was the wheel well area. So yes you are correct, my '16 dually has the same gap back there also even with factory spray in liner.
Posting Guru
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 1,460
Likes: 2
Good point....I have the wheel well liners and haven't noticed any spray up through the gaps.
Junior User
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 61
Likes: 0
Thread Starter
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Trailering
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 22
Likes: 1
While I understand that some of the gaps/holes may be left intentionally for water to drain, it sure seems that an engineer could have easily added a deflector plate or something to the underside so that mud/water won’t get slung up and into the bed – pretty simple addition during construction if it is thought through.
And no, this issue is not caused by someone adding a bed cover. If I am hauling my fishing gear, hunting gear, new furniture, new mattress, etc. in the bed of my truck (with no cover), I would have to avoid any kind of water or puddle in the road. If not, mud/water will be tossed on my cargo via the rear wheels – how can some of you say that is acceptable? That is ridiculous.
I agree, the spray-in bedliner would fill in some of the gaps, but not the holes in the corners. Looks like I will try the silicon option – unless someone thinks or something better.
Posting Guru
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 1,056
Likes: 2
No, I don’t have the wheel well covers – but I will check into them now. Just seems absurd that I need to add an aftermarket upgrade in order to correct sloppy work.
While I understand that some of the gaps/holes may be left intentionally for water to drain, it sure seems that an engineer could have easily added a deflector plate or something to the underside so that mud/water won’t get slung up and into the bed – pretty simple addition during construction if it is thought through.
And no, this issue is not caused by someone adding a bed cover. If I am hauling my fishing gear, hunting gear, new furniture, new mattress, etc. in the bed of my truck (with no cover), I would have to avoid any kind of water or puddle in the road. If not, mud/water will be tossed on my cargo via the rear wheels – how can some of you say that is acceptable? That is ridiculous.
I agree, the spray-in bedliner would fill in some of the gaps, but not the holes in the corners. Looks like I will try the silicon option – unless someone thinks or something better.
While I understand that some of the gaps/holes may be left intentionally for water to drain, it sure seems that an engineer could have easily added a deflector plate or something to the underside so that mud/water won’t get slung up and into the bed – pretty simple addition during construction if it is thought through.
And no, this issue is not caused by someone adding a bed cover. If I am hauling my fishing gear, hunting gear, new furniture, new mattress, etc. in the bed of my truck (with no cover), I would have to avoid any kind of water or puddle in the road. If not, mud/water will be tossed on my cargo via the rear wheels – how can some of you say that is acceptable? That is ridiculous.
I agree, the spray-in bedliner would fill in some of the gaps, but not the holes in the corners. Looks like I will try the silicon option – unless someone thinks or something better.
Tuned
Joined: Sep 2016
Posts: 453
Likes: 46
The aftermarket I believe he was referring to is the bed cover, not the bed liner.
Just to play devil's advocate, why don't the factory option plastic drop in bed liners have drain holes in them? My dealer installs these on every short box truck on the lot and it's not uncommon to see 4" + of standing water in the trucks after a good rain.
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Tuned
Joined: Sep 2016
Posts: 453
Likes: 46
If you're going to get an aftermarket spray in bed liner you can fill those gaps beforehand to give the liner something to hold it in place untilit cures. You can get foam designed for filling expansion gaps in concrete block walls. It is available in different sizes and comes on a roll.
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 275
Likes: 2
From: Nebraska
Ford factory liner and full underbody coating. My bed stays dry. Still have small amounts of daylight but I haven't seen anything coming up through them and I've been driving in snow and salt and everything else.
Hotshot
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 10,118
Likes: 650
From: NH
...And no, this issue is not caused by someone adding a bed cover. If I am hauling my fishing gear, hunting gear, new furniture, new mattress, etc. in the bed of my truck (with no cover), I would have to avoid any kind of water or puddle in the road. If not, mud/water will be tossed on my cargo via the rear wheels – how can some of you say that is acceptable? That is ridiculous.
In my own experience, the bed of my truck remains very clean. It is not filling up with dirt and water. I have no cover, just the factory spray-in bed liner.
Hotshot
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 10,118
Likes: 650
From: NH
Spray-in bed liner solves that problem. I don't think any bed has continuous weld, which could cause cracking and also adds weight.
I'm still not seeing the problem here. If you want everything to be under cover and not getting dirty, buy an SUV. If you do want to make you pickup bed like an SUV, you can do that too...but its going to require a topper, tonneau, or some kind of bed liner. Next time I might try the bed rug, looks pretty cool.
I'm still not seeing the problem here. If you want everything to be under cover and not getting dirty, buy an SUV. If you do want to make you pickup bed like an SUV, you can do that too...but its going to require a topper, tonneau, or some kind of bed liner. Next time I might try the bed rug, looks pretty cool.