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Old 07-25-2018, 08:26 PM   #1
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Reduced heat (and noise) coming from doghouse and passenger floor of Chateau 31W

On my first trip to South Dakota to see Mt. Rushmore the heat from the doghouse of my Thor Chateau 31W was horrible.

I wondered if there were any sound deadening or heat reflective material on the doghouse or under the floor.

I read about some ways to try to reduce the heat. The cheapest route appeared to be using Frost King duct insulation with aluminum reflective material. I used the non fiberglass kind and I got it from Lowes. It was about $20.00 for a roll.

I took off the doghouse and saw that there was some heat shielding. But other than some insulation on the front there was very little on the sides.


So, I put as much of the Frost King duct insulation on the sides underneath the Thor insulation. I liked doing this because it looks stock.

I also put a little of the insulation on the exterior of the doghouse behind my console and on the back of the the console itself in order to keep my drinks cool.

I addition. I put some of the duct insulation underneath the passenger compartment floor to reduce the heat (aluminum side down). It turns out they already had similar insulation to the duct insulation under the passenger floor, however, it did not have the aluminum heat shielding.

The results were amazing. On our trip up to Estes Park going up and down winding mountain passes the heat coming off the doghouse and from the passenger floor was greatly reduced.

Also, the engine noise, and I am not exaggerating, appears to have been reduced by as much as50%. My wife and I can now have conversations without yelling when the coach is accelerating or decelerating in the lower gears.

It only took about $20.00 worth of materials 90 minutes worth of work to trim and install everything! It was definitely worth it!

As soon as I can, I will post some pictures. Presently, my connection is too bad.

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Old 07-25-2018, 09:03 PM   #2
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Pictures from inside the doghouse

Here are some pictures inside the doghouse. One is just the stock doghouse; one is a shot of the engine bay; and one is a picture of the insulation before I trimmed it.
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Old 07-25-2018, 09:35 PM   #3
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Yep, I have been using Frost King on several of my vehicles with great results. Best bang for your buck hands down.
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Old 07-26-2018, 12:26 PM   #4
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Yep, I have been using Frost King on several of my vehicles with great results. Best bang for your buck hands down.
I agree, so much cheaper than Dynamat and other alternatives.
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Old 07-26-2018, 12:45 PM   #5
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Yes but I have used Dynomat and Fat Mat extensively in my RV and they do dampen much better than Frost King. Each has its purpose and it depends on the overall results you are trying to achieve. I have elimininated ALL heat from the dog house and surround areas with both Dyno and Fat. With the Air con running in cab the dog house is cool to the touch at any given spot. Even after 4 hour + trips its still cool. Im impressed. Sound level have dropped dramatically as well.
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Old 07-26-2018, 02:31 PM   #6
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Very "cool"! Great info.
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Old 07-26-2018, 08:35 PM   #7
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Yes but I have used Dynomat and Fat Mat extensively in my RV and they do dampen much better than Frost King. Each has its purpose and it depends on the overall results you are trying to achieve. I have elimininated ALL heat from the dog house and surround areas with both Dyno and Fat. With the Air con running in cab the dog house is cool to the touch at any given spot. Even after 4 hour + trips its still cool. Im impressed. Sound level have dropped dramatically as well.
So happy that the Dynamat and Fat Mat has worked for you. The Frost King worked for me.

I am glad that there are multiple alternatives out there.
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Old 07-26-2018, 09:10 PM   #8
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So happy that the Dynamat and Fat Mat has worked for you. The Frost King worked for me.

I am glad that there are multiple alternatives out there.
Yep, me too. I used about 5 or 6 rolls of Frost King in one of my cars 15 years ago. I was tying to reduce the heat and it worked great while keeping to cost and weight down. FK Also cut some noise down. Great stuff.

But laying on the floor with carpet over it is one thing and expecting it to hang upside down - outside - with possible spashed of water and High heat is another ...... and I was afraid it would just fall down over time.

I use the FK inside the RV where it can lay down or surround something and it works great. And on the AC unit (on roof) with that silver tape holding it down as well. Best bang for the buck.
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Old 07-26-2018, 09:54 PM   #9
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Here are more pics..

These are pics of the Frost King insulation I put beneath the console. I used Gorilla double sided tape to attach the Frost King insulation.

I did this because I did not want to remove the front of the stock heat shielding; I wasn't able to slide any FK insulation behind it.

I was trying to reduce the heat that was causing my drinks to heat up while I was driving.

The results weren't as successful. Heat was reduced, but not as much as I would have wanted. I am still going to have to add more insulation behind the console itself to reduce more heat. I might even try adding some Reflectix.
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Old 07-26-2018, 10:19 PM   #10
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Yep, anything is better than what it left with from factory. If one layer is good, two layers is better IMP. But 10 layers would be awesome! LOL. Is there such a thing as too many layers? Or too much money? Too much horse power? Or having too much fun? LOL.
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Old 07-31-2018, 06:45 AM   #11
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These are pics of the Frost King insulation I put beneath the console. I used Gorilla double sided tape to attach the Frost King insulation.



I did this because I did not want to remove the front of the stock heat shielding; I wasn't able to slide any FK insulation behind it.



I was trying to reduce the heat that was causing my drinks to heat up while I was driving.



The results weren't as successful. Heat was reduced, but not as much as I would have wanted. I am still going to have to add more insulation behind the console itself to reduce more heat. I might even try adding some Reflectix.


You need to mount on inside of dog house. I put 2 layers of dynamat on inside. I also lined the floors in cab area. Night and day . We can talk now and heat reduction is fantastic.
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Old 07-31-2018, 05:44 PM   #12
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Yep, Dynomat is some good stuff. I bet I put 50# of it in my Axis (or more - no joke). Really helps with heat and sound. But I like to put the 3/4 inch thick Fat Mat on top of it for the engine / dog house area to maximize it. But if on a budget the Frost King works great with heat but not as much with sound IMO.
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Old 08-01-2018, 01:16 AM   #13
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Yep, Dynomat is some good stuff. I bet I put 50# of it in my Axis (or more - no joke). Really helps with heat and sound. But I like to put the 3/4 inch thick Fat Mat on top of it for the engine / dog house area to maximize it. But if on a budget the Frost King works great with heat but not as much with sound IMO.
Where can I find the Dynomat or Fat Mat? I'm still looking for the better stuff to use.
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Old 08-01-2018, 01:27 AM   #14
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Where can I find the Dynomat or Fat Mat? I'm still looking for the better stuff to use.
Where else but Amazon?

https://www.amazon.com/Dynamat-11905...ywords=dynamat
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Old 08-01-2018, 03:24 AM   #15
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Yep, Amazon,

Dynomat and Fat Mat have several products that are similar - I think the Fat Mat had a better price on Amazon - check around. I tried "Kill Matt" this weekend but it was not as heavy duty or as sticky as the other two IMO – so I would use inside a vehicle and other together two under floors and under hood/engine compartment since I think they will hold up better.

To maximize sound and heat you want two diff types of insulation (IMO). You want to start off with a heavy asphalt base (50 oz?) with a thick aluminum backing. Its like 1/8 inch thick or so. Then cover it with what I call "Fatmat" (but both make on version) and its 3/4-inch thick foam with a sticky side and thick aluminum front side. That will do the most good for heat and sound IMO.
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Old 08-01-2018, 03:57 AM   #16
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I added more insulation to the doghouse.

I added more of the Frost King duct I insulation to the doghouse. This time I added it to the front and top portions of the doghouse.

This time, my primary goal was to reduce the heat that is making my drinks warm when I am driving; the additional quiet is just a bonus.

Engine noise was a little quieter as I drove to fill up my coach today. However, it was already pretty quiet just from what I had already done by adding insulation to the sides.

I will know how well the additional heat shielding works regarding keeping my drinks cold after I drive up the the steep portions of State highway 24 on Friday; going to Mueller State Park for the weekend.
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Old 08-01-2018, 04:32 AM   #17
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Awesome, If a little is good then more is better .......right? How do you know when you have too much frost king installed? When you cant put the Doghouse cover back on. LOL.

Im sure you will be happy with it. It make the RV feel more upscale to me - plus its something the RV manufactures should have done to begin with.

If the factory just added $50 ore $100 worth of insulation and charged me $50 or $100 more I would even not care (or notice) so why cut corners on something that will be obvious down the road?

But when they DON’T insulate very well and you go on your first big trip with your new RV (A Gasser or C class) you thinking “this is a cheap piece of .... “, “I cant hear the radio or have a conversation on the interstate”. And “oh no, hear come a big hill “ – then it down shifts and then engine roars, and your favorite “man is it hot up here .....why in the heck is Ice Tea hot”?
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Old 08-01-2018, 03:34 PM   #18
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If the factory just added $50 ore $100 worth of insulation and charged me $50 or $100 more I would even not care (or notice) so why cut corners on something that will be obvious down the road?
I know, isn't it ridiculous that they will sell something with an MSRP over 100k and they can't go the extra mile to make it quiet?


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But when they DON’T insulate very well and you go on your first big trip with your new RV (A Gasser or C class) you thinking “this is a cheap piece of .... “, “I cant hear the radio or have a conversation on the interstate”. And “oh no, hear come a big hill “ – then it down shifts and then engine roars, and your favorite “man is it hot up here .....why in the heck is Ice Tea hot”?
You had me rolling here... This is exactly how I was feeling initially as I was driving through the Black Hills of SD. However, my next thoughts were: "Is this just me or is it common? Is there a a fix somewhere in one of those forums I have been reading?"

Praise God... there was! And it only required a little research, a small financial investment, and a some elbow grease!
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Old 08-01-2018, 04:58 PM   #19
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I know, isn't it ridiculous that they will sell something with an MSRP over 100k and they can't go the extra mile to make it quiet?




You had me rolling here... This is exactly how I was feeling initially as I was driving through the Black Hills of SD. However, my next thoughts were: "Is this just me or is it common? Is there a a fix somewhere in one of those forums I have been reading?"

Praise God... there was! And it only required a little research, a small financial investment, and a some elbow grease!
And if you decide to also put some on the bottom of the cab surrounding the engine (as I did and I think it made as large a difference as when I did the doghouse by itself) you will need some contortion abilities.
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Old 08-01-2018, 06:08 PM   #20
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And if you decide to also put some on the bottom of the cab surrounding the engine (as I did and I think it made as large a difference as when I did the doghouse by itself) you will need some contortion abilities.
I looked under there and thought to myself, "Im good."
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