How to sound deaden the interior of your TJ

Chris will overthink the roller, but not use the best products from Dynamat or Second Skin; puzzling.

A few tips for you fellows, the butyl products must follow contours closely. Deflate air pockets as you go, and cover exposed butyl. I prefer thick aluminum flashing tape. For those concerned with water ingress, apply god-awful waterproof tape. Denatured alcohol is an effective surface prep. A useful tool is a nylon pancake spatula with smooth edges, it's good for flattening seams that can't be reached with a roller. A narrow spackling spatula with beveled edge is useful too. Thick cardboard for a cutting surface, box cutter, three foot straight edge, measuring tape, and Magic Marker.

If the goal is sound proofing, that will require multiple layers of butyl, or much more effective weighted nylon. There's even a product with a decoupler, and lead layer sandwiched within.

FYI, I used a bulk pack of Dynamat that spent three days in the flood waters of Harvey. The box decentegrated, but I stood the butyl sheets on edge and the water rolled off. It performed like it was waterproof a year later. My auto had edge to edge Dynamat, Brown Bread, Second Skin, etc. After the flood waters receded, it held water for three weeks, my wife's auto drained in a day. All anecdotal for sure, but I'm not concerned about butyl not being at least water resistant.

Overthinking the roller? I read all the reviews on the other rollers and people had the same complaint: without ball bearings, the rollers didn't freely move as easily, and therefore it was trickier to get them to toll.

As for Noico versus Dynamat, I've read a number of comparisons of the two, such as this one: https://soundproofliving.com/noico-dynamat-review/

The general consensus is that the Dynamat may be slightly better, but it's not better by so much that it justifies the extra price in my opinion. The other thing I've read in a number of reviews is that the Noico seems to be easier to install in tougher areas. It seems that people found it to be more pliable.

In addition, I've gone a step further than @mots did and ordered the insulation to go over the top of the Noico 80mil butyl layer. This is the stuff I'm using on top of it: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CZ2DHV3/?tag=wranglerorg-20

So yes, while it's not Dynamat, I'm simply not convinced that the Dynamat is so much better that it's worth the extra money. I'm not saying it might not be a bit better, I just don't think it's going to be leaps and bounds better is all I'm saying.

I don't expect my TJ to be soundproof after this, I just hope for it to be a little quieter that it is now.

Anyways, I do appreciate the installation tips, those will definitely help!
 
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I probably would have written the OP a little differently if I knew @Chris was going to copy as-is from my build thread over into the how-to section. But yeah, the whole idea of this post was about sound deadening (not sound proofing), how easy it is to learn how to do, and the awesome value of the Noico 80 product. The results with Noico 80 are amazing and it won't set you back nearly as much as Dynamat.

Amazon current prices:
  • Noico 80 - $63.99 for 36 sq ft ($1.77 sq ft) x 2 = $127.98
  • Dynamat Xtreme $168.95 for 36 sq ft ($4.69 sq ft) x 2 = $337.90
  • To do the whole tub, firewall, floors, walls, doors and all, you need x 2 for a total of 72 sq ft.
As Chris said, if you take time to do some research and read the reviews from both professionals and end users alike, there is not a world of difference in the product quality and end result. I've read about folks paying $1200 to have this done by a professional. I did it my garage in a few hours for $127.98 and I also have the piece of mind that it got done properly. This is just a win all around if you don't have money to burn.

P.S. Noico has sealing/finishing tape in silver on Amazon as well. I bought that as well, but didn't show it in any pics. The quality was also good.
 
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I probably would have written the OP a little differently if I knew @Chris was going to copy as-is from my build thread over into the how-to section. But yeah, the whole idea of this post was about sound deadening (not sound proofing), how easy it is to learn how to do, and the awesome value of the Noico 80 product. The results with Noico 80 are amazing and it won't set you back nearly as much as Dynamat.

Amazon current prices:
  • Noico 80 - $63.99 for 36 sq ft ($1.77 sq ft) x 2 = $127.98
  • Dynamat Xtreme $168.95 for 36 sq ft ($4.69 sq ft) x 2 = $337.90
  • To do the whole tub, firewall, floors, walls, doors and all, you need x 2 for a total of 72 sq ft.
As Chris said, if you take time to do some research and read the reviews from both professionals and end users alike, there is not a world of difference in the product quality and end result. I've read about folks paying $1200 to have this done by a professional. I did it my garage in a few hours for $127.98 and I also have the piece of mind that it got done properly. This is just a win all around if you don't have money to burn.

P.S. Noico has sealing/finishing tape in silver on Amazon as well. I bought that as well, but didn't show it in any pics. The quality was also good.

Yes, I bought that finishing tape as well!

By the way, since you are the original poster, you're always welcome to go back and edit the original post if you so please. I'm only mentioning that since you may want to add or remove from it.

I didn't know about the Noico until you posted about this, but I'm glad I found out. The Dynamat is more than double the price, and with all the reviews I read comparing the two, I just didn't see the sense in paying that much more for the Dynamat, when no one seemed to think it was infinitely better.
 
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I also did some research on Noico vs Dynamat. I am not looking to completely sound proof my Jeep, but rather using this to see if it'll help with deadening the vibrations I have post regear. As such, I decided to go with Noico ultimately for the main reason that it does 80+% of what Dynamat does at a much lower cost. I think it'll be plenty good for my intended purpose.
 
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A few notes from my installation. I used Siless brand 80 mil product (from Amazon), and taped the seams with 3M 3350 foil tape (from Lowes), similar to what's used in HVAC work.

For a roller I used this

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GMOI98S/?tag=wranglerorg-20

It worked fine, but my forearms were sore the next day from squeezing/pushing while doing the installation. Maybe a roller with a bearing would have been easier.

After rolling the floor pans, I could see the outline of the stiffener groove patterns in the sound deadening material. I used the rounded end of the roller handle to push the sound deadening material into the grooves for good adhesion.

For the seat mount bolt holes, after rolling, I could see the outline of the holes. I used a gasket punch, twisting back and forth, to cut a hole in the sound deadening material that was slightly larger than the bolt hole.

I can't edit one of my previous posts, but wanted to clarify how much material I used. My LJ took 65+ sq. ft. and not 55+ sq. ft. to do the floors, sidewalls, and firewall up to the OEM material. Nothing was added to the doors.
 
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For a roller I used this

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GMOI98S/?tag=wranglerorg-20

It worked fine, but my forearms were sore the next day from squeezing/pushing while doing the installation. Maybe a roller with a bearing would have been easier.

That was the one I was going to buy until I read the reviews. Everyone seemed to be complaining that it doesn't roll easily as there is no ball bearing. The ones I got instead have ball bearings, and the roller itself is a very, very heavy piece of metal.

No idea if it will make that much of a difference, but I'm hoping it makes it a bit easier to apply.

Thank goodness that the inside of the TJ isn't that big at least!
 
@Chris @psrivats - It would be great if you guys can do the doors last to see what additional difference it makes. I am likely going to do my doors at some point, but curious to know how much it will help. My full doors seal well, so I don’t notice excess noise coming from there, but I’m sure there would be some benefit. I’m going to start paying more attention to see how much road noise I can hear in certain conditions coming from the door.
 
@Chris @psrivats - It would be great if you guys can do the doors last to see what additional difference it makes. I am likely going to do my doors at some point, but curious to know how much it will help. My full doors seal well, so I don’t notice excess noise coming from there, but I’m sure there would be some benefit. I’m going to start paying more attention to see how much road noise I can hear in certain conditions coming from the door.

I'll have to take the door panel off, roll up the window, and see how much access I have to be able to get in there and apply the stuff. But assuming I have enough access, I intend to put it inside the doors as well!

I'll let you know!
 
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A few notes from my installation. I used Siless brand 80 mil product (from Amazon), and taped the seams with 3M 3350 foil tape (from Lowes), similar to what's used in HVAC work.

For a roller I used this

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GMOI98S/?tag=wranglerorg-20

It worked fine, but my forearms were sore the next day from squeezing/pushing while doing the installation. Maybe a roller with a bearing would have been easier.

After rolling the floor pans, I could see the outline of the stiffener groove patterns in the sound deadening material. I used the rounded end of the roller handle to push the sound deadening material into the grooves for good adhesion.

For the seat mount bolt holes, after rolling, I could see the outline of the holes. I used a gasket punch, twisting back and forth, to cut a hole in the sound deadening material that was slightly larger than the bolt hole.

I can't edit one of my previous posts, but wanted to clarify how much material I used. My LJ took 65+ sq. ft. and not 55+ sq. ft. to do the floors, sidewalls, and firewall up to the OEM material. Nothing was added to the doors.

That’s the roller I used. Pretty cheap, but got the job done! I had to torque down the screws that were holding the roller in because they were loose and backing out after rolling for a bit.
 
@Chris @psrivats - It would be great if you guys can do the doors last to see what additional difference it makes. I am likely going to do my doors at some point, but curious to know how much it will help. My full doors seal well, so I don’t notice excess noise coming from there, but I’m sure there would be some benefit. I’m going to start paying more attention to see how much road noise I can hear in certain conditions coming from the door.

I'll be doing the doors much later. First priority is the tub to see if it helps any with the vibration problem. I'll definitely post an update here.
 
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Where else can you find such camaraderie and collaboration, with this type of detail for sound deadening!!! Wow I learned something new, that I have to start messing with, and I thought my TJ was done!! rofl!
 
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I've been sitting on similar research and a bunch of Second Skin Audio sound deadening materials for a couple years. I don't think Noico was around back then. Or at least if I had noticed it I would probably have gone in that direction. But I hit a yearly sale at Second Skin (which is just as good if not better - it does have black backing that doesn't come off on your hands) and it ended up costing me very little compared to other similarly rated products. They also sell a "B" quality that is just roll ends. That works exactly the same it's just smaller pieces which would work fine for a Jeep.

I used to hang out on the Samba. The VW forum. And there is alot of talk and research on this for busses. As they are typically living quarters as well as a ride. All agree that Dynamat is way over priced. And that you need a sound deadener layer and a mat sound/heat layer. For both holding the heat in in the winter and keeping the cool in in the summer.

So I also bought a heat shield/sound deadening layer for going between the sound deadener and the carpet. Or on top of the sound deadener with 3M adhesive. It's here http://www.carinsulation.com/ It used to be called "EZ Cool Insulation by Lobucrod". (if you want to research it) But now it just goes by "car insulation" on that one site. He got out of the business and someone else took over. It looks like a do nothing website. But it's raved about on all the hot rod forums (especially on Jalopy Journal IIRC). As many sound deadening and heat strategies add a second layer of some form of mat to further deaden sound and/or heat. It's about $80 for an entire jeep. Specs are as follows:

Reduces unwanted sound & most vibrations
Effectively blocks 97% of radiant heat transfer
Keeps your interior cooler in the Summer & warmer in the Winter
Extremely light-weight, flexible, & crush resistant
Creates a mold & mildew resistant vapor barrier
Non-toxic & fragrance free (Will not smell)
Very easy to cut, handle, & install


Nominal Thickness: 1/4"
Temperature Rating: 200 Degrees nominal
Core Material: Polyethylene closed cell foam core
Minimum Installed R-Value: 1+ (Varies depending on installation & vehicle)
Outer Material: 99.4% pure polished aluminum reinforced facing
Double Sided: Yes (Aluminum on both sides)
Mildew & Mold Resistant: Yes
Weight: 0.04lbs per Sq. Ft.
Water Resistant: Yes
Adhesive backing: No
Non-toxic: Yes


"Creates a mold & mildew resistant vapor barrier". This is important if your doing your doors. (and everywhere else in the car for that matter) Once you get your door panel off you'll likely encounter a vapor barrier to keep moisture out of behind your doors. If you can salvage what's there keep it. Or use another type of poly. My strategy was to use this car insulation over the sound deadener on the inside of the doors themselves and then over the window opening in the bottom part of the door as a vapor barrier. Cut to shape from hopefully the original - it would work really well. Both to keep moisture out of your doors but also to provide another layer of sound and heat barrier.

But the real reason I like this stuff is it's really light weight (not to mention it's great stats above). Like a huge roll of 80sqft can be held up with a couple fingers. You cut it to fit and hold it down with 3m Adhesive. Not to mention it provides added padding to your carpet. Think of it as house insulation over your adhered sound deadener. One traps the vibrations/sound and the other more of the sound/heat.

SO if you live in an extremely cold or hot climate it will help alot with heat and cold. Not that we have that much of an issue with that with our great heaters and AC. (Not being sarcastic.) But it will definitely help with heat and cold and sound.

On the topic of water. I wouldn't be worried about sound deadener itself getting wet. It's pretty much impenetrable. But the tiny grooves and edges and pockets left between or under the sound deadener could very easily trap water on the metal surface of your tub. As hosed water would work it's way into the edges and seams you create. I don't think light rain or a small leak would be a problem. But I don't think I would hose out my vehicle after this.

Unless you used a lesser strategy of just applying a few large swaths of sound deadener on each "panel" in the jeep. That weren't touching each other. Then just make sure it's worked down good. And you leave it open to dry overnight. Point being the water won't be able to get under the properly adhered sound deadener. Especially along the edges.

But even adding single sections of this stuff to a given metal panel can result is serious gains in sound deadening. As it stops the vibration as long as a minimum of the panel is covered in the stuff. That's why you see it used so conservatively in modern cars. Even older cars. My bugs had it as thick tar paper with a terribly good adhesion quality. You'd have to use dry ice to get it out. But only over the driveline hump and a couple other places.

But in most cars whatever sound deadener they use it's usually not covering the entire surface of the cabin. Just big patches of it over each panel. Leaving the majority of the metal not covered. In terms of water getting under it. I'd think you'd have a better chance of adhering single sheets to the metal. That water couldn't get under. And with wide empty patches around each section of sound deadener the water would have a place to go and evaporate.

My point is that I think even if you wanted to hose your Jeep out. You could still use this stuff. Sparingly and get great results. But once you put it down I have no idea how to get it out. So keep that in mind.

Once I pull my carpet and put this stuff down. And take pics and do a how to.

car3.jpg
 
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Following @mots lead, I finished insulating the rear of my TJ today.

I used the Noico 80 mil sound deadening material as the base. I went a step further than most of these other guys though and used the Noico 170 mil insulation on top of it.

Here's some photos of the finished product:

IMG_2423.JPG
IMG_2424.JPG
IMG_2425.JPG


Tomorrow I'm going to do the front, which should hopefully be easier than the back. I'll tell you, even with as pliable as this stuff is, doing the rear was time consuming, and a pain in the butt due to the curvature of the wheel wells. I had to do a number of smaller pieces to fill in the areas that the material wouldn't easily conform to.

It looks excellent though, and with 250 mil of material, this should make the inside much, much quieter.
 
Following @mots lead, I finished insulating the rear of my TJ today.

I used the Noico 80 mil sound deadening material as the base. I went a step further than most of these other guys though and used the Noico 170 mil insulation on top of it.

Here's some photos of the finished product:

View attachment 69100View attachment 69101View attachment 69102

Tomorrow I'm going to do the front, which should hopefully be easier than the back. I'll tell you, even with as pliable as this stuff is, doing the rear was time consuming, and a pain in the butt due to the curvature of the wheel wells. I had to do a number of smaller pieces to fill in the areas that the material wouldn't easily conform to.

It looks excellent though, and with 250 mil of material, this should make the inside much, much quieter.

Great job! And it actually matches your interior well. I don't think I would even notice any of it that ended up outside of your carpet.
 
Great job! And it actually matches your interior well. I don't think I would even notice any of it that ended up outside of your carpet.

I know! That grey layer of insulation looks good enough that any of it left exposed won't be noticeable. I'm happy with the way it turned out. Time consuming for sure, but this should be worth it I think!
 
I know! That grey layer of insulation looks good enough that any of it left exposed won't be noticeable. I'm happy with the way it turned out. Time consuming for sure, but this should be worth it I think!

How long did it take you to lay just the first layer of sound deadener down in the back?
 
How long did it take you to lay just the first layer of sound deadener down in the back?

I would say 3 hours if you include cleaning and prepping, taking the seat / carpet out, and cutting everything to fit. The stuff goes on easy and is very pliable, but like I said, you have to take your time on the curved surfaces, as you don't want to do it sloppily.

The second layer actually went down a bit easier, but I think by that time I had gotten the hang of it, so I was moving faster.

The front actually looks easier mostly just because I can lay down huge strips to go over the tunnel and into the floor pans. I'll have the front done tomorrow.
 
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I would say 3 hours if you include cleaning and prepping, taking the seat / carpet out, and cutting everything to fit. The stuff goes on easy and is very pliable, but like I said, you have to take your time on the curved surfaces, as you don't want to do it sloppily.

The second layer actually went down a bit easier, but I think by that time I had gotten the hang of it, so I was moving faster.

The front actually looks easier mostly just because I can lay down huge strips to go over the tunnel and into the floor pans. I'll have the front done tomorrow.

I'll bet if you drove your Jeep right now. You'd notice the difference even with just the back done. I think that combo you used is a killer for sound.
 
I'll bet if you drove your Jeep right now. You'd notice the difference even with just the back done. I think that combo you used is a killer for sound.

I'm sure you're right. I'm also going to add the Hot Heads headliner to the hardtop, and put this material inside of the full doors. I'm going to try and get it as quiet as possible, especially with the headers going on.
 
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