How I Restored the Rusty Rain Gutters | 1996 Ford E-350 Econoline Van

[@EricThePilot]

I think im 2 years behind you. Ive got a 2010 E-350. First i studied your gas tank cleaning video with pump swap. Also taking that time to replace the back shocks since the tank was out. Now I'm tackling the rust you show in this video! Thanks for the details, good video production and no extra BS.

[@4WheelKid]

Nice! My build is coming along great, should be working on the fun stuff inside before long. My shocks were originalI got 4 kyb gas adjust shocks for dirt cheap closeout sale and factory rebate,

[@zac0912]

Awesome job man! I've used Dicor many times on my Camper. You have to keep an eye on it every year or two. Cool thing is, you can just clean it up and rub down with a little denatured alcohol and re-apply more dicor over it or any spots that start to crack and/or it scrapes out easy with a heat gun, if you ever just want to redo it. Also, dont worry about flattening it out with your finger, just come back the next day and that stuff will be level, self levels great, as you know. I also justs started repairing my 1980 Yota truck. If you are gonna seam seal anywhere you can see, just put painters tape on either side of the channel and apply seam sealer to the channel, then remove the tape and you will have awesome straight lines. Don't matter for your app, as its just on the roof nobody will ever see. I slopped it on around my floor patches too, lol.

[@4WheelKid]

thanks! yeah will need to be looked after for sure. for sure! good tips. nice. I got some seam sealer to protect the back side of my welds

[@jacobsmith1174]

Absolutely badass right there, I had recently purchased a 1974 (approximately, if the taillights are the factory installed) Ford Econoline E-350 conversion trailer (Front end was chopped off, presumably due to some front end collision due to side doors slightly off kilter on top and bottom) as a camper for work, and hopefully eventually for adventures and vacations. Mine has quite a bit of rust in the gutters with horribly cracked up sealant, Your video is definitely helpful in getting me on the right track to get this fixed properly so that I have no rain gutter issues, looking forward for more of your videos to see if they can be a helpful resource! Keep up the good work.

[@4WheelKid]

Hey glad to hear and cool project! The dicor held up super well!

[@4WheelKid]

More videos to come

[@MrTraildust]

Can’t wait to see this thing done!! You’re going to have the best van build in the van life game, no doubt.

[@4WheelKid]

Glad to hear, thanks! Haha not sure about the best build but maybe the best build for the money maybe. Much appreciated

[@fryreartechnology7611]

You did a better job caulking your van then I was able to on my new shower. Awesome works!

[@4WheelKid]

Haha thanks! The dicor stuff is nice because its self leveling. Almost cheating

[@Maples01]

The seam sealer used at the factory is 2 tubes that mix as it comes out, takes a lot to fill it in, you went to the trouble of getting it out, fill it right, in fact you want to top it for good, put bedliner paint on the roof and into the gutter, you can get it tinted white, its durable.

[@4WheelKid]

for sure, I thought I would do it right so I could get all the rust out, worked really well. funny you say that because that is exactly what I did, I stripped the entire roof to bare metal, removed all the rust in the channels. sprayed with raptor anti corrosive epoxy primer (can withstand 2000 hours of salt water spray. then raptor liner in white the roof, actually raptor lining the entire exterior of the van. turning out great. have videos filmed on it just haven't got to editing them yet

[@Maples01]

@@4WheelKid I just saw that video, I wish I could do my roof, can't reach it from a wheelchair tho. I have 2 vans, a 99 E350 and an 89 E150, had to replace the entire front floor pans of the 150, the 350 I've had for 20 years, no rust in the floor, but its leaking, tore out the padding under the carpet the other day as it was wet. Sent the 89 to a shop to replace the passenger rocker panel, it and the backing is rotten, they filled it with bondo, didn't even get it level, so I get to level it off and crawl under to patch the steel backing myself, no one will do it. I don't like the lift sitting on rotten steel, the floor and step are solid, but what is under looks like a gram cracker, just crumbles, wish I had a shop to do it.

[@carlosquintana6930]

If you going to paint the roof, I will recommend to use flexseal with a small roller I did it on my van a few years ago and never have a problem after that and I live in Massachusetts

[@4WheelKid]

interesting, I like using flex seal in my wheel wells. I stripped and painted the roof already but had a failure, due to painting when it was too hot, live and learn

[@jerryhayden8720]

I have a 93 E 350 Club Wagon same color and all except it's got the IDI diesel in it. Anyway I'm going to restore mine and turn it into somewhat of a camper also but want to be able to take out and change up the inside so the inside may look permanent it's not going to be screwed or nailed down but somehow have buckles or something like that. I used to have a Dodge Maxi Van that didn't have window's but I'm going to leave the window's in this one and use curtains. I missed the Maxi Van so bad that I had to get another big van and when a neighbor decided to sell his Club Wagon I had to buy it. Unfortunately it needs a lot of tlc. I'm glad you're doing this and what you're doing looks plenty good enough for me. Good luck and best wishes from the land of humidity and rust, Kentucky.

[@4WheelKid]

very cool! the older diesel engines are cool because they don't have all the new emissions stuff. that sounds very doable. check out this profile on instagram, instagram.com/vandoitco/?hl=en looks modular and easy to remove. maybe you can get some good ideas. cool. I would rather have cargo also with maybe only rear door windows and side door windows. only bad thing about the cargo vans is that they are usually all beat to crap. unlike the club wagons that are usually in a bit better shape. yeah mine does as well. hopefully your rust isn't too bad. I currently have the fuel tank out of mine. doing a new delphi pump unit. and cleaning up the tank with a nice outer coating. also cleaning up and rust encapsulating the frame around the tank area. best of luck! ill be showing almost everything I do on the van here editing on a spark plug video right now. but I know yours doesn't have those haha

[@jerryhayden8720]

@@4WheelKid my Dodge Maxivan was a cargo van but this Club Wagon used to be a church van and it has the windows which I like and will use curtains. The inside is already gutted except for the bench seat behind the front two seats and unfortunately apparently someone didn't know to pull and turn or back a trailer and each side of the back is caved in somewhat with a small hole punched in one side. It's definitely going to be a job.

[@jakecruger6175]

I have a club wagon 350 that I camp in and the roof had started to rust all over and the putty? around the drip rail was all cracked. I sanded the rust and coated the roof with white flex seal paint. Its been helpful with how hot it gets in the van too.

[@4WheelKid]

yeah they like to rust here over time. hope that works well for you. mine has been great since I did this fix

[@dualdorks]

Hell yeah! I been living under a rock and never realized you had a second channel about the van build 🤣

[@riverrat8693]

Lol same

[@4WheelKid]

Haha, i always had this channel just never talked about it. But thought it would be cool to use fir the van build.

[@dualdorks]

@@4WheelKid that's awesome 🤣 *crawls back under formentioned rock*

[@Jason_Buckout]

Thx for the update man, good luck on the rest of it

[@4WheelKid]

no problem! thank you, just did the spark plugs the other night as well. Got a lot to do to it.

[@Jason_Buckout]

@@4WheelKid awesome I love that it's a old youth van, it has a more sentimental value 👍

[@oggarage3459]

Nice video. I think i need to do this to my 15 passanger van every time it rains. Water gets in, and my head liner is stained up, so i better do it soon. Thanks for the video.

[@4WheelKid]

thank you! yeah very likely that's where the water is coming in at, also the 3rd brake light and rear windows like to leak also. best of luck, hopefully not too much rust

[@ferg4355]

I'm going to be doing this on my van soon. The products you recommend seem like they are the best for what i need thanks! Doing van roof work on a ladder is so much fun... Dont let the sloppy job comments bug you. Keep at it and hopefully you can do an update on how its holding up. Tapeing would have helped but oh well. I appreciate you made a good video on how you tackled this process. Just curious why you went with the two different sealants?

[@4WheelKid]

Cool! It was a lot of work getting it to bare metal but well worth it in the long run. Yeah that Eastwood rust encapsulator platinum is amazing stuff. Very versatile. Thanks. Should have used some tape but im happy how it turned out not too concerned about it looking perfect just don’t want it to rust and the roof to leak. Just wanted to use a higher quality sealant where the 2 pieces of metal come together and are spot welded. And dicor was just cheaper to fill in the rest. I wanted to use a bit more so water doesn’t sit in there as much

[@gorillaninja78]

Caulking I find tricky lol looks great though! I’m really looking forward to move vids! ✌🏻🇨🇦

[@4WheelKid]

Yeah can be hard to work with for sure. Glad to hear, just filmed a spark plug video on it

[@randyhoepker5528]

I have used the original Eastwood rust encapsulator and had good luck with it. The platinum encapsulator ought to last for 20 years! lol 😅Didn’t see if you applied any to channel area on bottom side of gutter. Hopefully you did before you sealed it again. Luckily you’re in a dry climate, so rust isn’t as nasty as in the Midwest due to our higher humidity. Looks like a good repair overall!

[@4WheelKid]

yeah me too way back in the day on my 4runner frame, it's such great stuff. yeah that platinum is some amazing stuff! it was still in perfect condition a year later when I stripped the roof and re painted. not a sign of rust where I had painted it in the roof rails, the Dicor was just a bit dirty. I did redo the seam sealer below the gutter using masking tape before I painted the van, yeah stuff doesn't rust fast here, thanks! ill always have some eastwood rust encapsulator platinum on hand

[@yogibeer9319]

You did an awesome job there 👍🏼. This video helps me a lot cause my Ford van has the exact same issue and I wasn’t sure how to approach it. Thanks! Oh, how is it holding up?

[@4WheelKid]

thanks so much! it has held up great. years later, that eastwood rust encapsulator platinum is amazing stuff.

[@nickmenchaca1061]

Thanks for sharing. I appreciate the videos, helps a lot.

[@4WheelKid]

No problem! Glad to help

[@nickmenchaca1061]

What are your long term plans for the van? Just curious.

[@Floridacarfishing]

Super helpful thanks man 👍🏾

[@4WheelKid]

no problem! it's worked out great so far

[@ridethroughlifertl]

That thins is going to be sick. You should try one of those Chinese diesel heaters and tell us how it is. I thought about getting one for my van, but never did.

[@4WheelKid]

For sure! Cant wait to really get going on it. Actually already got a diesel heater kit. They seem like they work well if setup correctly. Will be doing vids on that for sure

[@ridethroughlifertl]

@@4WheelKid Sweet, looking forward to it.

[@michaelbacile8439]

Function Over form, I just did the same thing to my old beat up work van. The roof line is like 7-8ft off the ground lol. Nobody will ever see it unless they’re on a ladder snooping. As long is it keeps the weather out it’s fine 👍🏼 I haven’t used dicore, I just used a 3m sealer and spread in out kinda thick and painted over the roof. How is yours holding up?

[@4WheelKid]

Yeah for sure, not a huge deal on a older van, im about to paint the whole van with raptor liner so far it has held up great, that rust encapsulator platinum paint from Eastwood makes a huge difference

[@miker2585]

How has the sealant held up on the rain gutters - the 3m and the dicor - 2 years later now? And how long to wait to paint? Thanks!

[@4WheelKid]

Its held up great so far, I would wait a while maybe a week to be safe to paint over but it holds paint well

[@moonage_daydreamer]

Do you have a video of how you restored the rest of the roof?

[@4WheelKid]

I have it filmed but not done yet, first time was a failure. since it was too hot when spraying but the second time it seems to be holding up well

[@JRMooreMusic]

If you can remember, how long did it take you to do this? I very much need to do the same to my '04 E350. Roof is in rough shape. Looks like a big job.

[@4WheelKid]

Probably about 2 weeks but wasn’t working on it non stop, cause I work full time, probably could knock it out in 5 days if you have more time to spend, and waiting for the paint to dry fully, that Eastwood rust encapsulator is great stuff, sat outside for like 8 months, before I could fully paint the roof, still was in great shape, no peeling, lifting or rust, gotta do good prep work though

[@ericingersoll7243]

Did you ever have any issues with putting the 3M seam sealer over the top of the seam sealer underneath the rain gutter? I ask because I'm thinking of doing the same thing (I don't feel like scrapping that small bead of seam sealer out). And thanks for your video!

[@4WheelKid]

No problems at all! Its held up great

[@ericingersoll7243]

@@4WheelKid Great to hear, thanks for the reply!

[@ctll1109]

Nice video! How did 3M hold up? Any peeling on the paint? What did you end up doing with the other rusty parts? Im working on a 2007 e150 and I'm looking ideas to fix a rust roof

[@4WheelKid]

thanks! it all held up great over a year later, no peeling or rust at all, the dicor just got a little dirty but easy to clean and it looked like new, I also have recently restored the entire roof, got it completely down to bare metal. primed with anticorrosive epoxy primer and it has been raptor lined in white but I kept the work I did on the rain gutters underneath. video will be coming eventually

[@4WheelKid]

it depends on how rusty your roof is one what you will want to do. That eastwood ecapsulator platinum is amazing stuff but you still want to do good prep work

[@attylaracpa]

How’s the rain gutter today? Mine is not yet done, i’m waiting for the summer time.

[@4WheelKid]

Great! Just a little dirty but sealing great

[@superjonboy873]

Hello, do you remember how long it took to remove the sealant in the gutters? Thanks!

[@4WheelKid]

Like 2 afternoons. Flat wire wheel on angle grinder will make it fast

[@superjonboy873]

@@4WheelKid Great, thank you. I'm about to do this on my 1993 E350 Club Wagon soon.

[@juliannelennard4554]

What was the sealant you used in the gutter itself, you said you can pain over it? I'm using resin with cloth patches in a few places, then sanding back and getting it ready to paint. But I need a good sealant, as my gutter is almost identical in the express van I have. Cheers mate.

[@4WheelKid]

I used 3m seam sealer along the seam itself and then dicor self leveling on top. holding up great still a year later. best of luck!

[@mwholmes2006]

Were you able to get 100% of the old sealant out? I’m on this job now and find there’s a thin bead in the bottom corner that’s really difficult to get out. My wire wheel doesn’t reach it.

[@4WheelKid]

I pretty much did got all of it, I used a heavy duty twisted wire wheel on a angle grinder, as long as it's scuffed up well the new sealant should bond well to it, I'm a huge fan of that dicor stuff I used, it accepts paint extremely well, had it outside for over a year and was holding up perfectly, just got dirty but wasn't too hard to clean. main thing is to get rid of all that rust, and use a rust encapsulator paint like I did if you apply any sealant over rust directly. moisture will get under the sealant and accelerate any rusting cause it gets trapped

[@mwholmes2006]

@@4WheelKid thanks! I am using the same rust encapsulator as you and also a twisted wire wheel but there’s just this thin recessed bead of old sealant that’s really tricky to get out! Hope the encapsulator will bond to any left in there. I dropped cash on the 3M self leveling sealant and hope it’ll last forever. Will prime, paint, and clear coat over top of that with rattle can auto paint. I really appreciate your videos and advice!

[@cookiezombie6133]

Nice job

[@4WheelKid]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@jaygold4467]

You wayyyyyy ove applied the dicor. You should have taped off with blue painters tape for clean lines. Sloppy job.

[@alexvalas8347]

Does over applying means the dicor is going to peel off or cause any leaks soon?

[@4WheelKid]

I don't think so mine has held up great. the factory sealant was thick I don't care as much how mine looks as much because it's just a van. using masking tape is a good idea though