How to Insulate Exhaust Piping
A lot of heat can escape from the metal surrounding the exhaust system inside a car or other vehicle. There are several ways that you can add more insulation to the exhaust system to help contain and control some of the excess heat. These insulation methods are inexpensive, easy to install and will make quite a bit of difference in the amount of heat that escapes from the exhaust system.
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Things You'll Need
- Degreasing cleanser
- Soft cloth
- Header wrap
- Scissors
- Reflective shield
- Pop rivets
- Rivet gun
- Reflective heat tape
- Muffler cover
- High temperature contact adhesive
- Heat sleeves
Instructions
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Work on the exhaust system when the engine has been cold for several hours. If you used the car that day, wait until the following morning to work on the exhaust system to protect your hands. Clean the exhaust pipes with a degreasing cleanser and a soft cloth. This eliminates all dirt and grease from the pipes and helps the insulation material stick to the exhaust pipes better.
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Wrap the pipes in adhesive header wrap tape. Use scissors to cut the pieces into 2 foot long pieces and wrap the exhaust pipes one small section at a time. This way you do not have to remove the pipes from the inside of the car. You can also use thermal ties to hold non-adhesive header wrap in place.
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Install a reflective shield to a solid panel above the muffler pipes for additional heat shielding and insulation. Use pop rivets to hold the shield in place under the panel.
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Tape over any holes in the firewall or engine bed with reflective heat tape. This prevents the heat from escaping out of the exhaust system and into other parts of the vehicle.
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Install a muffler cover over the muffler system for additional insulation. Attach the muffler cover with high temperature contact adhesive.
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Tips & Warnings
If desired, you can use heat sleeves over the exhaust pipes rather than heat wrap. Heat sleeves work best with mufflers and other parts of the exhaust system that have straight pipes and no curves.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit bike exhaust image by Dumitrescu Ciprian from Fotolia.com
