Request for advice regarding viable cold weather rust preventative measures

T

tibug

Hi everyone. I'm not sure if I've posted here before, but I've had an account for a while. I've been having a great experience this past year using SPI Epoxy Primer on my Dakota rebuild. First of all, it's a truck and it is meant to be used as a truck, so appearances are of little concern to me. I'm all about longevity and functionality...well, time will tell if that is true. :)

The problem I have right now is that I need to replace the driver's side floor in the cab. I have the cab off of the truck and it's sitting outside. There is no possibility of moving the cab inside. I have cut out the rusted floor, and cleaned up the surrounding edges over which the new sheet metal will lay. However, it is now too cold to use any paints.

Questions:

The metal is going to be spot welded all the way around, so would I be right to assume that the heat from the welding will compromise pretty much any coating applied anyway?
What-if anything-can I use in cold weather to inhibit rust between the new sheet metal and the old floor overlap?
Do you think seam sealer applied externally after the floor is installed would be sufficient to keep rust from forming in the overlap? - hopefully the answer is yes, because that would make things easy! :)

This is my first time doing any of this sort of work. This project has brought me my first compressor, my first welder, even my first angle grinder! So please go easy on this noob.

Here's the floor before I cut it. (not that it helps much)



Here's the frame as a rolling chassis (barely). This is pretty much how it sits now but it's got all the steering stuff in it now, fuel tank and brake lines.



I'd appreciate any words of wisdom.

Thanks,
Tim
 
Well epoxy would be the #1 choice to stop rust but if you really can't spray any primer on it consider some type of oil like what they use on New sheet metal parts and brake rotors, you will just have to clean it really well when it comes time to prime
 
After re-reading this it sound like you want to weld the panel in outside? I thought you meant just storing it outside with my first reply. Just heat it up with heat gun and spray some weld-thru primer around the edge where it overlaps and the use some good seam sealer on both sides to seal it up
 
Thanks much for the responses!

I'd heard of weld thru primer but didn't know how good it was. I have some good seam sealer ready. From what I've been reading, lap welds are frowned upon by many and are inherently prone to rusting...but its really all I can do.

At least I can paint the replacement steel indoors.

I am excited because this is the last big thing (for me this is a daunting task) i have to do before it can all go back together. Thanks again! :)
 
Maybe you could prime it as usual and put a halogen light on it
afterwards to keep it warm and to cure, it doesn't take much to keep the
panel real warm if it's kept covered and out of the wind.

I have been known to put an electric blanket on a panel once it's set
enough to not be disturbed by it. I cook it at about 120 deg.
 
I used jclarks blanket method a couple weeks ago, I had a superduty with 8" of lift and 38's that wouldn't make it in the bay door so we spray the bedsides outdoors, I warmed the panels with the blankets over night, sprayed in the morning and then when all.had flashed layer the blankets back on, it worked a charm, who'd have thought the Midwest would have seen 10 degree nights in early November.....
 
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