Repairing floor rust

[XJ Wheeler]

Well, I gone and done it. Taking on the floor rust before I move on to replacing my rotted rockers for something thicker. But I thought I would separate the threads so anyone wanting see the rocker mod in the future wouldn't have to wade through the floor stuff.

The unsuspecting, and pretty filthy (will ask for tips on that later) carpet hides way too much. Being my jeep lived in iowa before i got it I knew i'm in for some work but between the carpet and undercoating I didn't really know what to expect.

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More to getting the carpet out than I thought but it went smoothly.

[XJ Wheeler]

Once the carpet was out the damage was apparent. But not too bad, since the rockers are about 50% either gone or near flying off.


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I wanted a better look so I took a wire wheel to the worst spots and opened up a few more... :rolleyes:

Front Passenger

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Rear Passenger

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Front Driver

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And quite a shock the rear driver pan was perfect, like show room immaculate. Especially since the worst spot on the rockers are attached to it.

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[XJ Wheeler]

Mostly anything that ate through got cut out. The others are small and I am hoping to fill them. Hopes aren't high for that though. 12 new floor vents... and one for a heater. :rolleyes:

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I do realize this isn't the best way to go about this, but I can in no way afford new floor pans so this will get me by for a few more years.

[abebehrmann]

. 12 new floor vents... and one for a heater. :rolleyes:

Those are speed holes, they make the Jeep go faster.

For maximum heating ability, drill some holes in the muffler to allow for thermal expansion. :smiley-scared003:

Good work Jake, can't wait to see the finished product!

[4.3LXJ]

I think you will be just fine doing it like this. You don't have all that much rust to deal with

[xj-jake]

Agreed. Looking good so far Jake. I cringe when I think about what's under the carpet of mine. Keep us updated with pics and good luck!

[XJ Wheeler]

Those are speed holes, they make the Jeep go faster.

For maximum heating ability, drill some holes in the muffler to allow for thermal expansion. :smiley-scared003:

Good work Jake, can't wait to see the finished product!
Lol, I could use a bit more top end. [emoji14]

I think you will be just fine doing it like this. You don't have all that much rust to deal with
Thanks, Steve. I was surprised it wasn't worse. Will definitely be glad to have this taken care of finally.

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[XJ Wheeler]

Agreed. Looking good so far Jake. I cringe when I think about what's under the carpet of mine. Keep us updated with pics and good luck!
Thanks Jake! Exactly how I felt about mine for years. I also want to clean up under the floor to check and seal both sides but I don't have a sand blaster and it would take way to long with a grinder. Hmmm, Christmas is coming up... :D

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[XJ Wheeler]

I got the patch panels fabbed up. Really wanted to get them tacked in but I ran out of time. Just pics of the more complicated ones. I tell you guys, the HF body hammer set came in very handy.

Drivers side

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[XJ Wheeler]

Passenger

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[4.3LXJ]

Nice work Jake. You might want to lay a strip of metal under the seam. It will make the welding so much easier

[XJ Wheeler]

Nice work Jake. You might want to lay a strip of metal under the seam. It will make the welding so much easier

Oh, I like the sound of that! To keep a puddle forming and not burning through? I've got a piece of aluminum flat bar. Its pretty thin but you think will that work?

[xj-jake]

Yes the aluminum will work just fine Jake. We used to use chunks of aluminum for backers when I worked at the trailer building place. The advantage to aluminum is the puddle won't stick to I and you'll be able to remove it easily. The only down side is that the back side of the weld (the side against the aluminum) may look a little different. Hit it with a wire wheel or flap disk and you should be fine.

[XJ Wheeler]

Yes the aluminum will work just fine Jake. We used to use chunks of aluminum for backers when I worked at the trailer building place. The advantage to aluminum is the puddle won't stick to I and you'll be able to remove it easily. The only down side is that the back side of the weld (the side against the aluminum) may look a little different. Hit it with a wire wheel or flap disk and you should be fine.
Cool! I've wanted to pick up a welding spoon for a while. It's not much at HF, just haven't "needed" it.

Thanks to you both. Let you know how it goes.

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[denverd1]

Looks great bro! And props on pulling the rug and doing it right. Patches look perfect. Good idea on backing the seams too. Alum makes even more sense

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[XJ Wheeler]

Well, its been a few days but I got the new panels in. Had a ton of burning through and other issues. The welder i'm using doesn't have the typical adjustments though. I may go back later to do a bit of fine tuning but it'll have to wait.

Some of the panels... I won't risk retinal detachment by posting the worse welds.

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[oderdene]

Well done bro, looks good

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[4.3LXJ]

Looks good to me too

[nickyg]

I'm sure your worst weld looks much better the my best weld.

[autotech98]

Looks good jake.

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[blazer2]

Good job Jake

[XJ Wheeler]

Much appreciated guys! Sorry for the delay.

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