I’ve a question about builds.

Obviously, a lot of builds on YouTube or whatever have wood or other rigid siding inside to make it look nice.

But I was thinking–why not, like, put rugs against the wall? Or fabric? Over your insulation? Why not some sort of cheap board that has wallpaper with a nice design pasted to it? Seems like a bunch of drapey fabric would both be lighter weight, and just as pretty. And some hard backing with wallpaper would be lighter and pretty too.

Is there a downside that I’m too much a newbie to get? Fire hazard? Moisture-trapping? Would it get dingy with dust or something?

(I could see wallpaper un-sticking with time, I suppose, moisture messing with the glue and making it all moldy, and perhaps that’s why nobody I’ve looked at has done that idea.)

Or is it simply a cultural thing where everyone does wood because they saw it elsewhere and it looked nice, so everyone copies and doesn’t think of alternatives?

I’m just trying to brainstorm here and figure out if there’s a hazard I’m unaware of or not.

  • @PhlogistonEnglish
    3•1 year ago

    A lot of my interior is a kinda durable thin carpet glued to the wood. There are plenty of textiles commonly used for this.

    My next van will be raw wood, laminate, or something. Its nice to have the softer feel and it kinda cuts down on noise but I’m coming around to it also being kinda harder to clean, it can pick up smells from cooking, and generally I’d just like to be able to wipe it down with a damp cloth if needed.

    similarly i don’t really understand all the carpet people put down. we have a coin floor with one rubber backed mat in the kitchen area. it gets SO DIRTY all the time… I’m constantly sweeping it out. I can take the mat outside and beat it – but i’d hate to have to find a vacuum or something everytime i wanted a cleaner floor.

    • @IonAddisOPEnglish
      2•1 year ago

      Yeah, I figured with carpets I wouldn’t attach it to the floor, I’d just have carpets laid down so they can be taken out and shaken/beaten/etc.

      I suppose, if one planned correctly, you could use textiles in such a way that any time you hit a laundromat you could take them down and wash them too. That should help with smells/dirt/etc? But you would have to plan for that and make sure they detach nicely.

      (I’m kinda curious how the inside of your van looks–although I understand if you don’t want to share. I see so many examples of pimped-out $100,000 vans with wood/tile interiors that I’m really tired of it and want to see practical setups, or at least alternate.)