Hi guys,
I have a 2007 Double Cab Taco (short bed) with a Snugtop (installed by toyota when I purchased the truck).
I drive a lot of dust roads to go to areas with very low light pollution to do some night sky observation. I carry a few pieces of equipment that are really dust sensitive. So far I used to carry them in the cab. But as time goes, I get more and more gear and it's just not gonna fit anymore.
I did some research and it seems we can get rid of dust by using some Tailgate seal and by plugging water drains.
I was wondering if some of you already tried some BedRugs? Based on the pictures it seems that it should seal the tailgate, but I am not sure.
I am thinking of getting both some tailgate seal and this Bedrug.
I dunno... it says you can hose it out, so that means it will pass water in order to drain. If it will pass water, it will pass dust also, though it would probably reduce the amount of dust in the bed. As to plugging the drain holes, yeah that will help, but of course it would make it impossible to drain out any water that happened to get it there. Tailgate seals help too -- we had one installed when we bought our hard tonneau.
Not sure what to say. If you get the bed sealed up really well, it won't breathe, and you'll develop mold & mildew problems.
That should take care of any possible moisture problem, then, as long as there's adequate air flow. You posted 'Snugtop' but my brain heard 'Snuglid' so I was thinking of a hard tonneau .
If you can seal it up pretty well, you should be in business. Don't forget about the little storage bins in the sides of the bed -- I think they're just snapped in place and not well sealed, but I'm not positive of that.
Don't forget about the little storage bins in the sides of the bed -- I think they're just snapped in place and not well sealed, but I'm not positive of that.
I found some rubber grommets for the water drain holes. I have to check how I could seal the tool boxes as they do collect dust pretty bad. I plan on getting the full BedRug kit from AA, I don't know yet but I am pretty sure that there is no opening for those tool boxes in the bedrug, so I might as well just permanently close them. That should take care of the dust.
Dust is definitely something that's hard to keep out. Here's all the areas you'll need to consider sealing:
1. Tailgate (which you already knew).
2. Rear Storage Bins. Not only the drain holes, but the holes in which the three tabs on the bottom of the doors sit in (that'll be fun to seal as I can't think offhand of an easy way to do that...maybe add something onto the tabs of the doors?).
3. Storage cubbies over the wheel wells. Those do just pop in and out. I've taken them out several times to rinse them out after firewood cutting.
4. Check at the front of the bed. Where the top of the side pieces come around to the front of the bed, there's a gap that needs to be plugged. I used to get water running into my bed with the tonneau on from these gaps and had to seal it with silicone. Get in the bed and look up underneath the front lip maybe 2-4 inches in from the sides and you should spot it. They're actually pretty large gaps IMO.
__________________
"Think Outside the Box!"
'05 4x4 DC LB SR5 Tow Pkg BFG All-Terrain T/A KO, Leer Tonneau, Westin Platinum Nerf Bars, Fog and Map Light Mods, Orig. Owner 12/3/04
2. I am thinking of adhesive sealing strips about 3/8" within the outer edge of the doors. It wouldn't prevent from going in those bins but as I said, because of the bedrug, I don't think I will use those.
3. I am not sure about what you're referring to?
4. Good to know, I'll check it out.
The storage "holes" or whatever you want to call them above the wheel wells in the bed where you can store stuff but they don't have doors on them (about 8 inch x 6 inch). Pic below (with a light in it).
You might think that they're part of the bed, but those are actually holes with a plastic insert that's just popped in there. Can't remember offhand whether those have drain holes in them too? They must or else they'd fill up with water. Either way, I would bet that we get dust coming from those too.
__________________
"Think Outside the Box!"
'05 4x4 DC LB SR5 Tow Pkg BFG All-Terrain T/A KO, Leer Tonneau, Westin Platinum Nerf Bars, Fog and Map Light Mods, Orig. Owner 12/3/04
Oh those! totally forgot about them. They do collect dust too. I have never tried to pop them off the bed, but if I can remove them, I will replace them by a sealed plastic plate with some silicone all around.
Dust free Bed
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Linear Mode
