Old Bedliner Material Removal

[fstik]

What is the best way to remove old spray (or brush, roll, etc) bedliner material. The PO didn't prep very well, so it is flaking off in many places. Hoping there is an easier way than just using force!

fstik

 

[bax]

Well I know how I did it when my SEM bed liner didn't stick. Aircraft striper then a pressure washer. keep in mind my truck was not painted at the time. The striper just ate it up. it started bubbling and curling up. I just kept laying on the striper. When I got the pressure washer out the crap just flew off. Now if your truck is painted you may not want to do this. I hear a heat gun with a good scraper really works good.

 

[ogr]

If you are going to touch up spots (like with Herculiner, Duplicolor, etc) they say to sand the area and scuff it up to promote adhesion. A couple of companies make it in a spray can for spot repairs. If you are taking it all out then I'd use a grinder fitted with a wire brush attachment. Wear a mask and expect a mess.

 

[allenfahey]

Since it is flaking off try an air hammer with a wide chisel. A grinder with 24 grit paper for the rest. I doubt paint stripper will work on a professional bedliner that is thick.

 

[SC74]

aircraft stripper is good, xylenol (sp?) will cut anything, but like said above also try a air chisel. If it is cold, the air chisel will make it "shatter". Some materials are gooey when hot so the air chisel may not work if that's the case. If all else fails, use an aggressive wire wheel and prepare to make a dusty mess.

 

[javilamfd]

I used a wire wheel on a grinder. Took it off quick, just make sure to wear a dust mask and goggles.

 

[charvey9]

Use a small torch to heat it up and then is scrapes off easy. That is how many paint/body shops take care of it.

 

[Landho]

I found that welding on the other side (bottom) of the sheetmetal did a fantastic job of removing the liner on the top side. Of course, that's probably somewhat of an impracticle manner to do an entire coated bed.

 

[RajinCajun]

Use a small torch to heat it up and then is scrapes off easy. That is how many paint/body shops take care of it.

X2 this is how we do it.

 

[TSCoating]

Needle scaler!

That's what we use when we're tearing up an old liner to do a professional one.

 

[sstlaure]

I used a basic heat gun and a gasket scraper. It took awhile but didn't create a giant mess. (Roll-on type.)

 

[blubuckaroo]

Bed liners aren't for good all applications. Once applied and you might as well say your stuck with it. Consider why you would put it on and the alternatives before jumping in. It's great for deep water and washing the mud out but not much good for sound and heat. Besides that, like most things it gets beat up too and can't be just rolled up and thrown away.

 

[MattM]

I like to use my grinder with a metal cut-off disk. I drag it across the bed liner (at a steep angle) and it comes off in little ribbons. After that I can sand the rest with 120-grit.
(I tried a wire wheel, a sanding disk on my grinder, and heavy grit sandpaper—all those melted the liner and gummed up. Although, mine is a thin DIY roll-on or spray-on liner.)

 

[Landho]

I posted this in another thread - but wanted to add it here - I was at a water blasting company today and they said they could easily water blast old bed liner off. They do this for an area company for "opps" or to clean old beds before new application.

PM me if you want their contact info.