It's cold up here in Maine

[glenadavis]

I brought my new-to-me 12 home to Maine a few days ago. On the flight from PA there was a very strong draft coming from two places. One, just above the magneto switches and two, on the co-pilot side where the canopy meets the fuselage, about halfway between the panel and the seatback, near the co-pilots right bicep. The former owner had a blanket hanging behind the seats, separating the seats from the baggage area, to mitigate cold air. Are there any better, more elegant ways to seal up the cabin? Should I replace the rubber canopy seal kit or add more to the existing or ????? Picture is her first night in her new home.

 

[DeltaRomeo]

Welcome Glen! I'm sure someone will chime in here shortly. Just wanted to say thanks for joining and introducing yourself.
Beautiful RV!
v/r,dr

 

[DHeal]

At one time Van's offered a "12 Canopy Seal Kit" which provided various pieces of foam and strip insulation to improve the cold-weather sealing of the canopy -- however it is apparently "Currently Unavailable" from Van's Store (you might want to verify this). The installation of these insulation pieces is described towards the end of "Section 34: Canopy Installation" of the plans set. Your aircraft may already have none, some or all of these pieces in use. You can usually identify inflight where the air leaks are coming from and devise various ways of stopping the leaks using common insulation items such as foam striping available at any hardware store. It takes a bit of trial and error to get the right combination of materials and placement to achieve a somewhat draft-free cockpit. Be aware that a lot of the air drafts come from behind the pilot/copilot area -- spar stub openings, rear fuselage openings, etc. If your canopy is not fully closing shut as your earlier post suggested that would be the first place to investigate.

 

[glenadavis]

At one time Van's offered a "12 Canopy Seal Kit" which provided various pieces of foam and strip insulation to improve the cold-weather sealing of the canopy -- however it is apparently "Currently Unavailable" from Van's Store (you might want to verify this). The installation of these insulation pieces is described towards the end of "Section 34: Canopy Installation" of the plans set. Your aircraft may already have none, some or all of these pieces in use. You can usually identify inflight where the air leaks are coming from and devise various ways of stopping the leaks using common insulation items such as foam striping available at any hardware store. It takes a bit of trial and error to get the right combination of materials and placement to achieve a somewhat draft-free cockpit. Be aware that a lot of the air drafts come from behind the pilot/copilot area -- spar stub openings, rear fuselage openings, etc. If your canopy is not fully closing shut as your earlier post suggested that would be the first place to investigate.

Thank you