Sealing Tonneau Cover from Dust

wooly bugger

wooly bugger

New member
I can't be the only one who has a truck bed full of dust or snow from driving around. Last year in SD I could not believe the amount of dust that was getting sucked into my truck bed and my gear was covered. So this year I want to try and fix it or at least reduce it. Any one else have this problem or a solution?

I have a 2019 Sierra with a tuxedo type rolling tonneau cover. I get dust and snow blowing in from the tailgate, anything near the tailgate gets covered so it leads me to think a vacuum is sucking in the dust. I have narrowed down my air leaks to a few areas and I think these might fix it.

1. There is about a 1/4 inch gap across the front of my tonneau cover any my truck bed closest to the font of the truck. I think I can lay some weather stripping there to fill the void. I hope this is the main source of the problem.

2. The truck has empty holes (2 up front and 2 in the back) for tie down hooks that are empty right now. They over hang my rails for the tonneau cover and might let some air in. I saw there are plastic caps I can get to plug these.

3. There is a noticeable gap on each side of my tailgate. I am not sure how to reduce that, but this is clearly where the air is sucking back into the bed.

4. I can try to improve the gasket between the tailgate and tonneau cover. Currently the seal is touching the tailgate, but not supper tight.

This is a start, let me know if anyone has suggestions.

Pat
 
I had the same problem last year. I couldn't believe the amount of dust I had in the bed of my truck last year. My cover definitely let a lot of dust in. Hope someone has a solution, and it sounds like this year things won't be nearly as dry.
 
I’ve seen where guys will slam a piece of split pool noodle between the bed and the inside bottom of the tailgate. Could try it and see if it helps any before going to the trouble of weather stripping it.
 
wooly bugger said:
I can't be the only one who has a truck bed full of dust or snow from driving around. Last year in SD I could not believe the amount of dust that was getting sucked into my truck bed and my gear was covered. So this year I want to try and fix it or at least reduce it. Any one else have this problem or a solution?

I have a 2019 Sierra with a tuxedo type rolling tonneau cover. I get dust and snow blowing in from the tailgate, anything near the tailgate gets covered so it leads me to think a vacuum is sucking in the dust. I have narrowed down my air leaks to a few areas and I think these might fix it.

1. There is about a 1/4 inch gap across the front of my tonneau cover any my truck bed closest to the font of the truck. I think I can lay some weather stripping there to fill the void. I hope this is the main source of the problem.

2. The truck has empty holes (2 up front and 2 in the back) for tie down hooks that are empty right now. They over hang my rails for the tonneau cover and might let some air in. I saw there are plastic caps I can get to plug these.

3. There is a noticeable gap on each side of my tailgate. I am not sure how to reduce that, but this is clearly where the air is sucking back into the bed.

4. I can try to improve the gasket between the tailgate and tonneau cover. Currently the seal is touching the tailgate, but not supper tight.

This is a start, let me know if anyone has suggestions.

Pat
Click to expand...
I had the same problem when I first bought a new 2001 Silverado. I bought thick tailgate weatherstrip from JC Whitney and sealed around the doors. Problem solved. I've yet to do it with my new truck but it's still in place in my old one and still works well.

Fairchild Industries®
D4084 Tailgate Weatherstrip Seal​

They still sell it.
 
Today was as good of a day as any to do it since this topic was fresh in my head.....went to Fleet Farm and bought the Lund Tailgate Seal Kit sold there....$24......installed and cannot see any light getting through tailgate or truck cup.....we shall see how it holds/performs.
 
I have the same truck as you, but with a topper instead of a tonneou cover. Somewhere I found a truck bed seal kit. The kit came with a tailgate seal, bulkhead seal, and some oddly shaped foam blocks to put in the holes under the bed rails. I'm sure it helped but I wouldn't say its dust free

Pretty sure it was from accesscover.com
 
I've noticed without a spray in bed liner, my trucks leak dust. Plugged every opening I could with kits, stripping, and caulk.......I think its like mice...do what you can to deter it. I think you have done what you can. This doesn't answer your question but now I have everything in separate plastic bins and go to the motel and unload before I hit the dirt roads. You cold throw a tarp over everything. OR....pray for rain, no dust :)
Enjoy your hunt.
 
Accesscover.com - They sell products for this purpose - I installed one for my topper & they also have products for sealing tonneau covers....................
Not only trying to block as much dust as possible, but also water/snow that makes its way thru the gap between the tailgate bottom and bed when it's raining, or snowing.........
Agree with P&L, it's impossible to seal out all the dust
 
Kre said:
Isn't a truck supposed to have dust on it?
Click to expand...
Not on the interior covering all your gear.

Perhaps the biggest factor here isn't controllable - the weather. It was super dry and dusty last fall and then heading into Dec/Jan there was a mountain of snow.
 
Haha, thanks for all the help guys. I talked to Truxedo and they suggest the tail gate seal as many of you have also pointed to. I will get one and try it out! Here is what my truck looked like last year after one day.

1698245561023.png


I wonder if I would've been better off with an open top at that time lol.
 
I purchased a seal kit and was disappointed how dusty my bed was, even after installing. After a few months the lower kit detached so I removed it, but the side seals were still intact. I recently went on a trip to the mountains and drove several miles on dirt roads. The inside of my bed looked similar (or even worse) than this picture. As soon as I got home I reinstalled my lower seal. Still dusty, but not dirty inside. I think most of the dirt must have come from the bottom gap between bed and tailgate based on my experience.
 
After 2 days of rain this week and city driving, no areas of moisture sneaking in from the tailgate area or truck cap closure area......we'll see how it does with dust in a week!
I used the Lund Tailgate Seal kit sold at Fleet Farm.
 
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