Dynamat Speaker Kit & moisture barrier

[SteveLivingStrong]

This is kind of combo question. I recently purchased a new head unit and new front speakers (components) and rear speakers for my 05 GT. Got them in and components are a little bright for some audio sources even with 7 band equalizer control. I may try to use the -3 db on the crossovers to cut some, but as I saw somewhere on the forum, the PT seems to be eating mid-bass. Anyway, Crutchfield included two speaker kits for free with the order. I did not put the kits in initially, but I am thinking of trying them since they were free. My question is with the moisture barrier/water dam. I need to pull it back and clean the metal where the dynamat will be applied. So, I have three questions:
1) What did you recommend using to clean the adhesive?
2) What adhesive is recommended to reapply on top of the dynamat to re-secure the moisture barrier/water dam?
3) For those that have installed the speaker kit, is the improvement worth the trouble of step 1 and 2?

Also to combat the bass problem, I purchased a new mopar subwoofer off of Ebay and will be adding, so hopefully that will make fill in some as well. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

[quicksilverdon]

I'm missing why you feel you have to clean off the adhesive - you want to stick back to it, right? Get either "trim adhesive" ( a spray can ) from auto stores, or 3M double-sided tape.

[SteveLivingStrong]

Well, I was under the impression that when you peel the moisture barrier back that the adhesive would stick to the metal rather than the barrier. If the adhesive stays with the barrier, then you're right, I won't need to purchase any. I think when I read the instructions it said to clean the metal before applying the dynamat and I guess in my mind that meant the adhesive. So, when you pull the moisture barrier back, does the bulk of the adhesive seem to stay on the barrier itself? I guess I could try it first, but I was just trying to make sure I had the necessary pieces and material before I got started.

[quicksilverdon]

I think the instructions are for applying on bare metal - then you don't want any oil, polish, etc., to keep it from sticking.
I would think adhesive would stick to the metal, too, but suspect both would be pretty sticky - which is exactly what you want.

[bobdole369]

Every time I pull my moisture barrier out - I lose a little bit more of that gooey, icky, stringy black gunk. I've not put any sound dampening in place, but from what I've read it may be best to just lose the moisture barrier and replace it with more dynamat. Some folks glass the whole thing in which is probably the best thing to do.

Whatever you do - make sure that the back end of your speakers are covered (at least on the top), with a baffle. I could never get the moisture barrier to go back on right, so I just cut it. Big mistake, lost a right speaker that way to water. You will likely never be rid of water intrusion, esp if you live in the subtropics like I do.

The inside of the door is quite wet, so keep that in mind too if you need to build trim rings. Plywood swells unevenly, I learned that the hardway. MDF swells and disintegrates.

As for resealing it, I used either "Mechanics friend", or simple RTV, but the black 3m weatherstrip is very nice and built for the job.

Well, I was under the impression that when you peel the moisture barrier back that the adhesive would stick to the metal rather than the barrier.

It sticks to both.

but as I saw somewhere on the forum, the PT seems to be eating mid-bass.

Dynamat will help, if you actually get the doors sealed up (like with fiberglass or lexan/epoxy, etc), that is supposed to make a dramatic improvement.

Better/louder/deeper/more power door speakers will only help up to a point, when the door rattles start to win. Then you really need to work on things like driver selection, crossover points, amp power and headroom.