Protecting pink foam insulation??

[tdkkart]

My shop has a poured slab, heated with PEX, inside one end of a pole building. I need to some checking but I'm thinking the slab is poured around the posts and against the outer batten boards, with no perimeter insulation around the slab. The top of the slab is at the same level as the bottom of the steel on the outside of the building. The boards below the tin are above ground by 6" or so, which if there is no perimeter insulation means that 3 sides of my slab are essentially exposed to the outdoors.
I suspect there is foam under the slab but do not know for sure, although I can get under the slab easily by digging a hole under the exposed slab edge inside the building.

If I find that there is no perimeter insulation, my thinking is to trench around the outside (approx 65' of trench) and install 2" thick high density foam against the outside of the batten boards extending down into the ground approx. 18-24".

If I do this, I will end up with 6-8" of exposed pink foam board around the bottom of the building. Is there something I can spread on the foam to protect it from the elements?? I know I have seen this foam applied to the outside of foundations and sprayed with something, but is it something that's readily available and easily appliable?? A stucco type product maybe??

Thanks.......

 

[brad d]

We wire over it and stucco it up here

 

[5wndwcpe]

I used a product called Tuff II by Styro industries. It's an acrylic overcoat, similar to Dryvit. Easy to work with and quite durable.

 

[walrus]

I used powder coated tin.

 

[VHF]

I saw a web site where T1-11 cement-board was used to protect the exposed foundation insulation on a shop/barn. I also saw a thick plastic material at Menard's with a faux stucco texture designed for this purpose. I think it came in tan and gray.

In addition to going down 18" to 24" vertically with your perimeter insulation, you might think about coming out 18" to 36" horizontally as well. Your foundation insulation would makes a letter "L" with the back of the "L" against the edge of the slab and the bottom pointing away. This provides a longer path from the slab to the (cold) exposed surface of the ground... long enough to keep the ground under the slab from freezing.

Google "shallow frost protected foundation" for more information.