Spray Foam - Residential

[aone]

Can I spray foam insulate 2nd floor roof and wall? The rooms will be bedrooms. A spray foam contractor wants to do it and another contractor says it is toxic for bedrooms and wants to blow insulation in.

Any advise?

Thank you.https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/hamb/editor/menupop.gif

 

[StingRay]

It's not toxic when cured. It will give off isocyanates when spraying and as it off gasses for a short time but should be fine once fully cured. Residential foam is a different spec than foam used in garages and commercial spaces. Spray foam is a pretty common product.

 

[bannerd]

Sometimes with spray foam you can get a house too tight.

 

[Kaizen]

One is blowing in? Are the walls and ceiling sealed?


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[Lelandwelds]

I have open cell on underside of roof deck. Fewer air leaks to chase. Great product.


I am not in Yankee land. My climate is different. Read up.

https://buildingscience.com/documents/reports/rr-0108-unvented-roof-systems/view

 

[kd3pc]

Sometimes with spray foam you can get a house too tight.

and too quiet. Built a SIPS house for a couple and they found it creepy, it was so quiet...the panels absorb so much ambient noise, it is weird to stay in one and see the amount of noise a regular one has.

 

[aone]

and too quiet. Built a SIPS house for a couple and they found it creepy, it was so quiet...the panels absorb so much ambient noise, it is weird to stay in one and see the amount of noise a regular one has.

There is a lot of noise in this city, would work great for me.

 

[aone]

One is blowing in? Are the walls and ceiling sealed?


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He said he will seal it and blow insulation in.

 

[Lelandwelds]

Too tight? To quiet?

Isnt that like too big a tax refund? Too hot a wife? Too much vacation time?

100 % spray foam was one of the best decisions I made. I wish I could have built a "Pretty Good House"or a "Passive House".

 

[PCustoms]

Having my basement ceiling and 1st floor ceiling doNE in 2 weeks. No mention of any hazards of a 2 day cure.

 

[Lelandwelds]

This is the house which started it all for me.

http://www.hvmag.com/Hudson-Valley-...-Constructed-in-Claverack-Columbia-County-NY/

You are missing out if you dont build with spray foam, double wall, SIPS, or cellulose with rigid foam sheathing. My problem was the nearest builder who was up to speed was two hours away.

Matt Risinger has some nice youtube videos. Google "hot roof" and "perfect wall".

 

[Kaizen]

He said he will seal it and blow insulation in.

if you can afford it do the sprayfoam. even a 1inch envelope with batts of fiberglass is awesome. Stops air movement. I had it done in one bedroom and bathroom ceiling. Had some off gassing for a day. just opened the windows.

 

[DC73]

. . . another contractor says it is toxic for bedrooms . . .

No need to go any further with this contractor. He doesn't know what he is talking about and is likely just parroting information from the early days of spray foam when bad installers were spraying the wrong mix of the two chemicals resulting in perpetual off-gassing. Just make sure you have an experienced spray foam installer and things will be fine.

As far as the comment about making a house too tight, that's exactly what you want. Because then you can control the amount of outside air coming in and can control where it comes in. There are many good ways to bring fresh air into a home. The worst way is through all the cracks and crevices of the home, past roach and mice carcasses and God knows what else.

DC

 

[dw1]

I have been talking to a couple of insulating contractors about spray foaming a new house, both said the same about spraying the walls and blow in the ceilings, you can get your house to tight. I am probably 800+ miles south of you, not sure how make much of a difference that would make spray foam wise??

 

[Lelandwelds]

You nailed it DC.

A bad foam guy can really screw it up. Or a bad plumber. Concrete guy. FRAMER who cant operate a measuring tape. Lots of things to watch.

On my house, foam was so close in price it was a no brainer. It was like a two year payback. The choice of faucet brands made a bigger cost difference. Using PEX instead of copper paid for the difference. It is a regional thing. In some places, foam is a premium product. Here it is routine and almost expected. Plus, dont houses need R90 up there? More product needed.

Closed cell was double the price. It stiffens the wall up a lot but I think in a "mixed hot humid climate" drying to the interior makes more sense. Y'all get that white stuff falling out of the sky. Might make a difference.

 

[Bamafan]

The key is to stay out of the house for the prescribed time after installing foam. That gives the product time to offgas. Last time I checked it was 24 hours, but that might have changed. After that it should be inert IF mixed and installed properly. So, as others have said, getting a good experienced contractor is essential.

The fiberglass quote was likely for a netted system. The positive of this system is that it gets a higher r value than open cell foam (r15 vs. r12.7 - r13). Closed cell foam gives the highest r value per inch, but filling a wall with that is generally considered cost- and time-prohibitive.

 

[wssix99]

Sometimes with spray foam you can get a house too tight.

This. Research and ownership of the project is required. If we are talking closed cell, then a HRV may be required. <- The insulation contractor is not going to be able to solve for this HVAC problem, but will hear stories of people who have gotten it wrong and built a "sick" house.

I have a very tight house. The financial and acoustic benefits are great, but it takes a lot of ongoing HVAC tweaking to solve for negative pressure problems, proper HRV balance, etc. We almost have to be qualified to sail a nuclear submarine to run this house...

Regular construction and foam won't be too bad - but you will need to do some research on energy efficient houses and own the issues surrounding them to get all the payoffs and avoid the negatives. If you find a contractor who will put these pieces together for you, it will probably co$t you.

 

[Lelandwelds]

You said it all here: Research and ownership of the project is required


My windows and doors leak a good bit. My sills are the biggest leak. I have four penetrations that were forgotten to be made until after the foam was in.

Your builder has to be pushing the tight envelope before you meet the guy. Mine was gung ho until he was mostly paid off.

I got a nice house thats far better than a tract home. I could have lived with my in laws for another year and gotten the builder I wanted. I made the right decision.

 

[66Caprice]

You should use the CLOSED CELL spray foam. I used it under the floor in my living room. Its the only part of the house that has a crawl space. It made a huge difference in the temp of the floor. No more cold feet!!

 

[yeldogt]

Nothing like a good closed cell foam job. Unless you live in one for a while -- you will not understand. It's not just efficiencies -- it's comfort. No drafts -- quiet -- no radiant gain through walls and ceilings.

All tight building require ventilation -- both make up air for high CFM range hoods and bath fans etc. .. and also just to make sure you get a change of air in the dwelling for the occupants. Most conventional stick houses w/ batt insulation leak enough for this to occur.

I like a constant low CFM flow -- is always best to have a slightly pressurized house.

There are many variables depending on climate and humidity -- in a cold climate make sure you research open cell foam ... It's used successfully but must be thick enough. I always go closed.

If price is an issue -- I did one flash and batt job with great results. My current will be all foam .. it's becoming so popular that the prices are falling.

 

[ford33]

I have no recommendation on spray foam or blown-in insulation. Just want to make the OP aware of spray foam issues when it is not applied correctly. Select your contractor wisely. It must be mixed and applied correctly or you will have a nightmare with it. It is very difficult to remove and the smell of uncured foam may drive you out of your home.

Go to youtube and watch the videos about spray foam nightmares.

Select your contractor carefully.

 

[mrpizza]

I just sprayed 5" in my entire walls and roof of my house. Its a hybrid open cell product. It filled every little crack, I will likely have to install an ERV or a constant bath fan to provide makeup air. House might be too tight without one.

 

[M-technik-3]

and too quiet. Built a SIPS house for a couple and they found it creepy, it was so quiet...the panels absorb so much ambient noise, it is weird to stay in one and see the amount of noise a regular one has.

It's never too quiet, sound generator, open a window. get a pet, talk to your spouse....It's not a morgue.

 

[jabin]

24 hour off gas and not spraying it correctly so that the center can cure correctly. Only downsides really but a good installer resolves them, just like any trade

 

[Farmall450]

Too tight? To quiet?

Isnt that like too big a tax refund? Too hot a wife? Too much vacation time?

100 % spray foam was one of the best decisions I made. I wish I could have built a "Pretty Good House"or a "Passive House".

Yeah really.

 

[aone]

I have no recommendation on spray foam or blown-in insulation. Just want to make the OP aware of spray foam issues when it is not applied correctly. Select your contractor wisely. It must be mixed and applied correctly or you will have a nightmare with it. It is very difficult to remove and the smell of uncured foam may drive you out of your home.

Go to youtube and watch the videos about spray foam nightmares.

Select your contractor carefully.

I saw those videos and they are scary. I will have to figure out how to find the right contractor.

The guy that told me about the toxicity is from home adviser. The other guy from home adviser came but never gave me a written quote, I asked him a few times. I would not go with these guys.

I will go look elsewhere.

 

[yeldogt]

I just sprayed 5" in my entire walls and roof of my house. Its a hybrid open cell product. It filled every little crack, I will likely have to install an ERV or a constant bath fan to provide makeup air. House might be too tight without one.

You don't want the constant bath fan ... you want positive pressure ..not negative.

I'm doing a dehumidifier w/ controller to outside air -- all tied into the HVAC. Range make up air controller.

I will evaluate and see how this works --

 

[DC73]

Here's a link to a good article on ventilating tight houses: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/musings/designing-good-ventilation-system

There are other good ventilation articles on the GBA site but you might have to be a member to access some of them.

DC

 

[bassman2]

My new house from this week... 2lb spray foam and 4" of 1/2lb spray foam covering it...

They over filled and have to scarf cut the foam down... kinda dangerous tool... big rotating drum with a blade on it! Big mess all over, but the foam is going to keep the place nice and tight!