Steel Building Insulation in Florida

[freedom561]

Hi all,

I'm in the process of putting up a 30x50x14 steel building here in Central Florida and would appreciate some insights from those in a similar climate. My first choice was doing closed cell for the whole building, but after receiving quotes ranging from 11-13k installed, I'm exploring alternative cost-effective options.

After some research online and on GJ, it seems that the next best option is foam board, specifically Polyiso.

I'm willing to install foam board on the building, spray foam the corners to ensure it's airtight, and tape the joints, etc. However, I'm having trouble finding Polyiso that's at least 2 inches thick (Home Depot and Lowe's only seem to carry a maximum of 1 inch thick). I have also searched Marketplace/CL for used panels but to no avail.

Does anyone have experience using 1" Polyiso in their workshop in a similar climate? Or does anyone know where to find 2-inch Polyiso locally? Or any other cost affective insulation options you could recommend?

Not sure If I will AC the building or not at this moment, I am more interested in seeing how the building performs before making that decision.

Thanks!

 

[brnctt]

Check out insulation4us.com, look for Rmax Thermasheath and install with the foil facing out. You'll have to have it delivered but it'll likely still be cheaper than a local box store for the quantities you'll need.

Insulation with R value is for conditioned buildings. If you're not conditioning, and since it doesn't get too cold in FL, for keeping the building cool in summer you'd be fine using radiant barrier wrap, which is equivalent to putting your building in full shade. It won't do anything to keep heat or AC in, but will ensure you don't get the baking effect of the sheet metal radiating heat inside and ending up with a hotter interior than the air outside.

I plan to use Bluetex when I do my building (I'm in TX). It's radiant barrier on the outside and vapor barrier on the inside, so if I do some supplemental heat in the winter (like a space heater) I won't get condensation. But it won't keep the heat in. I don't really care since it doesn't get much below 40 here. For summer I'll open all the doors and turn the fan on.

If you think you might condition in the future, by all means go with a full solution. Just will be a lot more expensive, and you also have to think about proper sealing and adequate doors (panel doors vs roll doors, etc)

 

[FL Guy]

I’m just north of you. I did 2” board from Lowe’s and after 2 weeks I had black mold growing.
I ripped it down and had it spray foamed

 

[Full Throttle]

I’m just north of you. I did 2” board from Lowe’s and after 2 weeks I had black mold growing.
I ripped it down and had it spray foamed

I'm not buying what your selling.

And mold can still grow on spray foam.

It's not the foam board (if it was xps)or spray it will grow on the dust and dirt. Foam board(xps) and spray foam have no nutrients for molds to grow.

 

[FL Guy]

I'm not buying what your selling.

And mold can still grow on spray foam.

It's not the foam board (if it was xps)or spray it will grow on the dust and dirt. Foam board(xps) and spray foam have no nutrients for molds to grow.

I’m not selling anything

But Ok what ever you say

 

[freedom561]

Thanks for the replies so far.

Out of the two closed cell quotes below, is the R difference worth the extra cost?

 

[brnctt]

Are you going to be A/Cing the building? Are your doors panel doors or roll doors?

 

[freedom561]

AC would be most likely the more I think about it, more so for pulling the humidity out than trying to turn it into a meat locker. Regardless though I would like to future proof the building as best as I can afford.

They are roll up doors, the two 12x12 will face north and one 8x8 will face west. I do plan on sealing and insulating them the best I can.

 

[IRQVET]

I’d PM ToolFool, he just did this (in Tallahasee) and his metal shop is increadible. Super nice guy too, he’ll answer any questions you have.

 

[Skinnywater]

I recently did mine with the 2" xps with foil from Lowes, very noticable difference in temp.

 

[My Old Tools]

I'm in east Texas, very similar climate in summer with a bit more winter. I used the standard wide roll plastic faced fiberglass metal building insulation installed over the frame before the panels were applied. After the panels were installed, I had the roof strapped and another 8 inches installed up there. That stopped a lot of the radiant heat. It's been 7 years, the last 4 with a MrCool installed. It is easy to heat and cool. Mine is 22 feet to the peak with a loft at 9 feet. The MrCool hangs at 9 feet as well. I let the loft stay hot and the cool air stays down below 9 feet. It works very well. The first two days with AC, it pulled a ton of moisture out of the building. Since then it just idles along even on hot days.