Spray Foam Insulation is Thriving in the Bahamas and Caribbean

FREEPORT, GRAND BAHAMA, BAHAMAS – April 4, 2011 - With insulation codes that barely exist, extremely warm weather year round, the insulation business in the Bahamas has never been more important on builder’s and homeowner’s priority lists, until now.  Thanks to Island Spray Professionals and Toio Mazzoni, the construction market in the Bahamas is learning a more much effective way to insulate using spray foam.

Gianvittorio “Toio” Mazzoni, owner of Island Spray Professionals, Ltd was nice enough to invite SprayFoam.com’s Doug Commette to the Bahamas to take a look at some their recent work and the unique market of the beautiful island of Grand Bahama. During the extensive tour, they visited over a dozen jobsites ranging from upscale residential homes, high rise apartment buildings, and commercial warehouses all using closed cell and open cell spray foam insulation.

But foam insulation isn’t the only line of work that Island Spray Professionals are engaged in. They also spray roofs with spray foam and protective coatings such as polyurea, acrylics and elastomers. The port area of Freeport has many different applications for spray foam and protective coatings.

Toio Mazzoni started in the foam business after 2004 hurricane season brought destruction and disaster to the Caribbean, Bahamas and South Florida. The season was one of the deadliest and most costly Atlantic hurricane seasons on record in the last decade, with at least 3,132 deaths and roughly $50 billion (2004 US dollars) in damage. The most notable storms for the season were the five named storms that made landfall in the U.S. state of Florida, three of them with at least 115 mph (185 km/h) sustained winds: Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne, and Tropical Storm Bonnie. Jeanne wreaked havoc in Haiti, killing more than 3,000 people. Ivan raged through Grenada, Jamaica, and the Cayman Islands, while Frances and Jeanne both hit the Bahamas at full force.

Mazzoni and his father originally purchased the spray foam equipment to repair the roof of their own house after the storms. They soon saw an opportunity use the foam equipment for more repairs, and ultimately started a spray foam contracting business. Toio’s father has since passed away, and now Mazzoni, is running the business full time, with a back log of new work going into 2011. Mazzoni is a Bahama native, US educated engineer with a great product line (spray foam insulation, roofing and industrial protective coatings) to offer the builder’s, architects and homeowners in the Bahamas and Caribbean Islands.

Toio Mazzoni is a mechanical engineer, a significant benefit to his approach to market development, equipment operation, and knowledge of improved construction methods.  With such an emphasis on stronger construction and the home owner’s and facility manager’s growing concerns for energy saving products, Mazzoni’s background and spray foam insulation product lines are perfectly suited for the Tropical Bahamas market.
Mazzoni further explained to us that most of his effort to promote and install foam on the island involves a great deal of customer education. However, many of the more affluent homeowners are well aware of spray foam insulation and its benefits. Many folks have asked for spray foam specifically in their new construction projects and are fully aware that its benefits far outweigh the added up front cost over traditional materials.

The first home we visited together was a brand new 6,000 square foot home owned by an international couple living on the islands for decades. They too had endured the wrath of the 2004 hurricanes. They were well educated in the latest energy saving and green building methods and even told Doug Commette that they had visited SprayFoam.com when doing their research on spray foam. The home, like many on the island, was constructed from ICF’s (insulated concrete forms) that are filled with concrete for both strength and improved energy efficiency over traditional concrete block or wood frame construction methods. Mazzoni and his crew recently installed 3-4 inches of Lapolla Closed cell spray foam everywhere under the roof to seal the entire upper envelope.

Not surprisingly most of the foam applications we saw are being applied in unvented attic assemblies. The majority of them specify closed cell spray foam for its added strength and r-value, a great combination of benefits for this sunny hot and tropical wind prone region. Most attics can get extremely hot (well over 100 degrees) making air-conditioning and ducts extremely inefficient. The heat against the cold ducts not only affects efficiency and performance, but it also creates a significant moisture condensation problem.  The moisture drips form the ducts ultimately causing structural damage and mold issues.  Spray foam works well to eliminate these problems.

Mazzoni also keeps open cell foam in his arsenal and took us to several of those installations as well. During the trip we visited some absolutely gorgeous residential homes ranging from 3,500 sq ft to 6,000 sq ft to 20,000 sq ft, all with spray foam professionally installed by Island Spray Pros. After meeting Toio Mazzoni and witnessing such high quality workmanship firsthand, we were not surprised at all by the strong market he is creating. We also received overwhelmingly positive feedback and strong references from all the builders and homeowners we met along the way.

All of us here at SprayFoam.com thank Toio Mazzoni for his hospitality and the fine work he is doing for the spray foam industry in the Bahamas and throughout the Caribbean.

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Contact:
G. Mazzoni
Island Spray Professionals Ltd.
Freeport, G.B., Bahamas
info@islandspray.com
Bahamas(242)727-0047
USA(727)455-3705

http://www.ISLANDSPRAY.COM