Q&A Forums

"Foam Insulation" Post New Topic | Post Reply

Author Comments
JohnPeters
Posted: May 31, 2010 07:45 AM
"Foam Insulation"
I recently learned about a product that is being referred to as foam insulation that is primarily used for injection applications. Urea formaldehyde or phenolic plastics are what i am talking about. You'll probably see a banner or two promoting their products as you read this blog.

I have a dude in my area that is installing this stuff like gang busters and calling it foam insulation. I have a problem with that. By calling it foam insulation you are grouping that "stuff" in the same category as polyurethane and they are completely different animals.

I hope spray foam.com and the SPFA are clear to establish a line in the sand with their products and ours. These products pose significant risk of detrimentally effecting in door air quality and promoting mold growth. We don't want that associated to the good name of polyurethane.

Any thoughts on the topic are welcome.
Posted: May 31, 2010 08:44 AM
i wouldnt expect much of a "statement" or position from the spfa,,,
yes they are everywhere,,,it is a comprimised product,,shrinks more than tech data sheet shows as it dries,,some formulas off gas phosphoric acid among other things(read: formaldehyde)
the radio adds are the most inacurate, false information ive heard in some time...like "no holes needed to apply" gets in there by osmosis i guess..(yes i know they will talk about pumping from above in a balloon framed configuration to say they aint pullin poopy)...."highest rvalue of any insulation product out there",,,just pure unadulterated horsepoopy...
now john,,that being said...it is well recognized that the retro market is where we can "reduce our energy use" the most here in the us of a,,,you know,,the houses build pre 1980 or there abouts,,grossly underunsulated if insulated at all...we need some sort of product for these applications,,and this is fillin the bill,,,i have an injection rig,,,luv the equip,,,luv the install process when compared to spf,,,hate the products end result,,(0.25% shrinkage my-azz)...would sell it in a minute or trade it for a gama classic or h40,,,any takers?? rofl
Alan Fagerstrom
Posted: Jun 06, 2010 07:46 AM
When you have a need to open the wall up the truth of injection will be known. Until then check it with an IR camera.
Condensation seems to be a strong enemy of froth injection. With lack of bonding the froth injection contributes to condensation and then the condensation destroys the froth materials. Architects in our area are specifying "Tripolymer" and the only guy using froth materials is Taylor Foam. It appears nobody is asking what materials he's using and asking for performance data. He's done multipule CMU car wash jobs that fail within months and nobody knows and nobody cars. The car wash owner does not realize the system has failed.
Also, Taco Bell specs "Tripolymer" and 3 local jobs actually go Taylor. If anyone knows how to get to corporate Taco Bell maybe someone there would listen.

You need to login to reply to this topic. Please click here to login.