DIY Spray Foam Insulation

[ctny yankee]

I looked at the DIY kind and decided it was too iffy. Also heard horror stories about it not setting up, resulting in a gooey mess. I am rehabbing an 1840's timber frame farm house and the spray in foam seemed to provide alot of benefits, like sealing up the multiple-inch wide cracks between the wide pine sheathing, etc. Also the studs are not on standard spacings, so trying to fit batting would have been a nightmare. Went with a contractor. I found it costs about $1.00/board foot. I put 3 inches everywhere, walls and roof, which is about r-21. Estimates ranged from $7000 to $21000 (depending on what they did andhow thick). It is a two story house that is 25 x 40.

I had to fur out the studs which were only 3inches to give them some leeway. The thickness is not that accurate and they put it one in layers sort of. Then they cut off excess with a saw after it sets.

It does tend to leave a mist of foam everywhere, so if you don't want it on the floors and everything, make sure you cover them.

They did it in about 2 days.

 

[Sledgie]

I did my 57x64 Lester building (5/12 trusses on 8 ft centers, 10 ft. sidewalls) with diy soythane, the 2 part cartridge system. I was getting quotes of 16 to 20000 from the pros for 2", so decided to spend about 10k and do it myself. The main thing I found out is don't try it without a supplied air respirator and tyvek suit. It is a hot, nasty job and I earned every cent of the money I saved. I am glad to have the foam insulation but I think maybe a better way to go is to fit rigid foam sheets in between the studs and use great stuff foam around the edges. My next project will be made with Sips panels, so will be interesting to see how that compares.

 

[forgeblast]

Just recieved my kits. Nice thing is that both components have a temp strip on there that lets you know when you hit the right temp for spraying.
I plan on waiting for a bit before spraying, because once opened it has a 30 day shelflife, unopened 13 months. I want to do all the sills, and iif left over parts of the attic. I know the attic is two warm atm to spray.
Directions are very streight forward, spray a test area to check on color and set up of the foam so you dont waste it, and depending on color and what its doing there is a trouble shooing guide.

 

[MotorSeven]

Like the otheres here I found it was the same price to have it done as it was to buy the kits. After watching them spray my Quonset I am darn glad I didn't DIY.

 

[Danno1]

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Ya, I did the ceiling of a 11x20 room a few years back!



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[buckeyefarmer]

I usually make a mess just using a can of Great Stuff. :ashamed: I'll check out Fine Homebuilding to see what they say. Thanks for the heads-up.

I'm with you on that one. :laughing:

 

[crbr]

Interesting prices.

 

[Kyle241]

I bought and applied the Tiger Foam solution on a very small part of my house that is 99% SIPs. While the concept is nice, it is difficult to get the right temperature and make sure it's well mixed as it's two tanks with different chemicals inside and they mix at the nozzle. It is also very messy so if you're planning on doing a complete garage, I would encourage you to get a few estimates first and look at other possible insulation alternatives. I have also sprayed wet cellulose and it was not as difficult as the spray foam. Personally I would not do it again myself (the spray foam). I'm planning on cellulose for my garage sprayed into the walls.

 

[sawduster98]

Thanks for all the replies! A lot of good points were brought up that I hadn't thought about. I contacted an insulation contractor who handles many types so we'll be discussing it this week. I like the ideas of the foam board and also blown-in cellulose. Unfortunately it'll all come down to $$$.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

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Ya, I did the ceiling of a 11x20 room a few years back!



.

I think I've seen that look before. See the resemblance?

We may have a new SciFi franchise...
Creature From the (Now) Insulated Quonset Shed.

 

[sawduster98]

Well, I met yesterday with the insulation contractor and he presented a few scenarios I could go with. His price for the CC foam was cheaper than the DIY stuff and that was spraying 2" instead of 1". He also recommended blown in fiberglass or cellulose for the ceiling because of the room I had available with 10" trusses. Oh, his price for the walls was $1138 and the DIY kits were around $1300+ so I guess that makes it a no-brainer.

 

[rswyan]

It is also very messy so if you're planning on doing a complete garage, I would encourage you to get a few estimates first and look at other possible insulation alternatives. I have also sprayed wet cellulose and it was not as difficult as the spray foam.

That's the way we went on the walls for our polebarn - although I didn't do it myself - we hired it done.

As I recall, it was very cost effective - I think a good bit less than $2K to do the walls on a 42' x 72' barn to a height of probably 13' or 14' and depth of 7" - which yields a R-value of 27 for the walls. (One wall does have three 12' x 10' overhead doors tho' ...)

You can read a description of the process (with pictures) in my polebarn thread beginning with the following post:

Insulating the barn with spray-on cellulose insulation

The crew was in and out in less than 6 hours IIRC.

Personally I would not do it again myself (the spray foam). I'm planning on cellulose for my garage sprayed into the walls.

I'm glad we hired it done. I think spray-on "wet" cellulose is probably one of the most economical ways to go to :thumbsup:

 

[crbr]

Interesting thread. Thanks for the info.

 

[beppington]

I change my mind & remodel my structures too often to be able to get myself to commit to spray foam

What's wrong with the loose stuff?

Is spray foam's R-value really that much higher?

 

[dstig1]

Yep. R value is high and even more important, it seals everything up tight. Air leaks are the nemesis of insulation performance, and installation craftsmanship is critical to a good insulation job, especially with batts and loose fill. It is hard to find the proper attention to detail in people doing this work. Not to say foam is bulletproof, but you have some more margin of error to work with.

 

[sawduster98]

That's the way we went on the walls for our polebarn - although I didn't do it myself - we hired it done.

As I recall, it was very cost effective - I think a good bit less than $2K to do the walls on a 42' x 72' barn to a height of probably 13' or 14' and depth of 7" - which yields a R-value of 27 for the walls. (One wall does have three 12' x 10' overhead doors tho' ...)

You can read a description of the process (with pictures) in my polebarn thread beginning with the following post:

Insulating the barn with spray-on cellulose insulation

The crew was in and out in less than 6 hours IIRC.


I'm glad we hired it done. I think spray-on "wet" cellulose is probably one of the most economical ways to go to :thumbsup:

I was very interested in the wet cellulose too. The contractor no longer works with it. He said he didn't like the amount of moisture that was going into the walls. The mix was 32oz of water per 16" of insulation. I guess drying time is critical and depending on the location and situation you could be waiting quite a while.

 

[rswyan]

I was very interested in the wet cellulose too. The contractor no longer works with it. He said he didn't like the amount of moisture that was going into the walls. The mix was 32oz of water per 16" of insulation.

Interesting ..... did he ever actually have a real issue with that ?

Or he just didn't care for it ?

Was he a Nu-Wool installer - or some other system ?

I really have no idea about much water was used - the truck was self-contained and IIRC they didn't ask me for a water source for more water.

I do know that right after it was placed and trimmed, it did feel slightly "damp" or "moist" to the touch ... and I emphasize "slightly". The surface dried fairly quickly (couple of days), and of course I didn't go digging into it to check moisture retention.

There was never any evidence of water running out the bottom of the wall cavities or anything like that. Don't even recall any moisture discoloration on any of the exposed framing lumber. I believe that there may have been some binder or glue mixed in with the water as well, to get it to stick together.

And it has "stuck" pretty well ..... I've got a few places on the walls where we still haven't gotten the OSB covering put up on the inside walls - 5 years later :shocked: - and for the most part the insulation is still sitting there in the wall cavity. There are a couple of places where it has fallen out - I think mostly due to birds who find the insulation a great construction material for a nest .... I think a few of 'em actually tried to dig out a cavity and actually make a nest right in the insulation

Once I get the OSB up on those sections, I'll just feed the loose insulation that has fallen out, which have gathered up and bagged, down into the wall from the top (the wall tops are open) - probably have to do it a couple of times, due to settling.

I guess drying time is critical and depending on the location and situation you could be waiting quite a while.

I might not consider it .... if I lived up in the rainforest in the Pacific Northwest ...

 

[VegOil]

I used the 602 kits from Foam It Green.
Very simple, chemical mixes at the handle, if not green something is wrong.

Sprayed 40X50 barn 20 ft walls in 2.5 hours, with one helper, 6 ladders.

 

[wedge40]

I used the 602 kits from Foam It Green.
Very simple, chemical mixes at the handle, if not green something is wrong.

Sprayed 40X50 barn 20 ft walls in 2.5 hours, with one helper, 6 ladders.

Any chance we can see a photo or two?

Wedge

 

[VegOil]

First Wall

Corner South wall sprayed about 1.5 thick

Wall up and dog door cut out in bottom left

One side insulated and walled

Did not do ceiling yet.