All About Foam Insulation

Why spray foam insulation is best for your home

For years, home insulation has been associated with pink fiberglass and itching arms. But new technologies are changing the way homes are insulated. Spray foam insulation is one of the latest and greatest advancements in home insulation technology.

Foam insulation expands to fill all the niches and cracks that traditional insulation materials can't reach, providing both air sealing and highly efficient insulation. If you're about to insulate a new home, or needing to replace the insulation in an older home, read on and see how foam insulation could work for you.

How spray foam insulation works

Foam insulation is applied using special spray equipment. Spray foam insulation is referred to as open cell if it's isocyanurate, or closed cell if it's polyurethane.

Closed cell spray foam insulation has a higher R-value, which is a rating determined by a combination of how many air products an insulating material has, how thick it is, and how well it holds back heat.

Before being applied, spray foam insulation is actually a liquid that contains a polymer and a foaming agent. After it is sprayed through a nozzle, the foam insulation expands while it dries, filling even the smallest cracks and wall cavities. When the application process is finished, the spray foam insulation installer cuts away the excess foam to form an even surface.

The benefits of spray foam insulation

Spray foam insulation offers many unique advantages:

Spray foam insulation is an air barrier.

As an air barrier, spray foam insulation makes additional air-tightness detailing unnecessary.

Spray foam insulation doesn't shrink or settle.

Insulation batts (batt is short for batting; insulation batts are precut sections of insulation designed to fit between wall studs) can shrink over time, reducing their effectiveness. But spray foam insulation packs spaces full, eliminating shrinking and sagging.

Spray foam insulation reduces framing costs.

Because it has a higher R-value than standard insulation, providing greater thermal resistance in a smaller space, spray foam insulation allows you to use smaller studs when framing walls. That can save you money when constructing a new home.

Spray foam insulation provides greater energy efficiency.

Because of its high R-value, spray foam insulation will reduce your energy and utility costs, which can also increase the life of your furnace and air conditioning units.

Most spray foam insulation is environmentally friendly.

Many types of spray foam do not use HCFCs, or hydrochlorofluorocarbons, a compound used in refrigeration and aerosol technologies that can be damaging to the ozone layer.

Installing spray foam insulation

Spray foam insulation is going to require a professional installer. If replacing the insulation in your current home, you may want to inquire about the feasibility of spray foam insulation. It can be a messy job. Also, if installing spray foam insulation in a new home, make sure the contractors you employ are used to working with it.

Spray foam insulation will cost about 20 percent more to install than standard insulating materials. But don't allow that to deter you from using it. Spray foam installation is guaranteed to save you a lot of money in the long run, certainly more than the difference in cost between it and insulators with lower R-values.

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