Spray Foam Attic Insulation Problems

Applying an even sheet of foam to the underside of a roof or other space can eliminate the routes that water vapor uses to leave the house.

Spray foam attic insulation problems.

The answers to your attic insulation problems can be as easy as understanding how different types of insulation work and what you need to look out for. The answer to fixing your attic insulation problems. The use of spray foam attic can present many potential problems especially when it comes to the improper installation of this material within this area of your home. In fact spray foam insulation can help avoid problems like these.

Nothing unusual about that. Earlier this year i got a question about a home that had spray foam insulation in the attic. A better long term solution many homeowners have found to fix their attic insulation problems has been to remove the old attic insulation and replace it with spray foam insulation. Poor application includes off ratio spraying of the material bad odors and the lack of adhesion.

The coverage needs to be uniform because a lot of heat will go through the under insulated areas. Placement errors during installation attics are the main spots in a home that are filled with unusual shapes gaps and spaces where air bubbles have the potential to form when you spray foam insulation. Spray polyurethane foam insulation of any kind uses isocyanates in 50 of the formulation even those claimed to be made with soy or other natural oils. Spray foam installers may miss some of the air leakage sites in the attic which can lead to problems in the insulation of the attic.

Over time trapped moisture can cause serious problems. This is not just a diyers issue. In an unvented attic scenario to limit air leakage as well as any associated condensation at the roof line a continuous air barrier is required. The real issue is the improper formulation and installation of large amounts of spray foam in homes and buildings by poorly trained unknowledgeable or even unreputable commercial installers.

Problems with spray foam insulation in attics. A lot of builders and homeowners are going with spray foam insulation because of the airtightness benefits but then the questioner mentioned that the spray foam contractor had intentionally left big holes to the outside by not sealing the gable vents. Unfortunately good average thickness doesn t cut it. Incorrectly installed spray foam insulation can trap moisture in the home encouraging rot and mold problems.

The problem was that the installer was doing his first spray foam job ever and the thickness of the insulation varied from zero visible roof deck to about 9. Poor application of the spray foam insulation.