Anyone have spray foam insulation installed ?

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BJN644

Feeling the Heat
Nov 4, 2007
352
Maine
Now that I'm running my wood stove almost 24/7, I'm getting a little nervous about freezing up the baseboard heating that runs through my granite and fieldstone foundation. I went to a home show where there were venders for spray in foam insulation and claimed they could insulate my stone foundation.

Has anyone had this done, and how did it work out ?

I also noticed that there are a couple different types of foam; open cell, closed cell, soy based, urathane and probably something else too. Is one better than the other ?
 
I have.
I live in a small cabin/house on a lake that has no basement, just a crawl space of about 5 ft tall.
I had the interior of the foundation sprayed 2 inches thick, sills included.
The 1st year I lived there it was so cold....bad stove...worse insulation, I was always battling pipe issues.
Regular insulation was not feesible because of issues with higher water at times that could get into the crawlspace.
The furnace runs go through the crawlspace, and I hardly run my furnace anymore.
I have a digital temp readout of the crawlspace in the kitchen so I can monitor temps to prevent water pipe freeze-up. But to tell you the truth, it never gets below 50 F in there.
I used a Urethene foam.
There was a big difference in price from different contractors. I ended up going with the lowest bid after talking to some people that dealt with the guy that did it.
All in all I am very happy with it.
 
Another option is to convert the baseboard system to run glycol which is freeze proof (special kind of glycol for that use). Don't quote me on this, but I believe you have to isolate it, add propylene glycol, run it for a while, and test it each year and possibly recharge it and that should be that. Although your system won't freeze glycol carries less heat than water and makes the water less dense so any tiny leaks that were too small for water to leak out, may be a problem afterward. Elkimmeg I know is familiar with it, he's got glycol in his baseboards for the reason you mention. If you're interested in that route I'd PM him.
 
There is a recent post from someone who owns a masonry heater and had spray installed on new construction, maybe a better idea is to PM forum member G-Rott, he is a sealection foam contractor. Good luck! and post how it turns out, also interested in what pricing you get.
 
Rhonemas said:
Another option is to convert the baseboard system to run glycol which is freeze proof (special kind of glycol for that use). Don't quote me on this, but I believe you have to isolate it, add propylene glycol, run it for a while, and test it each year and possibly recharge it and that should be that. Although your system won't freeze glycol carries less heat than water and makes the water less dense so any tiny leaks that were too small for water to leak out, may be a problem afterward. Elkimmeg I know is familiar with it, he's got glycol in his baseboards for the reason you mention. If you're interested in that route I'd PM him.
Click to expand...

I run glycol in my HVAC system to 3 baseboard zones, my hot water and my heated basement floor. Works great, nice sealed system has never needed topping off. One caverat that I found out the hard way is the the glycol turns mildly acidic over time and you have to add a base to it to bring the Ph back closer to 7. I have to do this thei year as my valves are starting to show signs of some corrosion.
 
Always wanted a spray foam setup, looked into buying, little too much for part-time use. One of my best friends has his whole attic and basement done, made a huge huge difference in a big old farmhouse. My sister lived in a sprayed-foam house for a while, that was pretty interesting.
 
mayhem" date=" said:
One caverat that I found out the hard way is the the glycol turns mildly acidic over time and you have to add a base to it to bring the Ph back closer to 7. I have to do this thei year as my valves are starting to show signs of some corrosion.
Click to expand...
MAYHEM: Now that just ruined one of my plans... Actually, thanks for mentioning that. I was not aware, and will certainly pass this by a heat cop of some kind for discussion. Another problem w/ glycol is that if you do get a leak, they are not as much fun to repair as w/ a water leak. Doable, it just takes a lot more cleaning/rinsing. I had it in my house for a few years, and finally drained it. Now I just worry about freezing when I am gone! Ha ha. Also, may I suggest re-piping (if economical) w/ pex pipe that (usually, I hear) can take some freezing? Good luck. No easy answers....
 
I did cosider glycol as well, but found out that it doesn't transfer heat as well, the corrosive part will kill that idea. I also have domestic water to worry about too. I'm going to get a few estimates on the foam and I'll keep you posted, thanks all for the replies.

The other thing I thought of was putting in another zone in the basement and installing a Modine heater and just keeping at around 50f. But that almost seems like a waste cause I'm still paying the man and burning oil that way.
 
A few questions for BC - Do you have a basement or a crawlspace - hard floor or dirt? How many feet of the foundation wall are below grade and how many above grade? Were you thinking of spraying the interior wall surface, the exterior down to grade, or the exterior to below grade? Do you have any exterior drainage or interior humidity problems in the basement now?
BTW - Spray foam up here is about $1.10 board ft installed for standard 90% closed cell PU up to maybe $1.75 worst case but it's going up with the spot barrel price.... Curious to know how your quotes compare...
 
a real good friend of mine had a contractor spray his attic. i went up there on a hot and humid day. mid ninety's outside. the attic was 78 degrees. the stuff is expensive but will pay for itself. here is the web site of stuff he used
http://www.biobased.net/homeowners/index.php
 
I have had only 1 contractor get back to me so far, not looking good for this heating season. He refused to do the job until the outside temp was a least 40 deg. He said the foam would not adhere and set up correctly on cold stone. I was quoted $1.25 a board foot for the job when they could do it.
 
alaskabuilder said:
A few questions for BC - Do you have a basement or a crawlspace - hard floor or dirt? How many feet of the foundation wall are below grade and how many above grade? Were you thinking of spraying the interior wall surface, the exterior down to grade, or the exterior to below grade? Do you have any exterior drainage or interior humidity problems in the basement now?
BTW - Spray foam up here is about $1.10 board ft installed for standard 90% closed cell PU up to maybe $1.75 worst case but it's going up with the spot barrel price.... Curious to know how your quotes compare...
Click to expand...

It's a short basement, 5 1/2 ' in height, dirt floor, I'd say around 1 1/2' above grade. I wanted to insulate from the sill to down below grade 1 or 2 feet, I've heard recomendations for both so that's still unclear. I also have a 4x8 bulkhead area with a steel Bilco door, I'm hoping they can do some creative insulating there.

As far as drainage goes, fair for a stone foundation, Mostly crushed stone on the floor with a drain exiting the foundation so I don't get any standing water after a rain event but it get damp.

As stated in another post, the one quote I got was $1.25 bf, this was for a Corbond closed cell foam.
 
BJN644 said:
Now that I'm running my wood stove almost 24/7, I'm getting a little nervous about freezing up the baseboard heating that runs through my granite and fieldstone foundation. I went to a home show where there were venders for spray in foam insulation and claimed they could insulate my stone foundation.

Has anyone had this done, and how did it work out ?

I also noticed that there are a couple different types of foam; open cell, closed cell, soy based, urethane and probably something else too. Is one better than the other ?
Click to expand...

Just wanted to give the one year update. I went with a soy based closed cell foam and had it installed over the summer. It's been cold lately with no snow for insulation, low teens at night with strong winds, the Oakwood has been shifted into full time burn mode. My basement has not dropped below 50 deg. with no heat at all in the basement. So far this stuff has exceeded my expectations and the floors in my house are definitely warmer.
 
Thinking of doing somehting for my basement too...its got a heated floor but the burner runs an hour at a time to maintain the temps down there and I'm loathe to spend the oil money for it. Its a walk out wiht 10" thick walls...maybe a layer of foam on the inside would help reduce the heat transfer to the cold cement.
 
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