Insulation is the most crucial among the various essentials required to make a comfortable space to live in. It is a process that maintains the room temperature at a median level, which ensures that the room stays cool despite the relentless summer heat and is warm during the heartless winter months. The insulation acts as a barrier between the changing weather on the outside of the house.
However, when the usual insulation techniques begin to falter, signs like rising energy bills and inconsistent temperatures at home indicate that it is time to upgrade the home's insulation system to cavity foam insulation. This new material is more reliable in keeping energy costs down and in preventing the temperature from rising unbearably high.
Continue reading to find out more about cavity wall foam insulation; its functioning and its benefits!
What is Cavity Foam Insulation?
Injection foam is a unique type of material that expands at a slower pace than spray foam. This makes it highly suitable for filling up closed cavities. The method of applying the foam is the same as using a can of shaving cream. It involves inserting the foam injector through a small hole and then filling up the space within the cavity with the foam.
On being injected, the foam spreads into all hard-to-reach nooks and crannies, even encompassing all the wirings and piping along with it.
Keep in mind that injection foam does not expand, it is practically pushed into a cavity like toothpaste being pushed out of a tube. This enables the foam to be fitted into any type of space without exerting too much pressure that might risk cracking or damaging the walls.
Such characteristics make it the ideal replacement for insulating older homes. However, before injecting the cavity foam into the walls of a new home, any previously installed insulators like cellulose or other materials need to be removed by the construction contractor.
Difference between Injection Foam and Spray Foam
Both injection foam and spray foam are formulated with air sealing and thermal locking technology, but they differ in their method of installation.
The composition of spray foams is comprised of isocyanate and polyol resin. When mixed, these materials react by expanding and filling the area to which it is applied. It hardens instantly, creating a seal that prevents air leakage and hinders the process of thermal transfer through conduction.
The spray foam is primarily used to fill up open cavities, usually in new buildings and is then sealed with drywall. Injection foam on the other hand is not designed to expand, making it more applicable for closed cavity insulation.
It's primarily implemented to fill small enclosed spaces and also to fill the gaps between the wiring and plumbing. Injection foam can be conveniently installed from the exterior of the building which offsets the need to break down any existing walls or drywalls.
How is Cavity Foam Insulation Installed?
Since this type of cavity foam insulation is injected and not sprayed, there is no need to tear down any structural barriers. This alone significantly reduces the mess left behind after the insulation. The contractors hired to execute the insulation would typically start the process by mixing the formula on-site. This can be done using a mixing truck with a nozzle attached.
Since injection foam is applied from the exterior of the home, the contractor will need to remove a portion of any aluminum or vinyl sidings to drill holes into each of the wall's cavities. A foreman waiting on standby will insert a nozzle through these holes and fill it up with the foam material.
Another team member will parallels clean any excess foam left over the hole cavity before it hardens. This is also followed up by another staff member who would clear the area of any wood shavings or drops or foam.
After filling up the cavity completely, a Styrofoam plug is added after which the siding is reapplied over the holes bringing the process to a conclusion.
Other types of materials like brick, wood sidings and concrete blocks are also used often to seal the holes used to install the injection foam. Under rarer circumstances, cavity foam insulation can also be installed from the interior of the house.
This is done in cases where the external walls of a home are covered with stone chips or slated sidings that are not convenient to drill through, or when the insulation needs to be installed into a specific portion of the house.
Otherwise, the contractor would drill into the studs present behind the drywall. Any traces of dust or dirt will be removed using a wet-dry vacuum. Once the cavity is filled, the holes will be patched up using mud or other materials. Since this is a messier approach, it necessitates more preparation such as moving furniture away from the walls and covering fixed features with plastic.
The floors also need to be protected from sticky plastic material or resin. This entire process can take about 3 to 5 hours to complete, on top of which another 24 hours for the foam to harden completely.
Benefits of Injection Foam Insulation
Injection Foam offers a combination of basic and unique insulation benefits;
There is a drastic decline in energy bills.
Injection foam offers the highest R-value of any retrofit insulation at 5.1 per inch.
Reduces air infiltration.
The material is non-toxic and environmentally friendly.
Contains no CFCs or VOCs.
The formula is pre-expanding before injecting into the wall cavity.
80% enhancement in noise reduction.
Class A fire-resistant insulation.
Minimal to negligible shrinkage.
Does not get compressed or settled while being applied.
Prevent intrusion from any bugs or rodents.
Makes it possible to re-insulate any home from the outside within 2 days.
Increases the overall value of the home.
Conclusion
Installing cavity wall insulation using injection foam is a highly efficient process. It can be installed super efficiently using a minimalistic surgical procedure. This approach also helps reduce Cavity Insulation Cost by a significant amount making it a favorite cost-effective approach to contractors.