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Spray Foam Insulation. It’s so pretty. When it’s done. It’s not so bad to install either, most of the time is prep and cleanup, which still isn’t so bad (total project time ~ 3 hrs?, just one hour of actual spraying)
The goods we use are a two component system shipped in a box that leaves very little to chance… Open box, twist knobs, practice-spray to make sure yellow component + blue component = green spray!
It’s good to have a helper available to get new spray tips ready and keep the cords untangled, and be a second set of eyes on the lookout for uneven spraying (me!) Also, they’re there to take awesome pictures of you in a tyvek suit. Then, spray:
Oh right, first get the outfit on, then spray:
Scaffolding saves the day. Seriously. High. Ceilings.
So that’s it, and hopefully that’s the last time we’ll be spray-foaming (or regular insulating) our house. We’ve successfully foamed the entire north elevation on the first two floors (minus intentionally exposed brick in the powder room, but we foamed the bit of exposed west wall in there to balance it out). The whole third floor and attic is spray-in recycled cellulose insulation. And the south elevation on the first two floors… Welllll it gets heated by the sun, right?
Today we took the little bedroom exterior wall from studs to drywall with a short interval at spray foam insulation. We’ll post some progress/ detail-y stuff later, but here’s the exciting time-lapse in three easy steps.
Prior to framing after patching masonry:
Framing:
Spray foam insulation:
Drywall:
It feels like such a major transformation… We’re moving in the right direction again!
We’re moving right along to the indoor work, so we temporarily have less floor in the little bedroom. It was… let’s just say… in bad shape. We’re planning to install cork in here eventually, so we’ll be filling in with plywood. Not surprisingly, it’s not level:
I insulated a bit along the exterior with “rotten cotton” to prevent the chance of fire spreading along the outermost floor joists from the kitchen below:
Rob got started on the plumbing changes necessary for the new radiator install that will be piped in the wall instead of connecting at the floor. Unfortunately when he installed the pex at the old radiator he did a really good job so it was a two wrench job un-do it:
By the way he’s our super-bright new alley lights. This picture is taken at night. Don’t blind yourself:
And here’s a glimpse of the bed frame we brought back from the Poconos this weekend. It used to be a rope bed but was modified- so finding a mattress that fits correctly (they’re all made so deep now) will be a challenge… We’re up for it once we have a place to set it up:
Aaaand that about sums it up.
So… why doesn’t Lowes or HD sell unfaced formaldehyde free R13 batt in-store? We had to de-face this!
The foam is R13, then to add a bit more we used loose fill behind a vapor barrier. Total R value @ exterior wall- approx 24. We also put up furring strips on the exterior wall… Progress:
Before:
After:
It was a sad goodbye to the exterior brick in the bathroom this fine evening… Because It Was Time To Foam It Green:
Safety first. Nice booties.
This is our THIRD time spraying foam insulation and now we definitely have the drill down. Tip: Cover EVERYTHING with plastic, paper, or tyvek suit for easy clean up.
In action:
We’re bringing sexy back for sure in our matching Tyvek suits:
All the walls are now insulated except the exterior wall… But even it’s all prepped for spray foam tomorrow:
You can relate start to see the niches here. Notice we used the soft blue insulation where the access panels so we aren’t digging thru fiberglass to access shut off valves.
Warm, cozy, and acoustically isolated!
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