What Are The Advantages Of Eco Friendly Spray Foam Insulation?

What Is Eco Friendly Spray Foam Insulation?

Spray foam insulation is one of the best ways to insulate a new home. Basically a foam compound is applied to the area between the wall studs. It expands and creates an inert, air tight seal between the inside of the home and the outside. R values are in the range of R-3 per inch or better. Spray foam insulation works well even in attics that have a limited air gap, such as vaulted ceilings.

Why Choose Eco Friendly Spray Foam?

The advantages of spray in foam insulation are obvious but the problem is that most applicators use a polyurethane product made from petrochemicals. This can lead to off-gassing of VOC's or volatile organic compounds for years.

Spray foam insulation made from soy based material or a cement based foam made from calcium, alumina and magnesium oxide is much more eco friendly. Concrete based spray foam insulation is almost totally bug and pest resistant. Both products are recyclable and will degrade back into natural compounds.

Soy based spray foam insulation is applied in almost exactly the same manner as the petrochemical based type. Once it is in place it hardens and the billions of tiny air pockets inside create an excellent insulating material. Because the foam expands, filling all the voids and cracks in the wall and seals up against the wall studs, it makes a nearly air tight building envelope when properly applied. This means less drafts and no places for insects to crawl inside. For cold or warm climates there is virtually no better means of sealing and insulating a home.

The product can be applied to both new construction and remodeling jobs. All you need is to expose the face of the inside wall and remove the old insulation.

This type of product is often seen on popular green renovation shows on Television. It does not cost much more than polyurethane based spray foam and you don't have to worry about VOC's which may harm the health of your family. Should petrochemical based products be found to be a hazard one day, you won't have to worry about it if you go with one of the green alternatives in spray foam insulation.

For more on concrete foam insulation see: What is Concrete Foam Insulation?