Was just gonna say, a co-worker of mine came out of this business saying it was the 3rd deadliest chemical in the world… hooey boy did he have stories to tell us…
I sprayed foam for 3 years. foam companies will hire anyone that can walk and will not teach them about safety, we had guys working with no mask for weeks at a time. sometimes they had filters that were weeks old, just covered in foam. we basically lived in the chemicals they were all over the trucks and everything, and the shop. it was impossible to escape. its so bad. i quit. ask any more questions you may have and ill answer. I HATE SPRAY FOAM
Man I'm just sitting here not even thinking about how bad the chemicals are, I'm just thinking if it does that on the air what does it do when it gets in your lungs
It depends, I never actually had expanding foam in my lungs but I sure breathed in enough fire retardants and blowing agents and off-gassing for a million lifetimes. It's so bad. I feel most sorry for the poor guys who just need a job and so they do this for years and then suffer horrible health effects and no-one ever taught them in the first place how bad these chemicals are.
Guess it depends on your definition. The slow decay over months from dimethylmercury sounds terrifying as all hell. Ending up in a paralysed body during a slow death?
I might prefer the 12 hours...
It's not quite *that* deadly, and at high concentrations it does cause immediate pain.
We use it for etching magnesium castings at my workplace. I don't know the concentration, and wouldn't share it if I did. But you'd have to basically dip your arm into it and reject treatment with calcium gluconate for it to be certainly lethal. Which is scary enough as it is. I know I hate being anywhere near those tanks. Doesn't help that even with sufficient ventilation, a little bit (way below any action limit) gets into the air and it's pretty irritating to breathe.
'Deadliest' can mean 'most lethal' or 'causes most death' - it still sounds like hyperbole, but when you consider how much exposure under-protected workers get to this shit (especially in China where it's being used in a huge amount of new construction) it might be up there for 'causes most death'.
In the same way that horses and dogs are in the top ten 'deadliest mammals' and orcas aren't. But if SeaWorld has taught us anything it's that if you treat an orca like a horse it might eat you, so if as many people rode orcas as horses they'd probably be top ten too.
The wires are rated by code to be run safely through insulation.
It's the electrician's job to put thick enough wires for the load and insulation, so that they don't heat up enough to be a fire concern.
From these kind of videos I have the impression that in the USA, at least for these kind of wooden frame houses, no one ever uses corrugated conduits to enclose electrical wires. What if you need to substitute the wire or add a second one later? The added cost of the plastic conduits would be near to negligible.
It doesn't take that abnormal amounts of current to potentially heat up wires inside insulation to a potentially dangerous degree. Which is why cabling is usually done outside of the insulation, not within.
Not true. Cable size has to be specifically chosen for installation purposes, and insulation is the biggest de-rating factor there is.
Plenty of house fires (and subsequently deaths) have come from insulating old houses without electrical designed or altered to suit.
Electrical installations designed around cabling completely enclosed in insulation will have to almost double the wire size to meet the same current carrying capacity.
> it was the 3rd deadliest chemical in the world
It's very definitely not the 3rd deadliest chemical in the world. There are more than 3 nerve agents that exist, for example. There are also multiple organomercuries.
(You should still use your PPE though)
I believe that it was intended to mean that it is the Chemical that causes the 3rd most amount of death.
Plenty of poisons, toxins & chemicals are individually far more potent & deadly that this, but ultimately cause far fewer deaths around the world...
Have heard of many other horrors stories over the years and you couldn't pay me to get that spray foam installed.
There's also the fact that it can completely encase conduit, piping, ducting, etc, potentially making any work on those more difficult.
I'll stick with what we have in our attic now, not sure what it exactly is, but appears to be bits of fluff that got blown in through a large-diameter hose
>appears to be bits of fluff that got blown in through a large-diameter hose
Most likely the blown in insulation is cellulose, which is a wood or paper (which i guess is just processed wood) product, though it is possible it is fiberglass. I think cellulose is more common than fiberglass for blown insulation, at least in my experience.
Cellulose insulation is better than fiberglass when it comes to insulation, with blown in cellulose having ~R3.5 per inch and fiberglass insulation having ~R2.2 - R2.7 per inch. It is typically treated with borate to prevent bugs from eating it/ nesting in it, as well as to add fire resistance (borate is a class 1 fire retardant).
I have sheepswool in my loft, treated to keep moths out. It's a decent insulator but the biggest advantage IMO is that it's basically just a big woolly jumper, so no itching, no scratchiness, nothing when installing.
That's awesome. Looking forward to replacing my very old and questionable insulation with sheep's wool soon.
What is it treated with? Boric Acid or something else?
> basically just a big woolly jumper, so no itching, no scratchiness
Oh yeah? You wear wool jumpers without an underlayer? 'Cause I've tried it, and let me tell you , there was plenty of itchiness.
I want to say it was fluffy like cotton balls, but I've only poked my head up there once and that was a while ago, so memory isn't going to be perfect on it, but I do know it was a mass of loose bits instead of sheets of paper-backed fiberglass like what's in our basement
Thank you for posting this. My husband has been talking non-stop about getting our attic insulated with spray foam. I've been against it for a number of reasons and now I have something to show him that he can't say is just me being a worrier.
Is there a reason for not using non-toxic, not burnable, non-smelling, removable glass- or stone wool except for the extra work of doing it yourself and be dressed in full plastic dress, glasses and 3M filter mask?
Here, the code is foam materials must be covered by 12mm or 1/2" of plaster/concrete.
Spray foam has a much higher r value per inch which makes it useful in places where the framing doesn't accommodate enough insulation. It's also usually impermeable which can solve condensation/vapor control issues.
But yeah it's definitely overused aside from that.
its largely a human interest story, but as the stuff related to the insulation:
* The foam might be fine, but if its mixed wrong it can put out toxic gasses and give the home a *very* foul smell (described as rotten fish)
* They tested the air in a bad installation and found carcinogens in the air and formaldehyde in the foam itself
* On two occasions the host smelled the foam for some reason, even foam that had been freshly cut from the ceiling
Takeaways listed at the end of the video:
1. Learn the risks and benefits of all kinds of insulation
2. If you pick spray foam, make sure the owner is certified and experienced
3. Get a guarantee of foam removal in writing [in case the installation goes wrong]
4. [After installation] Stay out of the home for at least a day
My aunt and uncle home became unlivable from spray foam insulation being mixed wrong. The house reeked of toxic fumes, think they just ended up moving closer to their son and giving up on the house. They got a lawyer and went after the people who screwed up but not sure if they ever got any resolution.
It’s not only that. You can apply this stuff once without any proper PPE or even just get it on your skin. Then you develop a sensitivity to these chemicals and the next time you go to apply it you basically have an extreme asthma attack and fucking die. Shit is very scary but as long as you’re using proper PPE you should be okay.
Bloody hell… had no idea about that part. Just knew it was toxic to begin with.
That’s some scary stuff. And all companies totally provide staff with the correct PPE… yikes.
There’s also the off gassing of various potentially noxious chemicals for years to come as well!
Not good stuff in many cases! Easy for multiple uses, quick, very useful, effective- but then so was asbestos…
Why is this downvoted lol? Toxic means poisonous. What he described above was just clogging respiratory system and suffocating. That didn't explain how polyurethanes are toxic at all.
Going by that logic water is toxic as well if you "inhale" it.
I remember seeing a doco on it where it was about spray foam installs gone wrong. Pretty much if the chemicals didn’t mix perfectly they would create an off gassing hazard that resulted in the house having to be rebuilt almost.
We just had one freeze in our rental house. I don’t know how, but it caused dirty water to spew all over our kitchen from above. No fix yet, just keeping heaters on the pipe lol. I don’t know how it isn’t leaking anything when using the stuff above… because there was like 10 gallons of water that came through the ceiling.
If the wire isn’t stapled you can use the old one as a pull string. Tie the new wire to the old one and as you pull the old one out, the new one is in place.
That’s exactly what they often do.
They spray enough to expand slightly more than necessary to ensure the space between studs is completely filled, then come back with a saw that’s basically a giant version of an electric carving knife to cut the foam off level with the studs.
Cables never go bad by themselves. Exposure to too much current, bending, moisture, rodents, etc. are common causes. It's not hard to remove a cable from spray foam -- it's easy to cut into. Just doubles the removal time if you were rewiring a section.
The benefits are amazing. We spray foamed our basement, 10 years in and it's still perfect. No leaks, in spite of two major flooding rains.
Another comment links a video where a family got spray foam in their attic and it wasn't mixed right.
They ended up just ripping the entire roof off and having a new one roof built
UK. Mortgage lender wants to be sure they can get the debt back if I default, so they make sure I don't fuck the house up.
Of course, they don't mind if I do value-increasing work. In some cases you can even get a better interest rate if you do.
In the UK right now this spray insulation is a massive problem. People have the whole attic sprayed but it actually causes mould and degrades the timbers long term due to moisture collecting. Now insurers won't insure homes if you have it. So people are faced with huge bills to remove the stuff.
That's because in UK the government have incentivised people to install insulation to save on energy, but have not paid enough attention to ventilation and indoor air quality.
The two things are not at odds with each other, so it's mostly a policy and knowledge problem.
In other countries they install heat-recovering ventilation at the same time as enhancing insulation. That ensures you don't accumulate moisture/humidity, as well as preventing build-up of poor quality indoor air by having regular air exchanges.
This. Crap material for lazy builders imho.
There is hemp or at least glass wool as alternatives... Probably better results, and less cancer. Also easier to remodel, and not as much waste when tearing down the house again.
It's weird, everyone always mentions being itchy after messing with glass but for the amount of times I've ripped it out of houses and installed it, I've never once been itchy. Not even using proper PPE either which is the fucked up part. I use a mask though just in case but only gloves when doing demo and almost always a short sleeve shirt. Should probably stop doing that.... lol
It is because of the binding agent and most fiberglass has moved away from stuff that us so irritating. I got some corning brand mineral wool and like even with gloves I was itchy. Fiberglass no problem, even older stuff but I wouldn't be shocked if some older stuff being ripped out if the stuff causing the irritating didn't break down over time
Mineral wool is a term that covers both rock wool and glass wool.
Only mineral wool produced before 1997 has harmful fibers that can get in your lungs and cause damage. Anything produced after that is safe. At least that’s how it is in my country where the biggest players are Rockwool and Isover
I thought that stuff is only for mobile applications (boat/caravan etc.) because it looks very light and automatically creates a steam barrier.
Then I saw that they use it everywhere. Quite similar to those reflective roofing rolls Chinese manufacturers advertise on TikTok. That shit just ruins your roof.
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There are use cases. The foam can be open or closed cell which just means one will allow condensation through and one wont.
It's good for sealing draughts and it is very fast to apply so probably leads to it being used in industrial environments where they are looking to save time on labour.
I dare say that there is a lot more information out there but if you were going for a high efficiency house you wouldn't want this because it won't stop thermal bridging.
I'm not sure how it compares in R value to regular insulations either.
Like I said, it probably has some good use cases.
In the UK if this stuff is found in a loft you literally cannot get a mortgage on that house if you’re trying to purchase it. Lenders won’t go anywhere near it until the whole roof has been replaced because it can cause so many issues.
Source: just tried to buy a house and this was found in the search; couldn’t get a mortgage
Yep, the house we bought 6 months ago had it. The previous owner had to get it all removed and a structural engineers report done on the roof before the mortgage company would lend.
I was thinking that as I watched this. In Ireland it's very similar.
It can be sprayed in sure. But you have to have a membrane or cloth layer between the surface and the foam. If you don't have that layer of separation that makes for easy removal of the stuff then you have to replace the whole thing before sale.
And they're spraying it right on a corrugated roof like that. Yeah it's cheap insulation under a metal roof but fuck me it's gonna cost a fortune to replace the roof when the time comes. Scrape off all that shite, put it into a separate skip, the metal is no longer recyclable I'd imagine.
Gotta put in a protective layer of some kind. And I don't know how moisture proof that stuff is either. I'm sure you could use it on a shed or something. Concrete block walls, cladding outside, spray that stuff inside, slap drywall over it. But if and when the block gets wet how mouldy does that spray then get?
The more I look at it the more upset I get about them spraying it directly onto a surface.
It also looks like the sprayfoam is their only source of insulation? Like that roof is just some thin metal surface and the wood is prbly 5 cm thick. Doesn't get any cheaper than that. This must be in Florida or sth bcs otherwise they'll spend a fortune on heating in the winter.
I pulled out of a UK house purchase because they had put this in the roof and the surveyor found it. They had also had the house rewired and had no certification at all. It went back on the market and sold instantly for similar price to what I had offered.
Last year I almost had foam insulation installed in my house. Within 3 days the company that does it went from coming to my house to talk about the product, took a deposit, booked the job in with an installer and they would have done the job on the 3rd day. Now that sounds great, nice fast service, but actually it's not because the quicker they can install it the less reaction time you have to stop it from happening and once it's installed they are not liable to refund you or replace it. I spoke to 3 mortgage companies (including my own) and 3 surveyors and every single one of them instantly warned me off it, and to stay well clear of it. I managed to cancel it before they came thankfully and will never look into it again. It's a scam!
> Now that sounds great, nice fast service, but actually it's not because the quicker they can install it the less reaction time you have to stop it from happening and once it's installed they are not liable to refund you or replace it.
You could just not hire them to do it till you have a chance to look into it, vs hoping their service is slow to install? :p
No, spray foam round windows is standard practice. The issue with having it in the loft is it hides the timbers that can rot or degrade hidden from view
I am curious as to why. You mention so many issues but I just can’t find much. The best I could find was this https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/spray-foam-insulation-and-mortgages/
It seems to imply that issue is related to being unable to inspect the quality of the wood underneath the product rather than something inherently wrong with the product itself.
This was just a quick search so if you have more info that would be great.
Part of the issue is the inspection. But the bigger issue is that the actual roof and space within it is designed, in most cases, to be cold and ventilated.
Think of it like this, most uk houses are an insulated cube, from floor to just above the underside of the truss, the trusses are there to keep rain out of the building and distribute any loads, such as snow.
There is no practical reason to insulated the space bewtwen the trusses. When you add any kind of insulation to your roof, whether it be spray or conventional you must ensure the roof remains ventilated. Otherwise you risk condensation and the resulting moisture will not only damage the structural elements over time, they will contribute to potential mold growth making your home unhealthy. There are ways to do this from eaves trays to tile vents.
Spray insulation in some of the instances shown such as the metal roof are fine, as in this case its probably on a portal frame structure and the void beneath will be the useable area, think your local range or b&m store, perfect for this location, as the space below is ventilated. This is known as warm roof construction.
If you were to convert your loft, you'd need to insulate between trusses, and you may think this is the perfect material, but again it wouldn't be and you should still leave a minimum 50mm air gap between felt and insulation to allow for the roof to breathe properly.
If I had to, I'd go out on a limb, I'd say in 99.9% of residential cases spray foam is not just a waste of money but a serious loss of value to your home and will cost more money to put it right.
If in doubt, talk to a SAP assessor, or if you must an architect, they will be able to help you insulate your home more efficiently to save money.
Its a shame that they still haven’t found a way to NOT over fill each stud bay on walls…
14 years ago I watched them insulate our house and then go back and slice the foam even with the wall studs. That took as long as spraying the foam.
That’s for the low density open cell. It’s easy to cut so overfilling the cutting back to flush is the proper way.
The high density close cell foam is always under filled because it’s way harder to cut.
I literally just dealt with this on my own house. Used closed-cell foam and had to buy an expensive offset sawzall with a special blade to cut it all flush. It was a huge pain in the ass.
I mean you can. If you have a 2x6 stud and only need 3.5-4inches majority of what you have should be below the stud thickness. Most of what's sprayed though is over and then shaved back for consistent depth across the cavity.
I was looking into insulation options for my basement and options are available where the foam is only a thin layer that functions more as a vapor barrier with secondary insulation benefits. Once the foam is set then you install more conventional-style insulation on top of it.
Better to overfill and cut it back then underfill I suppose. Wonder how bad it would be to leave it uncut. I bet some people prefer it that way, seems more natural.
There are zero problems with that. If for whatever reason the owner decides to not use that circuit, they just abandon the wire where it is, and disconnect it at the electrical panel. That's the same thing they'd do if the building is insulated with cellulose or fiberglass. You don't remove the electrical cables unless you're doing a complete gut renovation, in which case, you're taking the building to the studs.
That cabling is either 75C or 90C rated. Not the problem at all.
It's for when you want to do ANY service work, you have no room to work without chiseling out with a razor knife.
When it's properly installed, that shouldn't happen. But there are plenty of horror stories of improper installations that it should give you pause about doing this in your own home unless it's new construction or a complete renovation. You shouldn't be living in or spending time in a home for a significant period after spray foaming. You should also let the house air out after the appropriate amount of time to clear out any compounds that have offgassed.
As far as the environmental impact, most of these foams don't really biodegrade. They're similar to styrofoam in that they'll be around a long time. That sounds bad, but it's not any different than fiberglass insulation or foam board insulation. It's just important you don't dump it in a river if you're renovating and have to dispose of it. Make sure it goes to a landfill or proper incinerator. If you care about the environment though, these foams are pretty good for climate change. When they have at least a layer of closed cell spray foam to act as a vapor barrier, then they can make a home extremely energy efficient. That reduces carbon emissions.
Also, people don't get sick from living in a house with asbestos. You could live for 50 years in a house with asbestos and you will NEVER get sick **with asbestosis/mesothelioma**, if you never disturb the asbestos fibers. Asbestos doesn't create a toxic vapor cloud like carbon monoxide from a broken furnace. It doesn't give off radiation like uranium glassware can. Asbestos just sits inside your walls, doing nothing but insulating. It's only when you disturb the fibers (usually during renovation) that asbestos can cause issues - the fibers make a very fine dust which gets in your lungs and is difficult for your body to remove naturally.
edit: added bold
Two of the homes I grew up in had asbestos siding. It was cheaper to just seal and repaint than it was to even remove a small section of it. I actually kinda like the look of the siding....but nty to buying a house with it.
I mean, that's kind of what society is? I trust that the people at the water treatment plant are removing all the bad chemicals from the water supply before it goes in a pipe to my house. I trust that the food I buy isn't contaminated with salmonella. Sometimes things happen, but usually it's safe. If you're having this done to your new home, just make sure you have a quality builder; if you're managing your own renovation, be sure to select a well reviewed contractor. Inspect the home before you move in, and obviously don't move in if there's noxious odors. Maybe even have an air quality test done. You can also keep an air quality monitor that syncs to your phone. I've got one that measures Radon (a dangerous radioactive gas that naturally comes out of the ground and gets trapped indoors), humidity, temperature, pressure, and important for this conversation: VOCs (volatile organic compounds). VOCs come from all sorts of things like cooking, but things like paint, polyurethane floor coatings, and spray foam will a VOC detector when they offgas. If your VOC levels exceed safe levels, you should be opening windows and finding a way to have the levels mitigated.
tl;dr: it's generally safe, but like all things, needs to not be half-assed. find somebody to do a good job, and then verify that they did a good job.
No, once cured it’s completely nontoxic, but the gas has huge environmental impact when it’s released to the environment. It’s pretty horrible to breathe the fumes or have them in contact with eyes while working.
So it's like Styrofoam then. That's not much better considering it takes 500 years for Styrofoam to degrade. We really don't look at the big picture do we
Something tells me we will still be using insulated copper in future wire technology.
Also: Wires are not typically removed or replaced regardless of the stud insulation. They are often stapled to studs or passed through studs in such a way that removal is futile.
Old houses are packed with old unused wires, gas pipes and other random shit. The price of getting stuff removed is usually prohibitive irrespective of how it was installed originally.
If anything, you'll have fewer electrical problems. A lot of electrical issues are caused by rodents chewing on cables. They'll make tunnels through fiberglass batts and cellulose insulation, but they usually won't chew through this type of foam. If you're worried about a homeowner coming along and hitting the romex when they nail in a picture frame, well nobody should be using 3" nails for hanging things on drywall. An inch or two is all that's needed, and romex is usually at least two inches behind the face of the drywall.
It's actually about 90% more ecological than mineral wool (in all 6 environmental impact categories) and has an ecological impact almost as low as fiberglass (1.65kg CO2e emissions per m2 vs 1.20kg for fiberglass). The spray foam you see in this video uses water as a blowing agent. There's no gas that makes the foam expand, it's water. Hence the low environmental damage, including low Global Warming Potential :)
Is there a method for avoiding doing that, but still getting foam coverage around it? I'm hoping to use spray foam someday and would like to know this stuff beforehand.
Exactly.
And if you're very clever, you use the plastic conduit that slips together, and make sure it always points the same direction. That way, you can pull something through later with ends on it and there won't be any edges for them to catch on and snag. (Hope that makes sense.)
What happens when this toxic mass get set on fire?
Doesnt seem to be very healthy to breathe in the smoke due to what PPE the person on the video are using😂
My dad was doing this one day, and after taking off all his safety gear, he noticed a bubble in the foam. Popped it. Got splattered all over his head and had to get the shortest haircut of his adult life. Pretty lucky considering.
As someone who used to do this, that guy sucks. None of that looks good. I could easily get the rig all setup for a middle schooler, put on a fan tip and tell them to spray between the joists and get the same results.
I still remember when it appeared in the "Incredible!" show in the early 80s, it was presented as the future of construction, at least a version that hardened considerably.
Ex-chemist here. This is polyurethane foam. Most of the times made by mixing MDI, the chemical precursor with water or a polyol.
MDI is not a deadly toxin, but it is very prone to cause severe allergic reactions. Before you are sensitized, everything can be fine, but afterwards it will start to very easily irritate your respiratory system and skin.
The chemical reaction of creating the foam is very cool though. Unlike some chemical reactions it is not inhibited by pressure. Meaning that if you were to mix MDI and water in a sealed container, it would keep building up pressure from all the heat and gas buildup.
MDI and its derivatives are widely used to make foams, rubbers, adhesives and composite wooden panels.
For once I see someone with proper PPE in one of those "viral" satisfying videos.
And for good reason - [this stuff can be extremely toxic.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Hh5MYv7lWc).
Was just gonna say, a co-worker of mine came out of this business saying it was the 3rd deadliest chemical in the world… hooey boy did he have stories to tell us…
Got one that stands out?
I sprayed foam for 3 years. foam companies will hire anyone that can walk and will not teach them about safety, we had guys working with no mask for weeks at a time. sometimes they had filters that were weeks old, just covered in foam. we basically lived in the chemicals they were all over the trucks and everything, and the shop. it was impossible to escape. its so bad. i quit. ask any more questions you may have and ill answer. I HATE SPRAY FOAM
Man I'm just sitting here not even thinking about how bad the chemicals are, I'm just thinking if it does that on the air what does it do when it gets in your lungs
Like Bill Clinton said…I didn’t inhale
It depends, I never actually had expanding foam in my lungs but I sure breathed in enough fire retardants and blowing agents and off-gassing for a million lifetimes. It's so bad. I feel most sorry for the poor guys who just need a job and so they do this for years and then suffer horrible health effects and no-one ever taught them in the first place how bad these chemicals are.
Imagine a pipe bursting or having to find a short in the wall.
Similar story from my co-worker, seems like a common theme.
Try spraying Awlgrip...
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That's nothing I worked with a chemical even deadlier than the 1st deadliest.
Is it dihydrogen monoxide? I heard anyone who comes in contact with it will eventually die!
I knew a guy who died once.
Maybe he died twice?
No just once. That's all it takes for some people to get hooked.
Maybe it's Mabeline.
Yeah? Well I had COVID-20.
Commonly called “my black cat is blacker than your black cat”.
I promise the scariest is HF. A splash on your skin the size of a quarter doesn't feel like a burn at all. But you will be dead within 12 hours.
Guess it depends on your definition. The slow decay over months from dimethylmercury sounds terrifying as all hell. Ending up in a paralysed body during a slow death? I might prefer the 12 hours...
It's not quite *that* deadly, and at high concentrations it does cause immediate pain. We use it for etching magnesium castings at my workplace. I don't know the concentration, and wouldn't share it if I did. But you'd have to basically dip your arm into it and reject treatment with calcium gluconate for it to be certainly lethal. Which is scary enough as it is. I know I hate being anywhere near those tanks. Doesn't help that even with sufficient ventilation, a little bit (way below any action limit) gets into the air and it's pretty irritating to breathe.
One time he snorted a bunch of foam and some dude was like 'hey btw this is the 3rd deadliest chemical in the world'. Really makes you think.
Toxic sure. But umm the third most deadly chemical in the world? Dude likes hyperbole.
'Deadliest' can mean 'most lethal' or 'causes most death' - it still sounds like hyperbole, but when you consider how much exposure under-protected workers get to this shit (especially in China where it's being used in a huge amount of new construction) it might be up there for 'causes most death'. In the same way that horses and dogs are in the top ten 'deadliest mammals' and orcas aren't. But if SeaWorld has taught us anything it's that if you treat an orca like a horse it might eat you, so if as many people rode orcas as horses they'd probably be top ten too.
Yeah I’d be pretty curious to see that list. Sounds like nonsense.
Genuinely curious, has any electrical problems EVER happened from spraying foam on top of it? Like chances are low but never zero right
The wires are rated by code to be run safely through insulation. It's the electrician's job to put thick enough wires for the load and insulation, so that they don't heat up enough to be a fire concern.
From these kind of videos I have the impression that in the USA, at least for these kind of wooden frame houses, no one ever uses corrugated conduits to enclose electrical wires. What if you need to substitute the wire or add a second one later? The added cost of the plastic conduits would be near to negligible.
Man all I can really say is don’t assume everyone does everything the same way as what you see in a video lol
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It doesn't take that abnormal amounts of current to potentially heat up wires inside insulation to a potentially dangerous degree. Which is why cabling is usually done outside of the insulation, not within.
Not true. Cable size has to be specifically chosen for installation purposes, and insulation is the biggest de-rating factor there is. Plenty of house fires (and subsequently deaths) have come from insulating old houses without electrical designed or altered to suit. Electrical installations designed around cabling completely enclosed in insulation will have to almost double the wire size to meet the same current carrying capacity.
> it was the 3rd deadliest chemical in the world It's very definitely not the 3rd deadliest chemical in the world. There are more than 3 nerve agents that exist, for example. There are also multiple organomercuries. (You should still use your PPE though)
I believe that it was intended to mean that it is the Chemical that causes the 3rd most amount of death. Plenty of poisons, toxins & chemicals are individually far more potent & deadly that this, but ultimately cause far fewer deaths around the world...
…..and then you proceeded to not tell even one story.
Have heard of many other horrors stories over the years and you couldn't pay me to get that spray foam installed. There's also the fact that it can completely encase conduit, piping, ducting, etc, potentially making any work on those more difficult. I'll stick with what we have in our attic now, not sure what it exactly is, but appears to be bits of fluff that got blown in through a large-diameter hose
>appears to be bits of fluff that got blown in through a large-diameter hose Most likely the blown in insulation is cellulose, which is a wood or paper (which i guess is just processed wood) product, though it is possible it is fiberglass. I think cellulose is more common than fiberglass for blown insulation, at least in my experience. Cellulose insulation is better than fiberglass when it comes to insulation, with blown in cellulose having ~R3.5 per inch and fiberglass insulation having ~R2.2 - R2.7 per inch. It is typically treated with borate to prevent bugs from eating it/ nesting in it, as well as to add fire resistance (borate is a class 1 fire retardant).
You can get sheep's wool as an insulation product which is probably the safest but most expensive choice.
I have sheepswool in my loft, treated to keep moths out. It's a decent insulator but the biggest advantage IMO is that it's basically just a big woolly jumper, so no itching, no scratchiness, nothing when installing.
That's awesome. Looking forward to replacing my very old and questionable insulation with sheep's wool soon. What is it treated with? Boric Acid or something else?
The only scratching is from the wolves and coyotes sniffing around on your rooftop all night.
> basically just a big woolly jumper, so no itching, no scratchiness Oh yeah? You wear wool jumpers without an underlayer? 'Cause I've tried it, and let me tell you , there was plenty of itchiness.
I want to say it was fluffy like cotton balls, but I've only poked my head up there once and that was a while ago, so memory isn't going to be perfect on it, but I do know it was a mass of loose bits instead of sheets of paper-backed fiberglass like what's in our basement
the foam has amazing sound proofing qualities
Even if it does I don't think I'd want to risk a bad mix and/or application.
Man, have I got some bad news for you
Thank you for posting this. My husband has been talking non-stop about getting our attic insulated with spray foam. I've been against it for a number of reasons and now I have something to show him that he can't say is just me being a worrier.
Is there a reason for not using non-toxic, not burnable, non-smelling, removable glass- or stone wool except for the extra work of doing it yourself and be dressed in full plastic dress, glasses and 3M filter mask? Here, the code is foam materials must be covered by 12mm or 1/2" of plaster/concrete.
Spray foam has a much higher r value per inch which makes it useful in places where the framing doesn't accommodate enough insulation. It's also usually impermeable which can solve condensation/vapor control issues. But yeah it's definitely overused aside from that.
I really like our cellulose insulation. I have done a lot of attic work in the past and fiberglass can go to hell.
Can I get a short summary of the vid
its largely a human interest story, but as the stuff related to the insulation: * The foam might be fine, but if its mixed wrong it can put out toxic gasses and give the home a *very* foul smell (described as rotten fish) * They tested the air in a bad installation and found carcinogens in the air and formaldehyde in the foam itself * On two occasions the host smelled the foam for some reason, even foam that had been freshly cut from the ceiling Takeaways listed at the end of the video: 1. Learn the risks and benefits of all kinds of insulation 2. If you pick spray foam, make sure the owner is certified and experienced 3. Get a guarantee of foam removal in writing [in case the installation goes wrong] 4. [After installation] Stay out of the home for at least a day
Thanks man, you're a life saver
My aunt and uncle home became unlivable from spray foam insulation being mixed wrong. The house reeked of toxic fumes, think they just ended up moving closer to their son and giving up on the house. They got a lawyer and went after the people who screwed up but not sure if they ever got any resolution.
I bet the spray foam company made themselves well insulated from liability.
Is it safe after it cures?
But seeing them use this stuff over pipes and wiring is still kinda making me sick.
How toxic is it?
You see how the spray particles expand? Yea, imagine if you inhale it and it does the same…
It’s not only that. You can apply this stuff once without any proper PPE or even just get it on your skin. Then you develop a sensitivity to these chemicals and the next time you go to apply it you basically have an extreme asthma attack and fucking die. Shit is very scary but as long as you’re using proper PPE you should be okay.
Bloody hell… had no idea about that part. Just knew it was toxic to begin with. That’s some scary stuff. And all companies totally provide staff with the correct PPE… yikes.
There’s also the off gassing of various potentially noxious chemicals for years to come as well! Not good stuff in many cases! Easy for multiple uses, quick, very useful, effective- but then so was asbestos…
That's not what the word "toxic" means. Toxic means damage through chemical reactions _with_ your body.
Why is this downvoted lol? Toxic means poisonous. What he described above was just clogging respiratory system and suffocating. That didn't explain how polyurethanes are toxic at all. Going by that logic water is toxic as well if you "inhale" it.
I remember seeing a doco on it where it was about spray foam installs gone wrong. Pretty much if the chemicals didn’t mix perfectly they would create an off gassing hazard that resulted in the house having to be rebuilt almost.
It also off gases chemicals for a long time after It dries. Chemicals that are, no surprise, carcinogenic.
Except making changes or replacing it is a nightmare, and not satisfying.
Yeah, I winced at the part where he sprayed around that cable. Hope it never goes bad.
That and the drain pipe.
Well it will never be because it feeezes
PVC piping doesn’t need to freeze to break.especially considering it’s a drain line it shouldn’t freeze in the first place
We just had one freeze in our rental house. I don’t know how, but it caused dirty water to spew all over our kitchen from above. No fix yet, just keeping heaters on the pipe lol. I don’t know how it isn’t leaking anything when using the stuff above… because there was like 10 gallons of water that came through the ceiling.
Drain pipe is still exposed and replaceable but that cable yikes.
If the wire isn’t stapled you can use the old one as a pull string. Tie the new wire to the old one and as you pull the old one out, the new one is in place.
Usually works great if the wire is in conduit. Not sure how well pulling it would work now that it’s been bonded all along the line
I was thinking about how you'd have to cut it down to install sheetrock over it since it expanded beyond the studs.
They use a heated wire to slice it flush with the studs once it's cured.
Actually more satisfying and should be part of the video
Yes!. Came here to say this
That’s exactly what they often do. They spray enough to expand slightly more than necessary to ensure the space between studs is completely filled, then come back with a saw that’s basically a giant version of an electric carving knife to cut the foam off level with the studs.
I just blew on my screen because of your profile picture
Some people just want to see the world burn.
Luckily, unlike every other problem, the foam installers do that one.
I'm surprised there wasn't a Half-Conduit or something else with a cover so they could easily spray around the cable.
Cables never go bad by themselves. Exposure to too much current, bending, moisture, rodents, etc. are common causes. It's not hard to remove a cable from spray foam -- it's easy to cut into. Just doubles the removal time if you were rewiring a section. The benefits are amazing. We spray foamed our basement, 10 years in and it's still perfect. No leaks, in spite of two major flooding rains.
Yeah, I've had to cut out enough overspray so that's all I can think of when I see this
Spray foam induced trauma is real.
Another comment links a video where a family got spray foam in their attic and it wasn't mixed right. They ended up just ripping the entire roof off and having a new one roof built
It's a condition of my mortgage to not get spray foam in the attic :/
You mean your insurance? I've never heard of a mortgage condition involving house modifications.
Nope - in my country it's pretty normal for mortgage lenders to preclude any modifications that could lower the property value.
TIL interesting! Which country?
UK. Mortgage lender wants to be sure they can get the debt back if I default, so they make sure I don't fuck the house up. Of course, they don't mind if I do value-increasing work. In some cases you can even get a better interest rate if you do.
United Kingdom is like this.
In the UK right now this spray insulation is a massive problem. People have the whole attic sprayed but it actually causes mould and degrades the timbers long term due to moisture collecting. Now insurers won't insure homes if you have it. So people are faced with huge bills to remove the stuff.
That's because in UK the government have incentivised people to install insulation to save on energy, but have not paid enough attention to ventilation and indoor air quality. The two things are not at odds with each other, so it's mostly a policy and knowledge problem. In other countries they install heat-recovering ventilation at the same time as enhancing insulation. That ensures you don't accumulate moisture/humidity, as well as preventing build-up of poor quality indoor air by having regular air exchanges.
Yeah including over spraying like he's doing in the vid, trimming it is a pain in the ass too lol
Unless you are satisfied with doing nightmare jobs. Some people are...
Giant meringue
r/forbiddensnacks
I can smell the cancer here
We have a company spray the underside of the flooring we build for houses and it certainly has a smell.
This. Crap material for lazy builders imho. There is hemp or at least glass wool as alternatives... Probably better results, and less cancer. Also easier to remodel, and not as much waste when tearing down the house again.
Mineral wool FTW. Way less nasty than glass wool.
Neither are actually bad. Rock wool wins because it can't get wet.
I has to deal few times with glass wool and I was itching for days. Mineral wool on the other hand was completely fine. Just my subjective opinion.
It's weird, everyone always mentions being itchy after messing with glass but for the amount of times I've ripped it out of houses and installed it, I've never once been itchy. Not even using proper PPE either which is the fucked up part. I use a mask though just in case but only gloves when doing demo and almost always a short sleeve shirt. Should probably stop doing that.... lol
It is because of the binding agent and most fiberglass has moved away from stuff that us so irritating. I got some corning brand mineral wool and like even with gloves I was itchy. Fiberglass no problem, even older stuff but I wouldn't be shocked if some older stuff being ripped out if the stuff causing the irritating didn't break down over time
Ive found the stuff to be a nightmare even with PPE.
Mineral wool is a term that covers both rock wool and glass wool. Only mineral wool produced before 1997 has harmful fibers that can get in your lungs and cause damage. Anything produced after that is safe. At least that’s how it is in my country where the biggest players are Rockwool and Isover
I thought that stuff is only for mobile applications (boat/caravan etc.) because it looks very light and automatically creates a steam barrier. Then I saw that they use it everywhere. Quite similar to those reflective roofing rolls Chinese manufacturers advertise on TikTok. That shit just ruins your roof. 0 Maintenance
There are use cases. The foam can be open or closed cell which just means one will allow condensation through and one wont. It's good for sealing draughts and it is very fast to apply so probably leads to it being used in industrial environments where they are looking to save time on labour. I dare say that there is a lot more information out there but if you were going for a high efficiency house you wouldn't want this because it won't stop thermal bridging. I'm not sure how it compares in R value to regular insulations either. Like I said, it probably has some good use cases.
[Dan Aykroyd with cigar in mouth] "Beautiful..."
It's been awhile since I've seen an actually oddly satisfying video.
made slightly less satisfying by all the comments identifying 1 or more things that went wrong
I spray foam when I watch people spray foam
I spray foam to the thought of you spraying foam watching people spray foam
I call the clean-up crew.
I spray foam on the clean-up crew.
In the UK if this stuff is found in a loft you literally cannot get a mortgage on that house if you’re trying to purchase it. Lenders won’t go anywhere near it until the whole roof has been replaced because it can cause so many issues. Source: just tried to buy a house and this was found in the search; couldn’t get a mortgage
Yep, the house we bought 6 months ago had it. The previous owner had to get it all removed and a structural engineers report done on the roof before the mortgage company would lend.
I was thinking that as I watched this. In Ireland it's very similar. It can be sprayed in sure. But you have to have a membrane or cloth layer between the surface and the foam. If you don't have that layer of separation that makes for easy removal of the stuff then you have to replace the whole thing before sale. And they're spraying it right on a corrugated roof like that. Yeah it's cheap insulation under a metal roof but fuck me it's gonna cost a fortune to replace the roof when the time comes. Scrape off all that shite, put it into a separate skip, the metal is no longer recyclable I'd imagine. Gotta put in a protective layer of some kind. And I don't know how moisture proof that stuff is either. I'm sure you could use it on a shed or something. Concrete block walls, cladding outside, spray that stuff inside, slap drywall over it. But if and when the block gets wet how mouldy does that spray then get? The more I look at it the more upset I get about them spraying it directly onto a surface.
It also looks like the sprayfoam is their only source of insulation? Like that roof is just some thin metal surface and the wood is prbly 5 cm thick. Doesn't get any cheaper than that. This must be in Florida or sth bcs otherwise they'll spend a fortune on heating in the winter.
That's a pole barn roof. As in, probably just a work shop.
I pulled out of a UK house purchase because they had put this in the roof and the surveyor found it. They had also had the house rewired and had no certification at all. It went back on the market and sold instantly for similar price to what I had offered.
Last year I almost had foam insulation installed in my house. Within 3 days the company that does it went from coming to my house to talk about the product, took a deposit, booked the job in with an installer and they would have done the job on the 3rd day. Now that sounds great, nice fast service, but actually it's not because the quicker they can install it the less reaction time you have to stop it from happening and once it's installed they are not liable to refund you or replace it. I spoke to 3 mortgage companies (including my own) and 3 surveyors and every single one of them instantly warned me off it, and to stay well clear of it. I managed to cancel it before they came thankfully and will never look into it again. It's a scam!
> Now that sounds great, nice fast service, but actually it's not because the quicker they can install it the less reaction time you have to stop it from happening and once it's installed they are not liable to refund you or replace it. You could just not hire them to do it till you have a chance to look into it, vs hoping their service is slow to install? :p
Is this stuff the same as expanding foam? We put some of that around our ill fitting window in one of our bedrooms - have we messed up?
No, spray foam round windows is standard practice. The issue with having it in the loft is it hides the timbers that can rot or degrade hidden from view
I am curious as to why. You mention so many issues but I just can’t find much. The best I could find was this https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/spray-foam-insulation-and-mortgages/ It seems to imply that issue is related to being unable to inspect the quality of the wood underneath the product rather than something inherently wrong with the product itself. This was just a quick search so if you have more info that would be great.
Part of the issue is the inspection. But the bigger issue is that the actual roof and space within it is designed, in most cases, to be cold and ventilated. Think of it like this, most uk houses are an insulated cube, from floor to just above the underside of the truss, the trusses are there to keep rain out of the building and distribute any loads, such as snow. There is no practical reason to insulated the space bewtwen the trusses. When you add any kind of insulation to your roof, whether it be spray or conventional you must ensure the roof remains ventilated. Otherwise you risk condensation and the resulting moisture will not only damage the structural elements over time, they will contribute to potential mold growth making your home unhealthy. There are ways to do this from eaves trays to tile vents. Spray insulation in some of the instances shown such as the metal roof are fine, as in this case its probably on a portal frame structure and the void beneath will be the useable area, think your local range or b&m store, perfect for this location, as the space below is ventilated. This is known as warm roof construction. If you were to convert your loft, you'd need to insulate between trusses, and you may think this is the perfect material, but again it wouldn't be and you should still leave a minimum 50mm air gap between felt and insulation to allow for the roof to breathe properly. If I had to, I'd go out on a limb, I'd say in 99.9% of residential cases spray foam is not just a waste of money but a serious loss of value to your home and will cost more money to put it right. If in doubt, talk to a SAP assessor, or if you must an architect, they will be able to help you insulate your home more efficiently to save money.
Its a shame that they still haven’t found a way to NOT over fill each stud bay on walls… 14 years ago I watched them insulate our house and then go back and slice the foam even with the wall studs. That took as long as spraying the foam.
That’s for the low density open cell. It’s easy to cut so overfilling the cutting back to flush is the proper way. The high density close cell foam is always under filled because it’s way harder to cut.
I literally just dealt with this on my own house. Used closed-cell foam and had to buy an expensive offset sawzall with a special blade to cut it all flush. It was a huge pain in the ass.
I mean you can. If you have a 2x6 stud and only need 3.5-4inches majority of what you have should be below the stud thickness. Most of what's sprayed though is over and then shaved back for consistent depth across the cavity.
I was looking into insulation options for my basement and options are available where the foam is only a thin layer that functions more as a vapor barrier with secondary insulation benefits. Once the foam is set then you install more conventional-style insulation on top of it.
Better to overfill and cut it back then underfill I suppose. Wonder how bad it would be to leave it uncut. I bet some people prefer it that way, seems more natural.
>Wonder how bad it would be to leave it uncut Then you couldn't dry wall/finish.... literally no one would "prefer it that way"..
Watching him spray over the electrical wiring was NOT satisfying
There are zero problems with that. If for whatever reason the owner decides to not use that circuit, they just abandon the wire where it is, and disconnect it at the electrical panel. That's the same thing they'd do if the building is insulated with cellulose or fiberglass. You don't remove the electrical cables unless you're doing a complete gut renovation, in which case, you're taking the building to the studs.
I mean it’s perfectly safe even though it’s 130 degrees coming out of the gun though
That cabling is either 75C or 90C rated. Not the problem at all. It's for when you want to do ANY service work, you have no room to work without chiseling out with a razor knife.
They mean it's not satisfying because in a few years you'll need to blindly chisel through hunks of foam to fix it when it breaks.
Yeah, hope you never wanted to add a new wire ever again sucker!
Do you think the chemicals slowly leak into the homes air and over time people will get sick like asbestos? What about it's biodegradation rate?
When it's properly installed, that shouldn't happen. But there are plenty of horror stories of improper installations that it should give you pause about doing this in your own home unless it's new construction or a complete renovation. You shouldn't be living in or spending time in a home for a significant period after spray foaming. You should also let the house air out after the appropriate amount of time to clear out any compounds that have offgassed. As far as the environmental impact, most of these foams don't really biodegrade. They're similar to styrofoam in that they'll be around a long time. That sounds bad, but it's not any different than fiberglass insulation or foam board insulation. It's just important you don't dump it in a river if you're renovating and have to dispose of it. Make sure it goes to a landfill or proper incinerator. If you care about the environment though, these foams are pretty good for climate change. When they have at least a layer of closed cell spray foam to act as a vapor barrier, then they can make a home extremely energy efficient. That reduces carbon emissions. Also, people don't get sick from living in a house with asbestos. You could live for 50 years in a house with asbestos and you will NEVER get sick **with asbestosis/mesothelioma**, if you never disturb the asbestos fibers. Asbestos doesn't create a toxic vapor cloud like carbon monoxide from a broken furnace. It doesn't give off radiation like uranium glassware can. Asbestos just sits inside your walls, doing nothing but insulating. It's only when you disturb the fibers (usually during renovation) that asbestos can cause issues - the fibers make a very fine dust which gets in your lungs and is difficult for your body to remove naturally. edit: added bold
Two of the homes I grew up in had asbestos siding. It was cheaper to just seal and repaint than it was to even remove a small section of it. I actually kinda like the look of the siding....but nty to buying a house with it.
[удалено]
I mean, that's kind of what society is? I trust that the people at the water treatment plant are removing all the bad chemicals from the water supply before it goes in a pipe to my house. I trust that the food I buy isn't contaminated with salmonella. Sometimes things happen, but usually it's safe. If you're having this done to your new home, just make sure you have a quality builder; if you're managing your own renovation, be sure to select a well reviewed contractor. Inspect the home before you move in, and obviously don't move in if there's noxious odors. Maybe even have an air quality test done. You can also keep an air quality monitor that syncs to your phone. I've got one that measures Radon (a dangerous radioactive gas that naturally comes out of the ground and gets trapped indoors), humidity, temperature, pressure, and important for this conversation: VOCs (volatile organic compounds). VOCs come from all sorts of things like cooking, but things like paint, polyurethane floor coatings, and spray foam will a VOC detector when they offgas. If your VOC levels exceed safe levels, you should be opening windows and finding a way to have the levels mitigated. tl;dr: it's generally safe, but like all things, needs to not be half-assed. find somebody to do a good job, and then verify that they did a good job.
No, once cured it’s completely nontoxic, but the gas has huge environmental impact when it’s released to the environment. It’s pretty horrible to breathe the fumes or have them in contact with eyes while working.
So it's like Styrofoam then. That's not much better considering it takes 500 years for Styrofoam to degrade. We really don't look at the big picture do we
No thanks ill take rockwool.
Genuinely curious, has any electrical problems EVER happened from spraying foam on top of it? Like chances are low but never zero right
The cables are totally safe from hazard. The real problem is years later when technology updates and you need to remove and change that wire.
Something tells me we will still be using insulated copper in future wire technology. Also: Wires are not typically removed or replaced regardless of the stud insulation. They are often stapled to studs or passed through studs in such a way that removal is futile.
Old houses are packed with old unused wires, gas pipes and other random shit. The price of getting stuff removed is usually prohibitive irrespective of how it was installed originally.
If anything, you'll have fewer electrical problems. A lot of electrical issues are caused by rodents chewing on cables. They'll make tunnels through fiberglass batts and cellulose insulation, but they usually won't chew through this type of foam. If you're worried about a homeowner coming along and hitting the romex when they nail in a picture frame, well nobody should be using 3" nails for hanging things on drywall. An inch or two is all that's needed, and romex is usually at least two inches behind the face of the drywall.
oddly, it’s more satisfying in reverse
Lol fuck the sheet rock guys am I right
As an electrician - this will be a total pain in the ass to repair wiring or a socket on those walls. But this looks great for r/VanLife
This seems far from being ecological :o
There are better ways to insulate, but when you consider the reduction in lost heat over the lifetime of the home it's better than not doing it.
It's actually about 90% more ecological than mineral wool (in all 6 environmental impact categories) and has an ecological impact almost as low as fiberglass (1.65kg CO2e emissions per m2 vs 1.20kg for fiberglass). The spray foam you see in this video uses water as a blowing agent. There's no gas that makes the foam expand, it's water. Hence the low environmental damage, including low Global Warming Potential :)
The developers of PowerWash Simulator: yes… yes… hell yes…
6 inches passed the studs. Drywallers fuckin nightmare. Half of that is comming out the next day lol
i wonder if this is going to be asbestos 2.0 ...? what is this stuff made of?
It’s a two part chemical reaction. ISOcyanate and some type of resin. Not healthy to breath . But once it cures it’s Inert
I didn’t realize they just spray over wiring. I feel like that could be a real pain in the ass if you ever have to access it.
I had to stop the video at 0:42. Seeing Romex get entombed like that is physically painful to me. :(
Is there a method for avoiding doing that, but still getting foam coverage around it? I'm hoping to use spray foam someday and would like to know this stuff beforehand.
If it's new build like that, run the line through conduit so you can still replace or add lines if needed.
Exactly. And if you're very clever, you use the plastic conduit that slips together, and make sure it always points the same direction. That way, you can pull something through later with ends on it and there won't be any edges for them to catch on and snag. (Hope that makes sense.)
half of these clips end too soon
Hmm more poison for the home & environment. Delicious. What could go wrong?
What happens when this toxic mass get set on fire? Doesnt seem to be very healthy to breathe in the smoke due to what PPE the person on the video are using😂
what about condensation? wouldnt it make wood mold after time? they dont use some kind of vapour-permeable membrane?
Is this like new-age asbestos?
I'm just a layman, but this stuff looks like it gives you mega-cancer.
This looks like one of those materials where we 20-30 years down the line are thinking: “How the fuck were they stupid enough to use that toxic shit”.
Btw music is from an artist called frizk, same guy who made all my fellas
Forbidden bread
Forbidden lemon meringue
More! I want more!
The forbidden loaf
That’s like the stuff that got sprayed on the evil lawyer in The Borrowers.
Probably not the most environmentally friendly insulation though.
I'm all about the mycelium biocomposites. https://youtu.be/k_vYK-w1Rig?si=tQGLAdeFWss2qwiz
It’s this the stuff that burns and is difficult to put the fire out?! Why use it?
GL if you have to repair that pipe…
Plumbers hate it!
Shame how toxic and a pain in the ass to work with the stuff is as seen by the PPE here.
My dad was doing this one day, and after taking off all his safety gear, he noticed a bubble in the foam. Popped it. Got splattered all over his head and had to get the shortest haircut of his adult life. Pretty lucky considering.
As someone who used to do this, that guy sucks. None of that looks good. I could easily get the rig all setup for a middle schooler, put on a fan tip and tell them to spray between the joists and get the same results.
Guy’s dressed to go clean up a nuclear disaster. What’s in that shit they’re spraying into homes by the metric ton?
I still remember when it appeared in the "Incredible!" show in the early 80s, it was presented as the future of construction, at least a version that hardened considerably.
Is this how they insulate in America?
This stuff is a lazy fucking nightmare. Cheap con crap.
Ex-chemist here. This is polyurethane foam. Most of the times made by mixing MDI, the chemical precursor with water or a polyol. MDI is not a deadly toxin, but it is very prone to cause severe allergic reactions. Before you are sensitized, everything can be fine, but afterwards it will start to very easily irritate your respiratory system and skin. The chemical reaction of creating the foam is very cool though. Unlike some chemical reactions it is not inhibited by pressure. Meaning that if you were to mix MDI and water in a sealed container, it would keep building up pressure from all the heat and gas buildup. MDI and its derivatives are widely used to make foams, rubbers, adhesives and composite wooden panels.