My neighbor Jim out in the boonies showed me why spray foam insulation is overrated

Jim's been living off grid for 20 years. He pointed at my can of spray foam and said 'you're just trapping moisture in there.' Then he showed me how he uses rock wool and a vapor barrier with a 1 inch air gap. Cost him $400 for his whole 1200 sq ft shop. My spray foam job was $1800 and I'm already seeing condensation in my attic. Has anyone else run into mold problems after foaming?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_anthony4d ago

Oh man, people love to jump on the spray foam hate train, don't they? I mean yeah, moisture problems are real if you don't do it right (or if you get a bad install), but blaming the whole product seems a little extreme. Jim's method works for his situation in the boonies with a shop, but that doesn't mean spray foam is some kind of scam. A lot of the horror stories come from people who didn't prep properly or just got unlucky with their specific climate and air sealing. I'd be curious to see if your attic condensation is actually from the foam itself or something else going on up there.

wendy3914d ago

You know, the_anthony, you hit the nail on the head about prep work being key. I had spray foam done in my own place a few years back and had zero issues, but I spent a ton of time making sure the attic was sealed and vented right before they even showed up. I agree a lot of those horror stories come from people skipping that step or getting a rush job. For me, it was worth the cost because my energy bills dropped a lot, but I can see how it wouldn't work for everyone.