spray foam insulation for drafts???

[dude]

Hi all, here is my dilemma:
I bought a house 2 years ago in the summer with a half finished basement
(supposedly). This is where my tv is and is a busy spot. I found out my
first winter that the walls were not insulated and and that there are some
nasty drafts. I stuffed insulation between the floor joists and where the
top of the foundation meet. This hasn't helped with the draft problems. I am
wondering if I should cut out an area at the top of my wall and ceiling and
try to use the spray foam insulation to seal the area between the floor
joists and foundation wall without bothering to insualte all the wall or
should i just rip all the drywall down and insulate it all. I want to use
the sray insulate because the regular insulation doesn't help with the
drafts. I have also heard that Ruxol insualion prevents drafts and wonder if
I should go with it.
I recently saw a home repair show on TV and they used the spray in their
atis to solve the draft issue.

Kudos
Steve

 

[Noozer]

Hi all, here is my dilemma:
I bought a house 2 years ago in the summer with a half finished basement
(supposedly). This is where my tv is and is a busy spot. I found out my
first winter that the walls were not insulated and and that there are some
nasty drafts.

It sounds like it wasn't finished properly. I'm betting that if they didn't
use insulation, they didn't put a vapour barrier up either. Insulating the
walls is just asking for a damp basement, etc.

Cut a small section of drywall out and see if there really is no insulation
and check for the plastic vapour barrier. It should be between the drywall
and studs, so any insulation would be in contact with the foundation, not
the drywall.

If there's no vapour barrier you might plan on taking the drywall down and
redoing the job. Major pain and major waste, but at least you'll know it's
done properly. While the drywall is down you can install plastic "envelopes"
around your electrical boxes to help keep the drafts out as well.

 

[dude]

Yes, there is no vapour barrier or insulation behind all of the finished
part. The basement is also very damp in the summer.
Sould I re-drywall and vapour barrier the whole basement andd not just the
half that is currently drywalled??
Also, what do you think about the spray foam for the drafts?? The house was
built in 1950 and I've talked with a few of my neighbours who have the same
problems with drafts. Actually, there are drafts allover the house.
kudos
Steve

 

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Yes, there is no vapour barrier or insulation behind all of the finished
part. The basement is also very damp in the summer.
Sould I re-drywall and vapour barrier the whole basement andd not just the
half that is currently drywalled??

If you want to do it the right way, yes.

Also, what do you think about the spray foam for the drafts??

It will help, but there are other ways that may be better in some areas. Do
some checking for where the air is coming in.

 

[kevwalsh]

If by "spray foam" you mean the kind that comes in an aerosol can and
expands to fill a space, or similar items, I think it might be a bad
idea. I am not entirely sure on the details of this, since I have only
seen it used in a few particular places:
- it expands like crazy, and puts a lot of pressure on things that
can't handle it, like drywall, window and door frames (especially
vinyl), etc. It can easily "burst" a wall cavity, or bow a window frame
out of shape.
- it dries to a hard, dense solid, which makes later renovation and
modifications a big pain.

As far as I know, it is best used only in small quantities, for
particular purposes -- like filling up medium-sized gaps in a wall, and
spot-insulation to get rid of drafts.

There are spray insulation products, though, that are meant for entire
walls, like cellulose (fluffed-up newspaper), fiberglass, and other
synthetic products. We did most of our house in cellulose, which
required drilling a few dozen little 1-inch holes in each room to blow
in the insulation.

 

[dude]

I don't mean the spray cans for door jams, i mean the type of spray resin
that most insulation companies provide.
They use a spray nozzle and compressor. I don't want to do the whole
basement with it just between the floorjoists and foundation connection
point. The rest of the walls i would use regular r12 insulation and vapour
barrier.
I guess nobody has had experience with the professionals who spray the foam
in??
thanx

 

[willshak]

Yes, there is no vapour barrier or insulation behind all of the finished
part. The basement is also very damp in the summer.
Sould I re-drywall and vapour barrier the whole basement andd not just the
half that is currently drywalled??
Also, what do you think about the spray foam for the drafts?? The house was
built in 1950 and I've talked with a few of my neighbours who have the same
problems with drafts. Actually, there are drafts allover the house.
kudos
Steve

If removing all the drywall is not a problem for you (other than getting
rid of it), I would go that route.
I have a 1/2 basement around 30' x 30', so only 3 walls are to the
outside and they are 1' out of the ground in the front and 2' out of the
ground on the side and back. Poured concrete walls. I also have 5 vinyl
clad wooden single paned basement windows on two adjacent walls, 4 on
the side wall and one in the back, each 15"H x 30"W.
What I did...
2 x 4 framing 16" OC all around the 3 outside walls. I also have a Bilco
door, but I installed a steel clad door in the wall framing for further
insulation there.
3-1/2" fiberglass insulation batts between studs (paper side facing in).
3-1/2" fiberglass between ceiling joists (put there for noise abatement
when the kids were small and boisterous and this was their playroom)
Plastic vapor barrier stapled to studs, floor to joists.
Sheetrocked.
Dropped ceiling with 2' x 4' panels.
Partially carpeted floor.
I have no heat in the basement except for ambient heat from the oil
burner and the propane water heater which are both in a utility alcove
under the staircase.
Currently the outside temp is 22ºF. The wall thermometer next to my
computer desk reads 66º as does the one on the other side of the room.
In the NY summer, the temp down here never goes above 75ºF.

 

[dude]

I guess the vapour barrier plays a big role in draft reduction and the
insulation for heat retention.
I didn't want to tear out all the drywall but I don't see any other choice.
My main concern is the draft problem. If I can resolve it with vapour
barrier, then most of my current problems will be solved.

thanks

Yes, there is no vapour barrier or insulation behind all of the finished
part. The basement is also very damp in the summer.
Sould I re-drywall and vapour barrier the whole basement andd not just the
half that is currently drywalled??
Also, what do you think about the spray foam for the drafts?? The house was
built in 1950 and I've talked with a few of my neighbours who have the same
problems with drafts. Actually, there are drafts allover the house.
kudos
Steve

If removing all the drywall is not a problem for you (other than getting
rid of it), I would go that route.
I have a 1/2 basement around 30' x 30', so only 3 walls are to the
outside and they are 1' out of the ground in the front and 2' out of the
ground on the side and back. Poured concrete walls. I also have 5 vinyl
clad wooden single paned basement windows on two adjacent walls, 4 on
the side wall and one in the back, each 15"H x 30"W.
What I did...
2 x 4 framing 16" OC all around the 3 outside walls. I also have a Bilco
door, but I installed a steel clad door in the wall framing for further
insulation there.
3-1/2" fiberglass insulation batts between studs (paper side facing in).
3-1/2" fiberglass between ceiling joists (put there for noise abatement
when the kids were small and boisterous and this was their playroom)
Plastic vapor barrier stapled to studs, floor to joists.
Sheetrocked.
Dropped ceiling with 2' x 4' panels.
Partially carpeted floor.
I have no heat in the basement except for ambient heat from the oil
burner and the propane water heater which are both in a utility alcove
under the staircase.
Currently the outside temp is 22ºF. The wall thermometer next to my
computer desk reads 66º as does the one on the other side of the room.
In the NY summer, the temp down here never goes above 75ºF.

 

[Stormin Mormon]

I used to have a friend who had a cellulose blower. That can be a really
great answer to your insullation need. Like the other poster said, it does
mean drilling some holes.

One friend of mine foamed in the door frame around his side door. It
expanded and pushed the frame in so much that the storm door wouldn't close.
ah, well. Can't win?

--

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
www.mormons.com


If by "spray foam" you mean the kind that comes in an aerosol can and
expands to fill a space, or similar items, I think it might be a bad
idea. I am not entirely sure on the details of this, since I have only
seen it used in a few particular places:
- it expands like crazy, and puts a lot of pressure on things that
can't handle it, like drywall, window and door frames (especially
vinyl), etc. It can easily "burst" a wall cavity, or bow a window frame
out of shape.
- it dries to a hard, dense solid, which makes later renovation and
modifications a big pain.

As far as I know, it is best used only in small quantities, for
particular purposes -- like filling up medium-sized gaps in a wall, and
spot-insulation to get rid of drafts.

There are spray insulation products, though, that are meant for entire
walls, like cellulose (fluffed-up newspaper), fiberglass, and other
synthetic products. We did most of our house in cellulose, which
required drilling a few dozen little 1-inch holes in each room to blow
in the insulation.

 

[Edwin Pawlowski]

One friend of mine foamed in the door frame around his side door. It
expanded and pushed the frame in so much that the storm door wouldn't
close.
ah, well. Can't win?

Operator error. Used properly, it is a very good product. It can be the
answer to the air infiltration problem the OP has.

 

[virginiaharms]

Hi all, here is my dilemma:
I bought a house 2 years ago in the summer with a half finished basement
(supposedly). This is where my tv is and is a busy spot. I found out my
first winter that the walls were not insulated and and that there are some
nasty drafts. I stuffed insulation between the floor joists and where the
top of the foundation meet. This hasn't helped with the draft problems. I am
wondering if I should cut out an area at the top of my wall and ceiling and
try to use the spray foam insulation to seal the area between the floor
joists and foundation wall without bothering to insualte all the wall or
should i just rip all the drywall down and insulate it all. I want to use
the sray insulate because the regular insulation doesn't help with the
drafts. I have also heard that Ruxol insualion prevents drafts and wonder if
I should go with it.
I recently saw a home repair show on TV and they used the spray in their
atis to solve the draft issue.
dmvfoam.com
Kudos
Steve

I was on a frame inspection today where they rebuilt the entire inside of a balloon frame building. No draft stop was installed at any of the wall/floor/ceiling intersections. Whne i asked the builder he stated they are using closed cell foam insulation so it's not needed. I have asked for some type of report showing that the closed cell foam is an approved draft stop to the 4 to 6" thickness. Has anyone seen such a thing? He is saying the other towns around me allow it, first time I've seen it.