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About Alpine Foam
About Our Product:
Thank you for your interest in sprayed on polyurethane foam insulation. Alpine Foam uses only the cleanest, safest, most effective and efficient polyurethane foam insulation on the market today.
There are two types of sprayed on foam insulation. Closed cell foam and open cell foam. Closed cell polyurethane foam is the only type of insulation that meets or exceeds all international building codes, doubles the strength of frame structures, gives you the highest "R" rating per inch, forms its own vapor barrier and has an efficiency rating in the 90's when all other insulation is in the 30's and 40's. Most closed cell polyurethane foam has a Perm rating of .87, which exceeds the international requirements for insulation, which is a Perm rating of 1. All insulation materials with a perm rating higher than 1 are required to be covered with a vapor barrier. This is not yet being enforced in all areas so we encourage you to check with your local building department.
Open cell foam is good but we believe it should not be used for insulation where it is exposed to any kind of moisture, including high humidity. The properties of open cell foam allow it to absorb and hold water that may allow the growth of molds and mildew.
Closed cell polyurethane foam in the walls and roofs reduces hot and cold air loss far better than any other insulation. Closed cell polyurethane foam applied directly to the underside of your decking material keeps the hot and cold air out of your attic space reducing the load on your HVAC system. When using closed cell polyurethane foam you can reduce the tonnage of your AC system by as much as 50%. A good formula to apply is one ton of HVAC for every 1000 ft. of conditioned area. The design of your structure may vary this formula some but very little.
By using closed cell polyurethane foam for your insulation and properly sized HVAC unit your electric bill will be reduced dramatically and in just a few years you can save thousands of dollars. Some mortgage companies even offer discounts for the Energy Star ratings when closed cell polyurethane foam is used to insulate a new home.
We encourage you to research this and all other types of insulation before you decide what to use in your building project.
Pat Hoehn 912-826-0046 Savannah, GA
Cory Hoehn 321-722-3372 Palm Bay, FL
Two Good Examples:
COMMERCIAL: FREE INSULATION!
We insulated a new metal building that was built to be a bar/restaurant with closed cell polyurethane foam. Because of the efficiency of the product the owner was able to redesign the HVAC system and reduce the size of the units by TEN TONS. They saved more on the HVAC system than the insulation cost to install in their building and the owners continue to save hundreds of dollars a month on the electrical bills.
RESIDENTIAL:
We insulated a 2600 square foot house with closed cell polyurethane foam. Because of the efficiency of the product a 2-½ ton HVAC unit was installed. The thermostat is kept on 72 degrees year round. In the last thirty-six months the owners have not had an electric bill over $94.00.
Closed cell polyurethane insulation is the perfect choice for all frame, metal or block buildings. With the efficiency of the product you are able to greatly reduce the size of your HVAC systems, eliminate additional vapor barriers and wraps, ridge vents on roofs and a few other things. You will be surprised at how little it will actually cost to have it installed and also with the amount of money it saves you every month.
Alpine Foam offers a 100% lifetime warranty against damage from molds and mildew when we install closed cell polyurethane foam insulation in your building following our guidelines.
Alpine Foam also offers a 100% lifetime warranty against any shrinkage, cracking or settling of closed cell polyurethane foam insulation when we install it in your building.
Simple Test:
The best and simplest way to show the effectiveness and efficiencies of closed cell polyurethane foam insulation is for you to do the following:
1. Put your hand on the side of your freezer.
The temperature of your freezer should be set at 0. The outside of your freezer is at room temperature. There is only one inch of closed cell polyurethane foam insulation between your hand and the frozen items inside the freezer. There is no condensation on the outside of the freezer and you cannot feel the cold temperature from the inside of the freezer.
2. Put your hand on the side of your water heater.
The temperature of the water heater is usually set between 120 and 160. The outside of your water heater is at room temperature. There is only one inch of closed cell polyurethane foam insulation between your hand and the hot water inside your water heater. There is no condensation on the outside of the water heater and you cannot feel the hot water from the inside of the water heater.
IT'S THAT SIMPLE AND IT WORKS THAT WELL!
- 2" of closed cell polyurethane foam will protect you from - 30F to + 240F.
- 1.8lb closed cell polyurethane foam has 2.188 times the "R" value and 2.87 times
- the efficiency of fiberglass insulation.
Wall Strength:
Why should I worry about wall strength?
Your walls are the main structural component of your home. In wood frame construction, the weight of the roof and any snow on the roof push down on the walls with a compressive force. Strong winds and wind gusts impose lateral loads onto your house walls that tend to distort the walls with a shearing force.
Building codes require that walls be designed to withstand these loads. However, when walls are built to minimum standards, while safe, you may sense wall creaking during high winds or shaking when doors are slammed or the kids are actively romping about.
What is a shearing force?
A shearing force on a wall tends to distort the wall from it's original shape as a rectangle into a parallelogram. To test a wall's resistance to the shear forces imposed by wind loading, engineers use a "racking test." An 8 ft. x 8 ft. model wall is built and placed in a large frame. The base of the wall is secured to the frame and a horizontal (lateral) force is applied at one upper corner. The force in increased in 400 lb. increments until the wall structure fails.
What is the effect of PROFOAM insulation on wall strength?
In a series of racking tests*, walls with and without spray-applied polyurethane foam insulation were compared. Two exterior facing materials were tested:
(1) Vinyl siding over 15-lb. building paper; and
(2) 5/8- inch textured plywood siding.
All wall panels were faced with 1/2-inch sheetrock on the interior side and used 16 inch stud spacing. For the stud wall panels that were insulated with spray-applied polyurethane foam, the stud cavities were essentially completely filled with foam of 1.5 lb/ft3 density.
Foam Code:
Building codes provide for the use of polyurethane spray foam in the "Foam Plastic Section" of the code. This section of the code also describes the use of thermal barriers.
Even though the three major code organizations (BOCA, ICBO, SBCCI) have all been consolidated into a single building code organization (ICC), most local inspection agencies use building codes that are several years old. The following table identifies the applicable code and approval sections for polyurethane foam.
Code Body Approval Section
International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO) 4202 1717
Southern Building Code Congress International (SBCCI) 704.2 876.5
Building Officials and Code Administrators Int'l (BOCA) 717
Efficiency Ratings and R Values:
Closed cell polyurethane 1.8lb foam insulation has 2.188 times the "R" value and 2.87 times the efficiency of fiberglass insulation.
Because closed cell polyurethane foam has a perm rating of .87, it forms its own moisture barrier and stops all air and moisture from passing through it. 2 inches of closed cell polyurethane foam insulation will protect you from -30F to +240F.
2 inches of PROFOAM polyurethane 1.8lb foam insulation is what we recommend for your roof structures, walls and sub-floors.
DOE:
US Department of Energy National Laboratory System Science and Technology Information
The following shows the equivalent "R" values of the most common types of insulation. When insulation collects moisture or any air is allowed to pass through it, the "R" value goes to zero.
Fiberglass insulation.......R 3.2 per inch
32% Efficiency Rating
3 ½ inches in a 2X4 wall with a 32% ER is equivalent to R11.2
Collects moisture
Cellulose insulation.........R 3.5 per inch
36% Efficiency Rating
3 ½ inches in a 2X4 wall with a 34% ER is equivalent to R 12.74
Collects moisture
Open cell foam insulation..........R 3.5 per inch
44% Efficiency Rating
3 ½ inches in a 2X4 wall with a 44% ER is equivalent to R 13.72
Collects moisture
Closed cell foam insulation........R 7 per inch
92% Efficiency Rating
3½ inches in a 2X4 wall with a 92% ER is equivalent to R 63.7
2 inches in a 2X4 wall with a 92% ER is equivalent to R 40.18
1 inch in a 2X4 wall with a 92% ER is equivalent to R 20.09
Does not collect moisture
