Installing dow insulation board

However, blue foam boards are manufactured by Dow Chemical Co. Avoid microwaving polystyrene containers that do not have a microwave-safe label, as their safety cannot be assured. Blue Foam. Also sold as buoyancy billet, blue foam is a closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam normally used for constructing floating structures. As a prototyping material, blue foam is an easily shapable rigid foam useful for exploring complex shapes and forms.

Rigid foam board, especially foil-faced polyisocyanurate, creates a vapor-impermeable barrier, so the wall would have limited drying potential. Even more permeable types of insulation, such as expanded polystyrene, are vapor barriers when the installation is thick enough. Foam board insulation products are generally considered water and mold resistant but expanded polystyrene foam boards EPS have air bubbles that can collect moisture and become wet.

Moisture makes it hard to prevent mold from growing, making the foam board also prone to mildew growth. Foam building insulation, in both spray foam and foam board products, is resistant to mold growth but as we will explain here it is not absolutely mold-roof, and on occasion we do find mold growth on the surface of even closed-cell foam, in open-celled foam rare , and on th surface of EPS and other foam insulating.

The key difference between polystyrene and Styrofoam is that the polystyrene is a form of synthetic aromatic hydrocarbon polymer whereas the styrofoam is a commercial brand of polystyrene. Polystyrene is a polymer material. It forms from the polymerization of styrene monomer. Foam board made from polyisocyanurate polyiso generally offers the best insulation capacity and 6. This foam board insulation is the rigid pink or blue panels that can be found at home centers in many different thicknesses.

Press the adhesive side of the sheet against the masonry surface and smooth it into place. If you use multiple sheets side by side, seal the joints between the sheets with expanding foam.

While polyurethane foam offers many advantages, it also has one major drawback. When you use it outdoors, cover the polyurethane foam with siding or some other protective finish.

Polyurethane foam insulation is made up of tiny gas bubbles. Over time, the gas can leak out, which reduces the effectiveness of the insulation. The U. I recently framed my basement walls with 2 of eps foam fastened to the exterior wall with all seams taped and corners spray foamed. Insulate Basement Walls Insulating basement walls.

How to insulate basement walls with foam board. After the cement is set, apply a foam board adhesive to the rear of a polystyrene insulation panel, then press the panel to the wall. Dow styrofoam blue board economic rigid xps insulation foam insulation board basement walls dow r 10 2 in x 4 ft 8 faced polystyrene foam board insulation the department at lowes bwfobb50 basement wall framed over blue board today 11 07 here.

Jerry, thanks for the comment…getting back to you after the holidays. Do one wall at a time then add the framing before moving on. I need some help please. I have an almost identical installation in my home basement. Now there are different ways to build walls and the way we decided to build our walls was different than the way we built our shed walls.

Secure the top layer of plywood to the lower layer with nails or screws. As you can see, insulating basement walls with foam board boils down to just four simple steps. I live in northern ontario where winters are cold. A mold expert told me to put the board on top of the framing, not directly onto the concrete wall so the house can breath. Insulation above the foam, staggering all joints. If you have any kind of unbroken metal that runs from the exterior to the interior, such as a pipe, you have a thermal bridge.

Wood can also be a thermal bridge, though not as pronounced as metal since wood is not a good conductor of temperatures. Wood wall studs can act as a passageway for cold to transfer into your home's interior. Spray foam installed by a company may cost more than you can afford, making rigid foam the more affordable option.

Plus, because basements tend to have some insulation from the earth they're surrounded by, temperatures have some natural moderation, and the issue of thermal breaks caused by rigid foam is minimal. On the other hand, though, rigid foam may not be a good option if the wall-system is already establish: Dismantling the wall system just to run continuous rigid foam board insulation may not be a worthwhile project. There is also the added work of cutting multiple pieces of rigid foam to exacting dimensions to fit in the bays.

Plus, the rigid foam won't cover the wood studs, which can transmit some cold into the basement during times of extreme temperature—and wood studs expand and contract, providing more opportunities for cracks to develop in the foam. Measure the entire wall area to figure out the amount of rigid foam to purchase. Do not subtract studs. For example, the wall may be 30 feet long by 7 feet high.

Consider square feet to be the entire amount of rigid foam insulation to purchase. Measure each bay individually. Studs placed every 16 inches on-center will have approximately 14 inches of bay width. While you want the foam to be tight, you do not want it to be oversized, as it is difficult to shave down the foam. One trick to making this project work properly is to treat every wall bay separately. Often, studs may be spaced at dimensions that are not exactly 16 inches on-center.

Measure each bay separately and write down that measurement, as in this example:. Mark the dimensions with a permanent marker on the rigid foam with a drywall square. Cut the rigid foam with an ordinary wood saw. Place each rigid foam sheet in its own wall bay. The fit should be firm but not so firm that the edges of the foam begin to tear.