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David Cross Posted: May 27, 2016 06:24 PM	Retrofitting Coolers and Freezers Mason, I was called to look at a job in a meat cutting/butchering business. They have a couple different coolers and freezers ranging in size from 14' x 24' to 8' 12'. They have been in use for 10-20 years maybe. They called me because last summer the one cooler ceiling which has tracks hanging from it had started to sag and bow. They went up in the attic above and found some of the truss plates had rusted enough to break. They braced the ceiling up with steel beams but now want it fixed. So, they are wanting me to spray foam the ceilings of all these coolers and freezers. Right now, there is the interior ceiling of the cooler then 2" foam board, then 6 mil plastic. That is all fastened to the underside of wood trusses. Then there is 8" of cellulose blown in on top. When I looked at it, the cellulose felt damp and you could see moisture in the trusses near the foam board. Moisture content aprox 25-35% near the bottom of the board. Over the freezer, I think they had 4" of foam board and plywood with fiberglass on top in between the trusses. The freezer they keep at -10 degrees. There is ice and frost in the fiberglass above the freezer. So, I have a general plan of attack but need some help with the details so I can get it right. The owner wants to leave the foam board in place and work up from there. 1. Get all the cellulose, fiberglass out. 2. Get the trusses dry. (This will be harder with freezer-how can I do it quickly or with the freezer running?) 3. Another contractor is going to come in and fix any trusses that need repair 4. I normally spray Certaspray 2lb closed cell. I was thinking of spraying 4" continuous over the trusses. I have looked at AY111 on cold storage already, but I have some questions. Should I continue the spray foam up the braces of the trusses? I think I need a vapor barrier on top of the foam but plastic won't work very well. Should I use a spray applied vapor barrier? Any other thoughts or problems you see? Thanks in advance, David
mason Posted: May 27, 2016 07:09 PM	David, Cold storage repair is a very specialized field. Doing it wrong can lead to disastrous results, floors can buckle, walls and crack and ceilings can come tumbling down. My father's specialty for 40 years was fixing cold storage facilities and I spent more than a dozen years working on his projects. I also wrote AY 111 on behalf of the industry back in 87. Having said all that, I could not begin to provide an opinion without an onsite visit. I would strongly suggest that you contact someone who has the background to evaluate this type of project. Give me a call at 571-239-5221 to discuss.

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David Cross

Posted: May 27, 2016 06:24 PM

Retrofitting Coolers and Freezers

Mason,
I was called to look at a job in a meat cutting/butchering business. They have a couple different coolers and freezers ranging in size from 14' x 24' to 8' 12'. They have been in use for 10-20 years maybe. They called me because last summer the one cooler ceiling which has tracks hanging from it had started to sag and bow. They went up in the attic above and found some of the truss plates had rusted enough to break. They braced the ceiling up with steel beams but now want it fixed. So, they are wanting me to spray foam the ceilings of all these coolers and freezers. Right now, there is the interior ceiling of the cooler then 2" foam board, then 6 mil plastic. That is all fastened to the underside of wood trusses. Then there is 8" of cellulose blown in on top. When I looked at it, the cellulose felt damp and you could see moisture in the trusses near the foam board. Moisture content aprox 25-35% near the bottom of the board. Over the freezer, I think they had 4" of foam board and plywood with fiberglass on top in between the trusses. The freezer they keep at -10 degrees. There is ice and frost in the fiberglass above the freezer.

So, I have a general plan of attack but need some help with the details so I can get it right.

The owner wants to leave the foam board in place and work up from there.

1. Get all the cellulose, fiberglass out.
2. Get the trusses dry. (This will be harder with freezer-how can I do it quickly or with the freezer running?)
3. Another contractor is going to come in and fix any trusses that need repair
4. I normally spray Certaspray 2lb closed cell. I was thinking of spraying 4" continuous over the trusses.

I have looked at AY111 on cold storage already, but I have some questions. Should I continue the spray foam up the braces of the trusses? I think I need a vapor barrier on top of the foam but plastic won't work very well. Should I use a spray applied vapor barrier? Any other thoughts or problems you see?

Thanks in advance,
David

mason

Posted: May 27, 2016 07:09 PM

David, Cold storage repair is a very specialized field. Doing it wrong can lead to disastrous results, floors can buckle, walls and crack and ceilings can come tumbling down.

My father's specialty for 40 years was fixing cold storage facilities and I spent more than a dozen years working on his projects. I also wrote AY 111 on behalf of the industry back in 87. Having said all that, I could not begin to provide an opinion without an onsite visit. I would strongly suggest that you contact someone who has the background to evaluate this type of project.

Give me a call at 571-239-5221 to discuss.

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