Skating Off the Grid

SPRAY FOAM MAGAZINE – It’s tougher than ever to get on to the property ladder. With mortgage rates increasing and utility bills skyrocketing, many are looking for alternative ways to live comfortably, including one of Canada’s pro athletes, speed skater Hayden Mayeur. Spray Foam Magazine spoke with Hayden and Beyond Group Insulation Division, based in Calgary, CN, to find out how spray foam had a part in this off the grid project.

Twenty-six-year-old Hayden Mayeur is a two-time world champion medalist and member of the Canadian National Long Track Speed Skating Team. Training twice a day six days a week, he works hard to stay fit and be a role model for the next generation. Roughly ten months ago, Hayden and his girlfriend, Rosa O’Brien discussed moving out of the rental market in Calgary, which has become very expensive. They researched options to move into a tiny home away from city living. Excited about having their own home for the first time, and living off the grid, they researched everything from insulation, solar panels, water supply, and sewage disposal.

Hayden and Rosa’s home was built by Summit Tiny Homes, and is in the foothills of Alberta, just west of Calgary and close to the Rocky Mountains. They also had a shed built at the side of their tiny home, to contain the home’s power. Essentially, plugging their home into the shed as if it were their private utility system.

On top of the shed’s roof are solar panels and in the shed two 2100-gallon water tanks. One to hold fresh water, and the other to hold sewage. Every six weeks, a company from a neighboring town, trucks in fresh water and pumps out the sewage for them. “Neither of those systems can freeze, so we needed reliable insulation. Their home is plugged into the shed, which houses everything mechanical inside, similar to the way an RV plugs into a campground. There is a hose bib on the side, a 50-amp plug, a drain port, water pumps, and an inverter for a solar panel system. It’s just hookups with all the utilities inside,” explains Hayden.

Going off the grid, Hayden and Rosa needed the shed to be well insulated to maintain temperature, resulting in them being worry- free during the winter months. The clear choice was using an airtight product with a built-in vapor barrier. “Being on an athlete’s budget, I wanted to try and keep things at a lower cost. I looked at the standard fiberglass insulation, and it wasn’t as cheap as I first thought. The R-value was also nothing compared to what spray foam would offer. We didn’t want to cut any corners and considering how critical it is to keep the shed above zero, it was obvious to us that spray foam insulation was the only option,” explains Hayden.

Hayden discovered Beyond Group and spoke to one of the owners, Curt Janzen. He soon realized that a lot of Beyond Group’s values aligned with his own, both as an athlete and personally. Curt also researched Hayden and discovered that he did a lot to support his local community as did Beyond Group. “Hayden filled out a form on our website with a bit of his story and why he wanted to use foam. I then called to qualify the lead and really connected with him. Hayden has a love for his country and helps support his community, and the things that he was doing resonated with me. It was at this point I didn’t just want to win the bid, but I wanted to step up and help Hayden with his journey to get to the Olympics” explains Curt. After Hayden and Curt discussed the details of the project, Curt reached out to Huntsman Building Solutions to see if they wanted to be part of this project, and they said “yes,” graciously donating the foam. This was a huge help to both Beyond Group and Hayden.

On the day of spraying the Beyond Group crew consisted of Donavan Thomas and Bohdan Svachii. Arriving on-site, they first protected the grass and the surrounding area from any potential overspray. They hoarded off the sides of the shed after it was lifted and then laid down tarps on the ground. Once they had protected the outside of the shed, they proceeded to safeguard the inside floors of the 20 x 12 sq. ft. plywood shed. They then commenced in spraying the underside of the building, walls, and a non-vented roof system, spraying between three and three and one half inches of Heatlok Soya HFO, summer blend, closed-cell foam on all surfaces of the building, using one set of foam and with the project taking one day.

Hayden commented on the actual insulation process saying, “The Beyond Group crew were amazing, and it’s clear they really love their job. From the beginning, I knew we were working with a good reputable company. Rosa and I are so lucky to have this opportunity and now we can live off the grid, overlooking a few thousand acres of grazing land. It’s really been an amazing process.”

Curt Janzen of Beyond Group concluded by saying, “This job was about the person, not the project. We are honored to be able to help and support Hayden. He is also mindful of the environment while working on an athlete’s salary. These young men and women train a lot and don’t get compensated well. It’s so apparent that Hayden loves what he does and loves the grind of it. Although this is a small project compared to most we do, we feel it has a great impact and we want to tell this story.”  

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