Vermont Foam Insulation Insulates 10,000 sq. ft. Custom Home

Andover, Vermont - At the end of January, Vermont Foam Insulation (VFI) finished spraying a 14-set closed cell job in Andover, Vermont. The 10,000+ square foot house was custom built for a family in the heart of Southern Vermont’s Green Mountains.

When Liz Calabrese of Calabrese Architects was outlining the house, Vermont’s extremely cold temperatures made closed cell spray foam an easy choice when it came to selecting an insulation material. Builder Dan Griswold, aka Booner, of Grizz Builders was picked as the frame-to-finish contractor, who quickly chose Vermont Foam Insulation (VFI) for the foam application.

With only three weeks’ notice, the residence posed a significant scheduling challenge. In order to accommodate the builder’s desires, VFI even came a week earlier than the scheduled date in order to foam the basement walls and garage. This was primarily to give the other subcontractors a convenient place to stay warm while working on the house. To ensure that the application began on time, VFI needed to express order a shipment of Demilec HeatLok Soy spray foam.

At 7:30 pm on the first day, they experienced a mixture problem and discovered an air pocket in the line. After forty-five minutes, they thought the issue had been addressed only to discover another air pocket. Although this was frustrating, the total down time turned out to be less than two hours and by 11:30 pm the first phase of the job was completed. Will Reed of VFI points out that “we are fully committed to each job we undertake, so working late like this is a common practice for us. In this particular case, it was necessary to meet our schedule as well as the builder’s.”

The following week marked the start of the next phase, which would be the bulk of the job: first and second floor walls as well as the enormous roof. To maximize R-value, 4” of the HeatLok Soy spray foam was sprayed on the walls and 7” was used on the roof. This meant that the walls required two passes and the roof four.

Throughout the week, they experienced sub-zero temperatures and snowy conditions, requiring the driveway to be sanded almost daily. “Accessibility is a crucial issue for our two 32’ box trucks because of Vermont’s snowy winters and dirt roads,” explains Will.

Their primary truck employs a 21st JMT hydraulic proportioner and a Probler P2 gun. The other spray rig is mounted with a Graco E-30 and Probler P2. In both P2s, they used 02 mix chambers and tips. Both trucks are also equipped with IPM Transfer pumps and Husky diaphragm pumps for the A-side and the B-side, respectively. In the 21st JMT truck, they also have a pressurized pumping system for closed cell foam. Both trucks have 300’ feet of heated hose and positive pressure, full face, fresh air respirators. Other equipment that needed to be used for this particular job was pipe staging and harnesses for the high areas, particularly the cathedral ceilings. To assist with clean up, they used a 16” pneumatic planer, Baco carbide scrapers and currycombs.

Will pointed out how impressed they were with the spraying capability of the 21st JMT rig. “We tracked the output of both units and over the course of the job, the 21st JMT truck sprayed almost double the amount of the Graco E-30. Of the fourteen sets required, the JMT sprayed nine while the E-30 sprayed only five. Some of this difference can be attributed to the fact that the Graco E-30 is an electric, while the 21st JMT is a more powerful hydraulic reactor. Additionally, the fact that the 21st JMT is backed up by a pressurized containment system rather than a traditional stick and diaphragm pump may also have had an impact. Regardless, this difference illustrated the impressive power of the 21st JMT.”

To complete the job, VFI received some assistance from friends in the industry. Steve Shaw of FT Services lent his pneumatic scarfer when theirs broke and Tim Shocksnider of 21st JMT provided valuable technical support for the project. Despite some unique challenges, the sizeable job was completed in just six working days, thanks in part to the 12 hours a day spent working on the house.

Photograph credits: Russ Hurlburt Photography, All Right Reserved.


Vermont Foam Insulation
Will Reed
1897 Brockways Mills Road
Chester, VT 05143
802-463-1450

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