Page 50 - October 2015 Green Builder Magazine
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Product Spotlight: Insulation and Air Sealing
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www.greenbuildermedia.com 10.2015 Sweetening the Seal. SucraSeal open-cell spray foam includes up to 25 percent of the content bio-based content—the highest in the
industry. www.sucraseal.com
its entire line of residential insulation products so that they are strength.
formaldehyde-free. More recently, Lapolla stated that it would be But the embodied energy of spray foam is higher than just
replacing the blowing agents in its Foam-LOK spray foam products
with Honeywell’s Solstice, a next-generation blowing agent with about any other insulation option, as is the cost. Experts have also
much lower global warming potential (GWP) than its predecessors. pointed to health concerns for the installer and home occupants.
MDI, a key chemical ingredient in many spray foams, has been
To cut back on greenwashing, more companies are striving linked by researchers to asthma, lung cancer and in severe cases
toward greater transparency of product ingredients, which brings even death. Halogenated flame retardants used in spray foam are
yet another slew of acronyms to the table, including GWP, EPD also considered by the CDC to be bioaccumulative, which has
(environmental product declaration) and the less commonly used led to a movement to reduce or eliminate these chemicals from
HPD (health product declaration). Some manufacturers are also spray foam. Professional installers are therefore very important,
opting to have their products certified by UL Environment or with not only because of the health risks involved but also because
the Declare label, created by the International Living Future Institute. spray foam requires skilled onsite application. Improper technique
can impact the energy performance and durability of the home.
SPRAY FOAM: THE LATEST INNOVATIONS Don Kosanko, director of products and programs for insulation at
Owens Corning, points out that when the home is built in a cold
Spray foam insulation offers several advantages over other types climate and the wall doesn’t have a proper vapor barrier installed,
of insulation, including higher R-values per inch. It also fills in moisture can get into the wall cavity and condense.
cracks and penetrations as it is sprayed, thereby doubling as an
air barrier; closed-cell spray foam can also contribute to structural In order to distinguish their products and lower their embodied
