Spray Foam Attic Thermal Barrier

Thermal barrier is applied between foam and interior space to delay the temperature of the foam during a fire situation and delay prevent the foams involvement in a fire.

Spray foam attic thermal barrier. A thermal barrier is a material applied between foam plastics including spray polyurethane foam and interior spaces designed to delay the temperature rise of the foam during a fire situation and to delay or prevent the foam s involvement in a fire. In the summer radiant heat is the biggest contributor to heated attic spaces so spray foam insulation may not be as effective in keeping attics cool. If a home has spray foam insulation in an attic or crawl space the building code requires using materials or assemblies that offer some fire resistance but not as much as is required for a thermal barrier. If a home has spray foam insulation in an attic or crawl space the building code requires using materials or assemblies that offer some fire resistance but not as much as is required for a thermal barrier.

A lot of builders and homeowners are going with spray foam insulation because of the airtightness benefits but then the questioner mentioned that the spray foam contractor had intentionally left big holes to the outside by not sealing the gable vents. To be classified as a thermal barrier the material must resist severe fire exposure for a minimum of fifteen 15 minutes. If you ve got spray foam insulation in an attic for example it s probably already separated from the living space by a thermal barrier. Spray foam insulation doesn t protect attic spaces from radiant heat but does protect them from convection and conduction.

If you ve got spray foam insulation in an attic for example it s probably already separated from the living space by a thermal barrier. Nothing unusual about that. The same applies for spray foam and intumescent coating systems that meet interior finish test requirements.