Has anyone remodeled a house that had spray foam insulation?

[rgG]

I see these home improvement shows and they are always touting and installing spray foam insulation.
Now, I understand and believe that it is great for insulating a house, but I can't imagine what a pain it would be if you needed to do something later, to an area that had been spray foamed.

Has anyone here had to go into a spray foamed area to rewire, replumb, or remodel in any way?
If so, was it as big a PITA as it looks like it would be?

[Paul F.]

Friend of mine is a contractor (does mostly gas-line plumbing for appliance installs these days, but has done lots of different jobs)...
He loves the stuff for the insulation value, but HATES having to plumb gas lines (or whatever) through it.

[rgG]

Paul F. wrote:
Friend of mine is a contractor (does mostly gas-line plumbing for appliance installs these days, but has done lots of different jobs)...
He loves the stuff for the insulation value, but HATES having to plumb gas lines (or whatever) through it.

That is what I was wondering about. The way it just encapsulates everything it touches and the way it bonds, like crazy, it seems like it would make reno, or even minor changes, a real pain.

[OWC Jamie]

the foam I've come across cuts with a knife fairly easy.
fishing a wire down behind a wall panel isn;t gonna happen though

[btfc]

"the foam I've come across cuts with a knife fairly easy."

Yes. It is a bit of a pain where is is stuck to wires or pipes, but not really that bad. It is great as insulation, as it seals cracks, provides a vapor barrier, and substantially reduces insects and rodents.

[rgG]

Yeah, keeping critters from nesting and chewing on the wires would be great.

[davester]

rgG wrote:
Now, I understand and believe that it is great for insulating a house, but I can't imagine what a pain it would be if you needed to do something later, to an area that had been spray foamed.

Not to mention that it is a significant fire hazard. Spray foams are either untreated, in which case they are highly flammable and release dense, toxic smoke when burning, or they are treated with fire retardants, in which case they are more difficult to light on fire, but when you do you have the added toxicity of the fire retardants. I would never have my house insulated with that stuff.

[OWC Jamie]

I've had mice chew thru the expanding foam that comes in a can.
They make some with a bitterant in it now - I have no idea how effective it is

[Filliam H. Muffman]

It depends on what the renovation involves, and if it is the more prevalent open cell or high density closed cell.

Cutting closed cell is like cutting wetsuit foam, high friction and about three times as heavy as open cell foam. Drilling holes in joists to run conduit/pipe through closed cell could easily take twice as long compared to dealing with traditional fiberglass batts.

[3d]

If you live in a cold region, the insulation value outweighs the negatives. If you live in a temperate to hot climate, then not so much.

That said,,, What do I have? The fluffy pink stuff. I'm not spraying that crp in my house until I know for sure it's completely safe. How long did it take for people to realize the danger of BPA in food containers?