tyler_fox41•5d agoProlific Poster

Chatted with a GC last weekend who changed my mind about spray foam

I was loading up at the Lowe's on Coors when an old contractor named Hank stopped me and said spray foam can trap moisture against stucco walls here in Albuquerque. He showed me cell phone pics of a job where the wood behind it was totally rotted after just 4 years. Has anyone else had issues with closed-cell foam in our dry climate?

2 comments

2 Comments

derek995d ago

Hank's not wrong, I've seen the same thing in a few stucco houses here in town. The issue is vapor drive from the warm inside meeting the cold stucco at night, and closed cell just holds it right there against the wood. If you go that route, make sure there's a proper drainage plane and a vapor barrier on the inside, or stick with open cell in our climate.

elizabeth_bailey264d ago

Funny thing is, I actually did closed cell on my own garage 8 years ago and I'm still waiting for the disaster to show up. Maybe I just got lucky, or my house breathes different than yours. Your mileage may vary, but I learned that lesson the hard way on a rental property I flipped where I skimped on the drainage plane. Open cell seems like the safer bet for most of us weekend warriors who don't have a Ph.D. in vapor diffusion.