Spray Foam Insulation In Vented Attic

If the atmospheric combustion appliances start off in a vented attic the building code doesn t require those vents because the appliances are already connected to the outside and should get plenty of air.

Spray foam insulation in vented attic. This construction approach was first used in the 1970s and it has been implemented much more widely since it was first included in the international code council s icc model building code in 2007 irc section 806 4. Thanks to its air sealing properties foam insulation for vented attics particularly in cold and dry climates helps curb a stack effect where heated air escapes through the ceiling and eventually the attic and is replaced in lower levels of the home by drawn in outdoor air. An unvented attic system relies on an air seal and no vents to make the attic a conditioned space. One huge benefit of the spray foam insulated attic is that conditioned air leakage from the ac furnace duct system is contained and used to condition the attic.

An open cell foam low density spray polyurethane is a spray applied to provide continuous insulation and an air sealing barrier. When we seal the attic with spray foam it s as tight as a butter tub. This spray foam is applied as a low or high pressure two component polyurethane spray foam that can be applied onto walls in unvented attics to ducts and ceilings and in vented attics and crawl spaces. When spray foam is installed on the underside of the roof deck the attic space is insulated from heat that otherwise would be entering the attic.

The insulation reduces wildly high temperature spikes and so the attic becomes a conditioned part of the home like any other room. However in a traditionally insulated attic insulation on the ceiling the attic is vented. And because vented attics are subject to extreme high and low temperatures additional energy march 2007 i jlc i 2 insulating unvented attics with spray foam figure 1 spray foam is a good choice for roofs that are difficult to vent like a turret with converging rafters. Whether the home is old or new however anyone considering spray foam insulation would be wise to ask this question.

There are numerous ways in which an unvented attic insulated with spray foam can reduce a home s energy consumption. Installed in vented attics conditioned air is lost to the exterior. Foam insulation for vented attics placed on the attic floor can also work to minimize moist warm indoor air from entering the attic and causing potential roof damage from condensation on the roof deck in. The two products most often used in an unvented attic assembly are medium and low density sprayed polyurethane foam spf.