Spray Foam Attic Thermal Barrier

When these systems pass a full scale nfpa 286 test in accordance with the interior finish acceptance criteria of ibc 803 1 2 1 the use of the system omits the code prescribed thermal barrier it does not make the intumescent coating a.

Spray foam attic thermal barrier.

The same applies for spray foam and intumescent coating systems that meet interior finish test requirements. According to a guide for spray foam installers thermal barriers and ignition barriers for the spray polyurethane foam industry when exposed to fire sources such as trash fires welding arcs cutting torches or red hot metal unprotected spf spray polyurethane foam can ignite and may result in a flash fire. Earlier this year i got a question about a home that had spray foam insulation in the attic. Spray foam insulation doesn t protect attic spaces from radiant heat but does protect them from convection and conduction.

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. Nothing unusual about that. 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. 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. 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.