Spray Foam insulation update
Spray foam insulation remains a problem for home owners
One third of properties where spray foam insulation was installed were found to have defects
Spray foam insulation a modern day problem
A recent survey by national trade body the Property Care Association looked at over 500 surveys of spray foam insulation installations and found that over 1/3rd had at least one or more defects.
What happens when defects in spray foam insulation are detected ?
The survey conducted in over 500 properties found that over 3/4’s of spray foam installations didn’t follow all elements of the Sprayed foam Inspection protocol produced by the PCA.
In over a third of the properties inspected, one or more defects were detected as a result of spray foam installation or poorly installed spray foam insulation. In 27% of these cases the recommendation was to re-quilt or totally re-roof which can obviously prove extremely costly when the initial reason was for cost savings around energy. Only 16% of cases resulted in no remediation work being required or recommended.
Is removal an option?
This type of insulation needs to be installed by a professional and it can be difficult to remove once it's been installed. As we mentioned in our previous spray foam article you also have to be very aware of scammers and unreputable companies not just when installing but also when having spray foam removed. There have also been cases where law firms have somehow acquired property owner details in an attempt to convince them to pursue legal action against the installers.
Buyer beware….. and owner also
If a surveyor identifies spray foam insulation during an inspection, they may reduce the value of the property or request an independent specialist report. More importantly, most lenders and all Equity Release providers refuse to lend against properties with spray foam insulation as a blanket rule.
Has our opinion changed?
With so many uncertainties and risks when it comes to mortgaging a property with spray foam insulation, we would still advise against any form of spray foam insulation, and instead stick to additional layers of more traditional forms of insulation until the industry is more heavily regulated.