The Icynene Insulation System®
05 March 2007
Building a Tight Envelope
Did you know that up to 40% of your monthly energy bill could be attributed to compensating for air leakage? Insulation performance is dependent on its ability to minimize both conductive and convective (air leakage) heat flow. If there are gaps between the insulation and other building materials allowing air leakage/flow, the effectiveness of the insulation can be reduced by as much as 50% from its original rating.
An Icynene®-insulated building maximizes energy performance. This unique spray-foam insulation softly expands to 100 times its initial volume to seal all cracks and crevices that compromise airtightness.
Complete Air Barrier
Why is air sealing so important? Building a tight building envelope with Icynene allows you to reduce air leakage and incorporate a properly sized Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system. Tight construction coupled with mechanical ventilation ensures a maximum indoor air quality during all weather conditions.
Because Icynene is a spray foam, it requires no difficult measuring and messy pre-cutting. It is sprayed into any cavity and it quickly expands to gently fill the entire cavity, insulating plumbing pipes and filling gaps in corners and near electrical boxes - the perfect solution for intricate cathedral-style ceilings or other unusual geometry. It also excels in horizontal applications such as crawl spaces, garage ceilings and flat roofs.
How Icynene Reacts to Moisture, Liquid, Fire
Icynene is a soft flexible foam of very low density. Unlike rigid foams, Icynene can expand and contract with the thermal expansion of the building and it is not affected by jostling during transportation. In modular buildings, conventional insulations tend to slump and slide but Icynene will not change from the factory to the installation site.
As a slightly open cell foam, Icynene can drain if it is contacted by liquid water. Once dry, its insulation properties remain unimpaired. Icynene's air barrier property and low perm rating mean that moisture vapour will not penetrate the foam and condense. A dew point has never been observed in Icynene.
Icynene contains no formaldehyde, chlorofluorocarbons, hydrochlorofluorocarbons or hydro fluorocarbons. It is an open cell material that provides a complete air barrier at temperatures ranging from -40°C to 93°C. It is not a source of food for mold and reduces the airborne introduction of moisture, food and mold spores into the building envelope. It has no food value for insects or rodents.
Icynene is a Class I material by US standards, which means it meets the top criteria for burn characteristics of a building product. The simplest explanation meaningful for the Austrian market in the absence of official testing is that it will not readily spread flames. Once the source of fire is removed, Icynene will not continue to burn on its own. Icynene foam is 99% air and 1% matter so there is virtually no fuel contribution to a fire.
Yield and Waste
One set of materials - two 208L drums - yields 40m³. One sea container can deliver enough Icynene to insulate 36 homes of 185m². Total waste for a 185m² home is about 26dL. Because Icynene is inert, it can safely be used as packing material, soil conditioner for potted plants or landfilled.
