What Are The Different Types Of Foam Insulation For Residential Use?

Researching foam insulation for your home improvement project can be confusing. You had one product in mind, but every resource you find gives you conflicting information. How many types of foam insulations are there?

South Central Services began in refrigeration and HVAC. After witnessing the insulation struggles that our customers were facing, we started researching the best insulation products available. We chose spray foam insulation and have since installed spray foam in hundreds of homes. Before choosing spray foam, we researched all of these foam insulation products to determine which would provide the best performance for our customers.

By the end of this article, you will know:

• How many residential foam insulation products exist
• What makes each foam insulation different
• The best applications of each foam

5 Types Of Foam Insulation

There are five key types of foam insulation available.

1. Spray polyurethane foam
2. Pour polyurethane foam
3. Can foam
4. Injection foam
5. Foam board

Let’s examine each type of foam in more detail, starting with the types of polyurethane foam.

Polyurethane Foam Insulations

Polyurethane foams are created through the chemical reaction between isocyanate and polyol blend. These two chemicals make polyurethane a two-component foam. Depending on the amounts of ingredients in the polyol blend, polyurethane foams can be either open cell or closed cell foams. Open cell and closed cell refer to the cellular structure of the products.

Spray polyurethane foam and pour foam are made of the same ingredients. The difference between spray foam and pour foam is how they are applied and what they are used for.

Spray Polyurethane Foam

Spray foam is applied with a spray gun. When the two chemicals meet at the spray gun, they atomize and mix to create foam. Spray foam expands into place, with open cell expanding more than closed cell.

Spray polyurethane foam is a versatile product between the open and closed cell variations. Spray foam is used in residential and commercial applications. Both closed cell and open cell can be installed on roofs, attics, and exterior walls.

For a more comprehensive look at where spray foam can be installed, check out our spray foam application guide. This guide walks you through what spray foam sticks to!

Closed cell spray foam is approved for below-grade applications below the ground. These below-grade applications include basements and crawl spaces.

Spray polyurethane foam is for sale in DIY kits, but should be installed by a professional contractor. Because spray foam is created through a chemical reaction, many variables could change the quality and effectiveness of the resulting foam. DIY kits are also unlikely to be any cheaper than professional foam.

Pour Polyurethane Foam

Pour foam uses the same equipment as spray foam but is applied with a different nozzle and an additional hose. Rather than becoming atomized after leaving the tip of the spray gun, the two chemicals meet in the new hose attachment. Pour foam has a slower reaction time. It arrives at its destination in a liquid form, and soon after expands into foam.

Closed cell pour foam is used to insulate concrete bricks and blocks. Closed cell pour foam is a more dense foam that can handle moisture. These properties make closed cell foam ideal for commercial masonry applications.

Open cell pour foam is used to insulate existing wall cavities. Open cell foam is a less expensive pour foam option, which is one reason why it works well for residential applications. Additionally, residential wall cavities do not require the same density or moisture control that masonry applications often need.

Can Foam

Can foam is a single-component urethane foam that is sold in pressurized canisters. Can foam has a different makeup than spray and pour foam, but it is also in the urethane foam family. When installed, can foam expands in place. Can foam is best used for gaps, windows, doors, cracks, and filling in small air leak areas. The most popular brand of can foam is Great Stuff by Dupont, because of its consistency and variety of applications.

Most other foam insulations are used for large projects with many square feet. Can foam is not a product for large projects. If you needed to insulate a wall, you would not use individual cans of foam. Spraying individual cans would be expensive and time consuming. However, if you have some air leakage areas around your home, a can or two of foam can help to create an effective air barrier.

Injection Foam

Injection foam is a three-component foam. Unlike polyurethane foam, injection foam does not expand. When a resin is combined with water and a foaming agent, injection foam is created. This type of foam has the consistency of shaving cream.

Injection foam is installed by drilling holes into existing walls and pumping the foam into walls. Injection foam is not sold in DIY kits and must be installed by a professional injection foam contractor.

This type of foam is intended for retrofitting and remodeling applications. If you want to put foam in your walls to create an air seal, injection foam allows you to install foam without tearing down drywall.

Rigid Foam Board

You will find many options if you look for rigid foam boards at your local hardware store. The three most common foam boards are expanded polystyrene (EPS), extruded polystyrene (XPS), and polyisocyanurate (polyiso). Pink and blue XPS boards and foil-faced polyiso boards are the most popular in construction.

Foam boards can insulate roofs, attics, basements, and crawl spaces. For flat applications, foam board can be a helpful insulating material. Any application with gaps, cracks, or unique spaces to fill would not benefit from foam boards. This rigid product is best for flat applications and would be ineffective otherwise.

The Bottom Line About Residential Foam Insulations

Spray foam insulation is not the only foam insulation available. Depending on the needs of your project, pour foam, injection foam, can foam, or foam board may be the best insulation for you.

Every type of foam insulation is composed of different ingredients and designed for different purposes. Whether insulating a new building or optimizing an existing structure, you can find a foam insulation to solve your problem.

At South Central Services, we install spray polyurethane foam and pour foam. We work with both residential and commercial structures in southern Pennsylvania and several surrounding states. If your project is within our service area, contact us for a free site visit and quote.

Want to learn more about these foam insulations? Check out these resources.

• Pros and Cons of Spray Foam Insulation
• DIY vs. Professional Spray Foam Insulation
• Spray Foam vs. Injection Foam Insulation