Problems With The Spray Foam Industry

If you're considering a career in spray foam, you want to be as informed as possible before making any decisions. Is spray foam insulation the right industry for you? Are there problems in the industry that you should be aware of?

South Central Services has insulated hundreds of homes with spray foam. The longer we have existed in this industry, the more room for improvement we have discovered.

These are the four most significant problems with the spray foam industry that we have identified.

1. Lack Of Helpful Training

When we started our journey with spray foam insulation, the most hands-on training we could find was half-day classes to teach the basics of spraying. These were not a series of half-day training sessions making up a more extensive curriculum but a single training event.

With our experience now, we understand the time and effort it takes to develop the skills and techniques to spray correctly. Spray foam insulation is not a point-and-shoot type of product. There are literal techniques for spraying to ensure proper adhesion and effective yield.

Because such minimal training is available to spray foam installers, many contractors learn as they go.

The spray foam industry needs to provide more tangible and accessible training. Spray foam is too complex of a product to be left to learn on the job.

2. Lack Of Contractor Understanding

Spray foam insulation is a complex product. Several variables must be controlled and monitored to create safe and on-ratio foam. These variables include component temperature, component pressure, component ratio, substrate humidity, and substrate temperature.

In our experience, too many spray foam contractors do not understand the limitations of their equipment and product.

Here's an example. We heat the spray foam materials in the proportioner when installing spray foam insulation. Proportioners can only raise the temperature so far. Depending on the proportioner's size, the equipment’s internal heaters may only raise the temperature 50 degrees Fahrenheit. This is a limitation of the equipment.

If you pump cold spray foam raw material into the proportioner, the material needs to heat up significantly. Due to the proportioner’s heater limitations, you may not actually be able to heat up the raw material to the desired temperature. It could display that temperature when it cannot increase the temperature so significantly.

You can think of it like a thermostat. It doesn't matter how many times you try to crank your thermostat if some part of the HVAC equipment is broken. Similarly, spray foam contractors have an obligation to understand the limitations of their equipment and products. If installers refuse to educate themselves, they cannot control the numerous variables influencing effective foam.

3. Lack Of Regulation

The spray foam insulation industry needs more overseeing organizations. Anybody can purchase a used spray foam rig for $30,000 and call a supplier for drums of components. Manufacturers sell foam components to anyone who can afford to purchase them.

In fact, there isn't even a need to prove you have a spray foam rig, let alone that it has functioning equipment. There is no overseeing body to monitor the functionality of spray foam rigs. There is no mark or certification to ensure someone is qualified to spray the materials they purchase.

This lack of supervision means that price shopping is incredibly dangerous for homeowners.

Knowing what you're doing is not a prerequisite before starting work as a spray foam contractor. Working with a contractor who offers the cheapest quote can be tempting. However, in all likelihood, the contractors with the lowest bids use cheap foam components and have an outdated rig they weren't trained to operate properly.

Spray foam insulation is an effective product when it is installed correctly. However, the industry does not empower homeowners to know which contractors are trustworthy. Spray foam contractors are held to very little formal accountability.

4. Lack Of Authoritative Education On Spray Foam

The spray foam industry faces a great deal of misnomers. Misinformation about spray foam floats around on the internet or is passed by word of mouth. Factual and accessible information about spray foam is difficult to find.

A simple example is the difference between blown-in insulation and spray foam insulation.

Blown-in is not a type of spray foam insulation. Blown-in insulations are loose fill insulations made of fiberglass or cellulose particles. But search engines offer "spray foam" and "blown-in" as filters for spray foam search results.

It is the fault of the industry for not making authoritative education accessible. You cannot blame consumers for fearing spray foam or believing misnomers about spray foam when the industry does not make factual information readily available.

For the spray foam industry to improve, authoritative and factual education materials must be made accessible. An excellent and useful insulation product is often overlooked or opposed due to the industry's failure to communicate.

The Bottom Line About Problems In The Spray Foam Industry

No industry or product is perfect. The spray foam industry is no exception. Spray foam is a fascinating insulation that delivers incredible results when installed correctly. Unfortunately, safe spray foam insulation is not always the norm. Contractors must prioritize and pursue education on their own.

The spray foam industry needs proper training, regulation, and education. Until that happens, individual contractors will remain responsible for doing their research and developing the necessary competencies to deliver safe foam.

This leaves homeowners vulnerable to working with contractors who don't know what they're doing. At best, ineffective spray foam will fail to deliver lower energy bills and a more comfortable home. At worst, off-ratio foam can make a home unsafe.

If you want to become a spray foam installer, you need motivation, determination, and integrity. The industry's failings will force you to work hard on your own.

Now that you know the problems in the spray foam industry, your next step is to:

• Weigh the pros and cons of working with spray foam insulation
• Discover the best spray foam component manufacturers
• Learn about the necessary PPE for spray foam contractors