cfiFOAM’s Newest Injection Foam Product Helps Homeowners Save Energy and Money

KNOXVILLE, TN–July 26, 2012–"It's an advancement in technology, and no other company is offering a foam insulation product like that material that's installed on a job site," said Richard Porter, president of cfiFOAM.

cfiFOAM's newest injection foam product, InsulSmart MH, is formulated with a melamine hybrid resin. Incorporating melamine into the formulation is advantageous in states that have tight or prohibitive regulations on urea-formaldehyde foams.

"We thought the melamine chemistry offered significant advantages over phenolic chemistry," Porter explained. Phenolics comprise an alternative type of injection foam formulation.

cfiFOAM's internal research and development department conducted everything from the initial patent and trademark search to the refinement of the chemical formulation. The process was extensive, having taken "several years" to develop the product, according to Porter. Upon completion, cfiFOAM had a product that was comparable in performance to the original InsulSmart injection foam.

"In terms of R-value and processing equipment, it's very similar," said Porter. He also noted that while InsulSmart MH is becoming quite popular in the more restrictive states that spurred its development, it's also penetrating the markets in other states.

In Porter's estimate, the majority of injection foam applications being done with InsulSmart MH are residential projects. An example of one such residential project, done by Healthy Homes 4U, was recently completed in the Los Angeles-area community of West Covina.

"This was part of the Upgrade Energy California program," said Jim Nugent, owner of Healthy Homes 4U and Nugent Construction.

The program offers rebates for homeowners who decrease their homes' energy footprint. In this case, the homeowners opted for an insulation overhaul that included an injection foam application.

InsulSmart MH was injected between the stud cavities around the exterior of the home, with two holes being drilled into each cavity. The house's siding was composed of stucco and brick. While the stucco drilling was straightforward, Healthy Homes was deliberate in drilling holes at the intersections of each horizontal and vertical line of mortar.

"We drilled where the four bricks came together because that gave us a large enough hole," said Nugent. "That's the good thing about this system for brick."

After the foam was injected, Healthy Homes did a thermal camera inspection of the walls from the interior of the home while the air conditioning was on. The inspection allowed the company to see how the stud cavities were filled, and upon approval, the injection sites were patched. The injection foam application, when combined with the home's several other energy upgrades, stands to improve the home's energy efficiency by about 60%. This improvement not only makes an impact on future energy expenses, but also on the homeowners' current bottom line,

"On this particular house, they're going to get close to $12,000 worth of rebates back," said Nugent.

This example makes readily apparent the benefits of upgrading to efficient building materials. Additionally, it shows how crucial a product like InsulSmart MH, and the R&D efforts that produced it, can be in realizing such benefits.

"It's consistent with our philosophy of continual improvement," Porter maintained.

About cfiFOAM Inc.: Based in Knoxville, Tennessee, cfiFOAM produces 2-part foam systems that combine a unique spray-dried polymeric resin with a foaming catalyst to produce a "dry" foam that is unmatched in the industry.All cfiFOAM products are Class I Fire-Rated and have been tested by certified laboratories to comply with all international building codes. The injection foam products offered by cfiFOAM do not use any ozone-depleting chemicals as part of their formulation. For information about cfiFOAM, please use the contact details provided below.

About Healthy Homes 4U Inc.: Healthy Homes 4U provides energy audits, premium insulation, and air & duct sealing. The company's services aim at providing rebates for customers through the Upgrade Energy California program. For more information, call (855)673-7400 or use the links provided below.