Polyurethane Spray Foam Insulation

I received a good question recently about using Spray Foam Insulation in a building that was planned to be used for refrigerated storage. I have worked on a few of these refrigerated storage buildings this year while I don't recall working on any in the prior five years, so if you hear the building market is cooling down maybe that's what they mean. For Halberg Engineering, it has been another great year.

The refrigerated storage buildings I have worked on in the past have all been constructed of Structural Insulated Panels, or SIP, buildings where the engineered package for the building structure itself has been designed by the SIP manufacturer. This type of project has been very similar to a Steel Building project in which the building and structural engineering for it is provided by the manufacturer of the building while the foundation design and other code design issues must be handled by a competent engineer working on the Owner's behalf.

On the request I received the other day, the builder was inquiring about the use of sprayed foam insulation, a polyurethane product similar to CoreBond, applied to the inside of the exterior steel roofing and siding as a way to insulate the building for refrigerated storage.

Because of the potential fire danger from using foams that may be flammable, there are certain requirements in the code that these insulation producst must satisfy. In my experience, SIP's have their own Wisconsin Building Products Evaluation, such as the panels by Energy Panel Structures, Inc.

SIP's are typically installed without a separate vapor barrier and without a separate thermal barrier required because of the sandwich construction of the panel. Spray on foam products such as CoreBond insulation may require the vapor barrier and a separate thermal barrier to meet the same requirements of the code that the SIP's have.

The best advice I can provide to owners and builders considering the use of these insulated products in their design/build project is to contact a design professional and get manufacturer's data to understand the code implications as early in the design process as possible.

Wisconsin to Adopt IBC 2006

The State of Wisconsin, in addition to being the home of the Green Bay Packers and Halberg Engineering, is also the home of the oldest building code in the Union. The state-specific code changed for the first time in July of 2002 when Wisconsin adopted the 2000 edition of the International Building Code (IBC). The adoption of the 2006 is currently underway and is in the hands of the State Legislature.

I learned today that the anticipated date of enforcement for the new building code in Wisconsin is March 1, 2008.

Building plan submittals that are received at a State Safety & Buildings office before this date will be reviewed under the current code (IBC 2000 with ammendments) and building plan submittals received at a plan review office on or after March 1, 2008 (or the final date of enforcement) will be reviewed to the IBC 2006-based code.

Just one example of changes in the 2006 code, A-2 Assembly occupancies (Restaurants, Taverns, Banquet Halls) currently have a sprinkler requirement for occupant loads of 300 people, but the 2006 IBC code requires sprinkler systems at an occupant load of 100 people or more. Of course the code is a relatively complex set of documents and standards, so I would always encourage owners and general contractors to work with their Design Professional as early in the design process as possible to ensure that any advantage available may be obtained by performing the plan submittal before or after the March 1, 2008 implementation date.