Hey guys,
Has anyone here had any experience with a product called Handi-foam? Its made by a co. called Fomo and is a 2 part polyurethane foam similar to (I'm guessing) the 1 part product called Great Stuff. It sprays onto surfaces, expands and cures almost immediately. Its applications include home insulation (replacing glass batts) and shooting on the exterior of whirlpools for insulation and reinforcement.
I was considering using this stuff as part of a soundproofing regimen for some especially challenging gaps in our tracking room.
Fomo's specs page lists everything but STC (Great Stuff lists their product as an STC of 69(!!)), and info elsewhere is sketchy at best.
Any insight would be appreciated.
Handi-foam gap filler
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McStudios
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this stuff may have some applications.
since this stuff is (i'm sort of presuming) closed cell, it can't absorb any sound energy. so it does insulate heat, but not sound.
so, it's normally not good to use this stuff in walls. you want as big an airspace as possible between leaves. this stuff takes away airspace, and doesn't add any benefit. so it is bad.
but, there has been some talk about using stuff like this to fill in undesired airspaces.
say you have a small airgap that creates a third leaf. you could fill it with this stuff and then you'd have 2 leaves again.
it wouldn't add any isolation, because it doesn't have much mass, but it would (theoretically) prevent an unwanted resonance in that space.
what are the challenging gaps? do you have pictures? someone might be able to give an alternate suggestion.
dan
since this stuff is (i'm sort of presuming) closed cell, it can't absorb any sound energy. so it does insulate heat, but not sound.
so, it's normally not good to use this stuff in walls. you want as big an airspace as possible between leaves. this stuff takes away airspace, and doesn't add any benefit. so it is bad.
but, there has been some talk about using stuff like this to fill in undesired airspaces.
say you have a small airgap that creates a third leaf. you could fill it with this stuff and then you'd have 2 leaves again.
it wouldn't add any isolation, because it doesn't have much mass, but it would (theoretically) prevent an unwanted resonance in that space.
what are the challenging gaps? do you have pictures? someone might be able to give an alternate suggestion.
dan
-
McStudios
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2005 8:35 am
- Location: St. Louis, MO, USA
I have no pics of this project, I'm away and will be for a while longer, but heres roughly the setup from the bottom up.
15ft tall 20ft w painted cinder block wall.. non-load bearing, ~6in gap, ~8in i-beam, wood roof. One side, call it inside, is tracking. Outside is a shop area.
Inside the gap is bridged by a thick wire mesh covered by a thick, and sometimes crumbly layer of plaster. Outside is nada... top of the wall, bottom of the i-beam, and plaster smooshing thru the mesh along the back. Now this isn't bad by itself... the gap between the cinderblock wall and i-beam seems very consistent, making it an easy matter to cut material like drywall and fill the void. You could theoretically fill the gap with a 6x6 inch thick plug of wallboard and acoustic caulk or whatever. What adds points of difficulty is the many electrical conduits and at least 1 gas line that makes its way through the mesh via sloppily cut holes and chisled plaster.
The foam was going to perform several functions. First, it was to create an air seal to stop the loss of HVAC to the outside world and shore up the plaster/mesh. Secondly, it was to be a substrate/glue for material (drywall, wood, sheetblok, what-have-you) to build out the gap.
An alternative idea, which would ultimately involved mechanically attaching the i-beam to the cinder block wall deemed a Bad Idea because of building movement.
Theres no way this section of wall is beating 45 STC and it has a set of double doors in it, which presents a different set of challenges.
Once again, thanks for any insight.
15ft tall 20ft w painted cinder block wall.. non-load bearing, ~6in gap, ~8in i-beam, wood roof. One side, call it inside, is tracking. Outside is a shop area.
Inside the gap is bridged by a thick wire mesh covered by a thick, and sometimes crumbly layer of plaster. Outside is nada... top of the wall, bottom of the i-beam, and plaster smooshing thru the mesh along the back. Now this isn't bad by itself... the gap between the cinderblock wall and i-beam seems very consistent, making it an easy matter to cut material like drywall and fill the void. You could theoretically fill the gap with a 6x6 inch thick plug of wallboard and acoustic caulk or whatever. What adds points of difficulty is the many electrical conduits and at least 1 gas line that makes its way through the mesh via sloppily cut holes and chisled plaster.
The foam was going to perform several functions. First, it was to create an air seal to stop the loss of HVAC to the outside world and shore up the plaster/mesh. Secondly, it was to be a substrate/glue for material (drywall, wood, sheetblok, what-have-you) to build out the gap.
An alternative idea, which would ultimately involved mechanically attaching the i-beam to the cinder block wall deemed a Bad Idea because of building movement.
Theres no way this section of wall is beating 45 STC and it has a set of double doors in it, which presents a different set of challenges.
Once again, thanks for any insight.