Foam Board Insulation - R Values and Types. By Todd Fratzel on Insulation. Resources include AIA contract documents, handbooks, guidelines, and MasterSpec. As stated above, hardwood should be installed perpendicular to the floor joists. From an aesthetic perspective, I prefer the boards to run front to back when standing. Lumber (American English; used only in North America) or timber (used in the rest of the English speaking world) is a type of wood that has been processed into beams. Foam Board Insulation Types. I’ve written several posts about how to insulation basement walls in which I promote the use of foam board insulation as the first line of defense against moisture and mold. Because of this I often get questions about which type of foam board insulation to use and what R values these products provide. There are three basic foam insulation board products on the market produced under several different manufacturer names. The basic types of foam board insulation include: polystyrene, polyurethane or polyisocyanurate. They include expanded polystyrene, extruded polystyrene, and polyisocyanurate unfaced or foil faced. DOW products has lots of information on their site about different foam board products here. I also recommend you read a recent article about Open Cell Vs Closed Cell Foam products to understand the differences between the two product types. Expanded Polystyrene Foam. Expanded polystyrene foam (EPS) is the cheapest and least used foam board product on the market. This product typically has an R value of 3. Expanded polystyrene insulation is similar to the foam used for packing “peanuts” and it’s typically used for insulated concrete forms also knows as ICF’s. It is also sometimes used on commercial buildings for roof and wall panel insulation which is typically sandwiched between light gauge metal. Cost = Cheapest of the foam insulation boards. Extruded Polystyrene Foam.
Installing Hardwood Flooring Parallel To Joists Meaning Of Colors3.4 Solid Rev 012113 Page 1 3/4” Solid Hardwood Flooring. Extruded polystyrene foam (XPS) also known as blue board or pink board comes in many different thicknesses and edge profiles. This insulation board is probably one of the most widely used foam board insulation products in the residential construction industry. XPS has an R value of 4. This is the product that I typically use to insulate basement walls. It’s reasonably priced, light weight and easy to use. This product is also used to insulate the outside of foundation walls and even under slabs. Cost = This product is the middle of the road for these types of foam board insulation products. Polyisocyanurate and Polyurethane. Polyisocyanurate also known as polyiso is seen in all kinds of commercial building applications and more recently with residential building projects. Polyiso is typically used with a foil facing and it has an R value of 7. The reflective foil facing makes it an excellent insulation board when radiant heat is involved. The foil facing also makes it very easy to seal with good quality foil faced tapes. Cost = Polyiso is the most expensive of the foam board insulation products however it’s the highest R value. Polyurethane and polyisocyanurate are both closed- cell foams. They contain low- conductivity gases in the cells (usually one of the HCFC or CFC gases.) The higher R- Values (R 7. This can lead to a couple of disadvantages including: off gassing of HCFC or CFC gases, and reduced R Value over time as the gas escapes. How to Lay the First Board In a Hardwood Flooring Installation. June 3. 0, 2. 01. They must be absolutely straight and laid without gaps or bends. After all, no one wants to spend thousands of dollars on hardwood floors and have the installation lead to a sub- par surface. We’re laying 1. 10. Brazilian Walnut hardwood floors across the first floor of our colonial home. This is the third in a series of more than a dozen articles that describe how to install wood flooring. Subscribe by using the buttons at the right (RSS or by e- mail) to keep up with the project. Determining the Best Starting Point for Hardwoods. Every hardwood installation has to start somewhere. In a simple rectangular room, the starting point will be against one of the walls. In more complex rooms, you will want to pick a starting point that eases the installation. As a first step, identify starting points that allow for the least number of complicated rejoining efforts. Rejoins require you to work carefully in separate sections, ensuring the hardwoods remain tight and even, so that the rejoin on the other side of the object doesn’t require special cutting or routing steps. It is also ideal to choose a location that requires the fewest groove- to- groove joins, as these will require a extra double- tongue splines. Let’s say that in the middle of two rooms there is a doorway. You want the wood to cross the doorway accurately parallel to the horizontal walls. If you start at the end of one room on a wall that is not perfectly square, the wood may cross the doorway unevenly. It is more important in our installation that the wood cross each threshold parallel to the doorways. We decided to start at the front of the house, but measure our starting line based on the doorways. Red rosin paper reduces squeaks between the subfloor and hardwoods and serves as a partial moisture barrier to prevent moisture wicking from the subfloor below to the hardwoods. Roofing felt isn’t necessary, and it is much messier than rosin paper). You only need to lay one sheet at a time as you can lay more as you work through the floor, overlapping the paper by 3 inches each time. There’s no need to go nuts with the stapler either – a few staples here and there are sufficient. Step 2: Measure and mark the starting point for the first board. These will be covered by molding and allow the floor to expand and contract with changes in humidity and moisture. It is possible that a wall varies so much you may have to rip parts of boards to ensure full coverage on the floor while still leaving a 1/2. I generally lay out the first 2- 3 boards horizontally on the floor end to end and visually “check” to make sure everything appears to line up. Step 5: Blind nail the first board into place, using shims or an assistant to ensure the board doesn’t move during blind nailing. This way the nail remains hidden by the next board installed. We don’t like to do this because it can split the board. Instead, for the first board, we blind nail about every 4 inches to ensure sufficient fasteners in the subfloor. We recommend temporarily shimming between the wall and the first board, ensuring sufficient fasteners in the first board, and regularly rechecking the measurements to ensure no movement. Step 8: Install the third row of hardwood flooring. It is unlikely that the floor will move at this point, even under the shock of a flooring stapler. Summary of Tips for Installing the First Few Boards. Consider room obstacles and layout to determine starting position. Lay red rosin paper before beginning installation. Snap a chalk line and follow it religiously for the first board. Make sure the first board doesn’t move when installing the second and third boards–consider shimming against the wall, installing more blind nails in the tongue, or top nailing the back of the board under where the baseboard and shoe molding will be. Use the hardwood flooring nailer/stapler as soon as you get far enough away from the wall for the tool to fit. Don’t rush! The first few boards are the most important to get right. Everything else practically lays itself ? Feel free to add your own tips below!
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