XPS vs professional spray foam for basement rim joists
I live in SE Michigan and recently had an energy audit done on our home we purchased 6 months ago; And have since discovered a whole bunch of issues.
The house was built in 1978 with a poured concrete foundation, and the rim joists were insulated with paper backer fiberglass insulation. After removing several of the panels mold and moisture were discovered 🙁
My question is: is there a difference in performance between DIY XPS/great stuff vs professional installed spray foam? We are trying to keep costs down and I am an average DIY’er
And second, should the joists be given time to dry out longer then when moisture is visible?
Thanks!
Patrick
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Replies
Patrick,
1. It's best if you can wait for weather conditions to change, and for the rim joist to dry out, before you insulate the rim joists.
2. A do-it-yourself job with rigid foam can be just as effective as a spray foam job. But the quality of the job depends (in either case) on the conscientiousness of the installer.
Here are links to two articles you may want to read:
Insulating rim joists
Basement Insulation — Part 2