February 4, 2021
Homeowners looking to make their homes more comfortable and lower their heating and cooling costs often look to upgrading their insulation and air sealing with the one-two punch of spray foam insulation—when installed by an experienced and professional spray foam insulation company, spray foam can dramatically improve the energy efficiency of your southern Vermont or southwestern New Hampshire home.
If you’ve been looking around at different types of spray foam insulation, you may have come across claims that some eco friendly spray foam is made from soy. Is soy-based spray foam an effective material to insulate your home, and is it really made from soy beans?
What Is Soy-Based Spray Foam Insulation?
All spray polyurethane foam (SPF) insulation is created by mixing isocyanate and polyol resin. When these two organic compounds come into contact during the application process, they react to form a durable, long-lasting insulation material.
Soy-based foam insulation is different from other more traditional spray foams because it is partly made from renewable soybean oil, making it more environmentally friendly and a “green” alternative to regular SPF insulation.
At Vermont Foam Insulation, we use Demilec spray foam insulation products, which has a soy-based line of insulation called Eco-Pur:
Pour-in-place closed cell SPF insulation
R-value of 6.5 at 1 inch
Developed with recycled plastic and soy oil
Uses blowing agent with zero ozone depleting potential
Environmentally Friendly Insulation Types Made by Demilec
For homeowners looking for environmentally friendly spray foam insulation materials, soybeans aren’t the only game in town—there are other “bio-based” insulation options available as well.
Demilec’s Agribalance is one example—it’s a fully water blown open cell spray foam insulation often used for crawl space insulation as well as in attics, walls, ceilings, and more.
Made with 20% natural, renewable oils (refined vegetable oils)
R-value of 4.45 at 1 inch
Contains no ozone-depleting chemicals
Help Your Home Go “Green” with Vermont Foam Insulation
Of course, going “green” isn’t just about what your home’s insulation is made of—it’s how energy efficient your home is. With any kind of spray foam insulation upgrade, you’ll be wasting less energy on heating and cooling costs and reducing your home’s carbon footprint while at the same time making your indoor environment more comfortable year-round. Find out how much your home could stand to benefit by scheduling an energy audit today with our team of home performance experts.
Spray foam insulation from Demilec and Vermont Foam Insulation also qualifies for rebates through the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program that can help make your home improvement upgrades more affordable. As an approved spray foam insulation contractor, we can help you save as much as $5,500 on old insulation removal and replacement that will lead to years and years of comfort and energy savings.