• Designed Especially for Radiant Floor heat
• 4' x 24' fan folded for one man installation
• 3 Mil poly film on both sides which serves as the vapor barrier
• Easily taped together on long seams and butt ends
• 6" x 6" grid for easy Pex tubing placement and rebar placement
• 100% virgin material, no recycled materials
• Maximum amount of insecticide - no more termites or ants
• Easier to ship and store - 4' x 4 ' x 8' tall
EPS foam is Expanded polystyrene.
XPS is extruded polystyrene.
1.) EPS foam maintains its R-value even after long-term exposure in northern climates. XPS foam has shown to have lost up to half of its R-value over a 15 year period.
2.) EPS outperforms XPS in both R-value retention and decreased water absorption. R-value loss for XPS insulation is directly related to the percentage of water absorption by volume.
Studies show that as much as 25% of energy loss from a structure can be attributed to a lack of insulation on below-grade foundations, crawl spaces and under slabs.
The plastic granules are fed into an extruder, where they are melted and mixed with critical additives to form a viscous fluid. Then a blowing agent is injected to enable the plastic product’s expansion. Traditionally produced XPS, the hydro fluorocarbons (HFCs) most commonly used as blowing agents are far more damaging to the climate than those used with other rigid foam insulation boards. Off-gassing is caused by volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are released into the air from pieces of foam, resulting in the familiar odor of “new products” when they are opened. Off-gassing can also relate to a loss in R-value of an XPS product.
It is a lightweight, rigid, closed cell insulation. Tiny resin beads are expanded using steam which become polystyrene beads, once they enlarge, they are cured before being inserted into a mold.
Resources: 1 Normandin, N., Maref, W., Bomberg, M.T. and Swinton, M.C., ‘In‐Situ Performance Evaluation of Exterior Insulation Basement Systems (EBIS) – EPS Specimens’, National Research Council of Canada Report No. 3132.1, March 1999. 2 Normandin, N. , Bomberg, M.T., and Swinton, M.C., ‘Development of a Draft Test Protocol for Evaluating Durability Under Environmental Cycling of Insulation Products for Exterior Basement Applications’, NRC Report No. 3132.2, December 1999 3 ASTM C1512‐07, Standard Test Method for Characterizing the Effect of Exposure to Environmental Cycling on Thermal Performance of Insulation Products, published by ASTM International
References: 1 ASTM C578 “Standard Specification for Rigid, Cellular Polystyrene Thermal Insulation”
2 CAN/ULC‐S701 “Standard for Thermal Insulation, Polystyrene, Boards & Pipe Covering”
3 ASTM C272 “Standard test Method for Water Absorption of Core Materials for Structural Sandwich Materials”