Foil Type coverings in attic.

[Rich Sumen]

I ran accross this today in a condo unit.
The roof "rafters / sheathing" and "knee walls" had this "Foil Type" material on it. On the roofing areas I could see a "green foam" product behind it that apperas to have been sprayed on the. The condo was 8 years old.
I have not seen this on a home before. Anyone have any information?
There was also loose fill insulation on the ceiling rafters. All truss construction.

Thanks, Richard

[Bruce Breedlove]

On the roofing areas I could see a "green foam" product behind it that apperas to have been sprayed on the.


The foam was sprayed on the . . . underside of the roof sheathing???

My guess is it is an encapsulated attic. The sprayed foam on the underside of the roof sheathing effectively moves the pressure boundary and the thermal boundary of the condo to the roof line. Are there party walls between the adjoining units and, if so, were they also sprayed with foam?

If the attic is encapsulated (it appears that was the purpose of the foam) the attic space is inside the conditioned space of the house so the insulation at the attic floor serves no purpose.

The foil was installed as a radiant barrier.

[Rich Sumen]

This was a side by side condo bldg, units are totally seperated from each other. The were ridge roof vents, but I could not see them from the inside.
The attic also has two "combustion air" ducts (For the utility room below) so it appeared the attic was intended as a "cold space".
I have done about a thousand inspections and never ran into anything like this before.

[Rich Sumen]

Bye the way Bruce, Your "page buttons" on your web site are not working and do not display. I use IE. You may want to check it out.

[Jerry Peck]

In reading through the posts I did not see it stated or clarified that the attic was or was not vented.

From the posts above I take it as the intent was that the attic was to be vented, then the attic was sealed off, which creates problems for those make up air ducts.

The green foam that I've seen before was a closed cell foam, versus the cream color of the Icynene open cell foam.

The foil covering may have been an attempt at installing an ignition barrier over the foam, but that would actually do just the opposite, it would help the spread of fire on the foam.

All I have are questions, questions, and more questions.