All building products, including spray foam insulation, have to meet certain requirements to be allowed in construction applications. These code minimum requirements are determined by the ICC or International Code Council – and are documented in code books including the IRC, IBC, IECC and others.
The primary basis for the building code is life safety protection for the occupants, so most of the guidelines focus on preventing failures that could result in the loss of life – structural, fire, etc. The officials, or authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs), that enforce the code are typically referred to as building code officials and are generally representatives of municipalities such as cities or counties.
There are a few critical code sections to be familiar with when it comes to spray foam insulation, specifically, IRC 316 and IBC 2603 directly addresses foam plastic, 2012 IRC Chapter 11 and IECC Chapter 4 addresses energy efficiency, 2012 IRC 806.5 provides guidelines for unvented attic assemblies and IRC 408.3 provides guidelines for unvented crawlspaces. Several other code sections may affect the design or use of spray foam insulation under specific circumstances, but these sections manage the majority of the requirements for foam plastics, like spray foam, and their most common designs.
Starting with 2012 IRC 316 and IBC 2603, both the residential and commercial building code require foam plastic, including insulation, to be properly labeled and to be fire tested in accordance with ASTM E84.
After these basic requirements, foam plastic is required to be separated from the interior of the building by a 15-minute thermal barrier, typically ½-inch gypsum board. There are several exceptions to the thermal barrier requirement, including attics, crawlspaces and sill plates and headers.
In attics and crawlspaces for example, an ignition barrier is required to protect the foam in such a way that it is not exposed. Additionally, sections 316.6 and 2603.10, allow special approval of foam plastics to omit these requirements, based on their performance in large scale fire tests related to actual end use configuration, such as NFPA 286. Foam plastics that pass a modified NFPA 286 test in accordance with AC 377, Appendix X can be used in attics and crawlspaces that have limited access for the service of utilities, without an ignition barrier or thermal barrier. Furthermore, once you get past the foam plastic section of the code, there are insulation and air barrier requirements, as well as details for how the products can be used to create an appropriate building envelope.
An evaluation report offers a simplified process for managing all of this information available on a specific product. A tested and documented spray foam product could have several dozen tests conducted by the manufacturer, and while it is acceptable for a code official to review all of the necessary tests that apply to a specific product for a specific application, imagine if a code official had to review dozens of tests, for hundreds of products, on each project built, it would be very cumbersome and near impossible to complete projects in a timely manner.
An evaluation report generally combines all of the relevant test data, applicable code sections and allowed applications, in a single document, that outlines how the product can be used and streamlines the review process for the code officials. We recommend that you work with your spray foam insulation manufacturer to understand their current evaluation reports, the approved applications and be aware of the limitations of your products.
Overall, building code compliance may seem complicated or confusing, but as with most endeavors, you can break it down into smaller pieces and better understand the relationship between the building code & spray foam insulation. We will be here to help you along the way and provide as much guidance as possible.
Stay tuned as we continue to discuss the interesting world of spray foam insulation.
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