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Spray Foam Is the Bomb!
WWII Era Homes from the Manhattan Project Receive Spray Foam Insulation
It was 1942, well into World War II, when
President Roosevelt authorized the
Manhattan Project. Oak Ridge, TN was
chosen as the site for three production
plants that would be instrumental in
the creation of the world’s first nuclear
weapons. This tiny, remote town had
nothing in the way of housing for the
30,000 new facility workers, so 3,000
prefabricated homes were quickly
manufactured and shipped to the area.
Over 70 years later, 90% of these
homes are still in use. They all have
exceptionally high energy bills due to the
fact that they were not built or insulated
very well. Thus, they ended up being
perfect applicants for the Tennessee
Valley Authority (TVA) Extreme Energy
Makeover Grant.
Oak Ridge, TN was the site of three major production plants that were instrumental in the Manhattan Project, and
3,000 prefabricated homes were built to house the workers. Over 70 years later, the houses were still being used, but
they were badly in need of an energy retrofit.
as the spray foam contractor on this
project due to their experience and their
reputation for professionalism. Profoam
was dedicated to helping Oak Ridge
achieve their goals, and they worked to
accommodate the City of Oak Ridge in
order to complete the retrofit for the TVA
Grant. The City had a very small budget
The case study test home chosen for
for the case study home, so all of the
rehabilitation was a 1,200 square foot
labor and materials were donated by
modular, one-story, single family home.
Profoam. Part of the donated materials
The home was raised above the ground
were unused drums from a previous
with a crawl space, and it had a low slope closed-cell foam project. Ultimately,
roof. The 2x3 walls were similar to those this case study home should help Oak
found in a trailer home or manufactured Ridge secure a portion of the $20 million
housing. The project involved insulating
in grant funding to retrofit numerous
of the attic, walls, and floor with spray
additional homes.
foam.
As required for a proper retrofit, all
Profoam of Tennessee was chosen
of the old plasterboard and insulation
were removed from the home prior to
the installation of the spray foam. 2” of
Quik-Shield 112 closed-cell foam was
sprayed in a single lift in all of the wall
cavities as well as in the crawlspace. 7” of
Quik-Shield 106 open-cell spray foam was
applied under the roof deck, turning the
attic into an unvented attic. The removal
of the plasterboard was especially helpful
for the attic application, and it was much
The City of Oak Ridge applied forthe TVA Grant, but
needed an insulation solution that would save 25% or
easier than climbing around on attic joists
more on energy.
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in such a small area. The crawlspace
beneath the home was extremely tight
in many areas, and it also presented
challenges for the spray crew. Additional
time and attention were required to
apply the prescriptive amount of foam
under the floor.
An additional challenge was that the
legacy World War II modular home had
2x3 exterior walls instead of the standard
2x4. Traditional insulation wouldn’t have
been able to achieve the 25% energy
savings required by the TVA Grant in
such a small area. However, the 2” of
Quik-Shield 112 closed-cell spray foam
insulation allowed Profoam to provide
the needed energy efficiency rates with
ease.
2” of Quik-Shield 112 closed-cell foam went into the
walls and crawlspace of the case study home. Profoam
of Tennessee donated all the labor and materials for this
project to help the City of Oak Ridge get the TVA Grant.
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SWD Urethane Successful Partnerships
7” of open cell foam was applied to the attic ceiling. This
was the last part of the system needed to achieve the
minimum 25% energy savings required for the TVA Grant.
time to apply for the grant, and they will
compare that to the data from before
the case study home was retrofitted.
“Because of the modular construction
of these homes, I believe it would have
been impossible to attain a tighter
retrofit from the interior of this structure
without the foam installation,” stated
Jeff Christian, Senior Energy Specialist
at StrataG and former ORNL building
scientist.
In order to show improvement of overall Beyond energy efficiency, the city’s
goal for this project was to preserve an
airtightness of the house, blower door
tests were conducted before any spraying important part of American history. Over
70 years after the completion of the
began, after the walls were done, and
then again after the floors were sprayed. Manhattan Project, Oak Ridge still retains
the pride of their small town’s massive
Energy modeling was then conducted
contribution that helped end the war.
and used to predict the home’s future
Spray foam gives Oak Ridge the ability to
energy usage.
gain the funding needed to keep these
landmarks in a sustainable condition.
“First and foremost, we’re hoping to
increase the energy efficiency of our
The City of Oak Ridge had two months to
legacy housing from the World War II
put the project together, including finding
era,” said Matt Widner, Remediation
all the volunteers and donations, as well
Specialist.
as the work on the case study house.
Profoam worked quickly and efficiently
The home before installation of spray
to make the project happen in that very
foam measured at 28 ACH at 50PA. The
average yearly energy bill was $1901 for tight timeframe.
heating and cooling. After the insulation
was installed, the home measured at 7.1 This particular project was an
ACH at 50PA. With energy modeling, the outstanding example of Profoam’s skill,
experience, and professionalism, and
new yearly energy bill was estimated at
all of that contributed to this project’s
$819, a dramatic 51% reduction—well
success. For this unique project, Profoam
beyond the 25% required for the TVA
was recognized as a winner of the SPFA
Grant. Futhermore, the energy usage
Industry Excellence Award in 2014. The
should be reduced even more after the
SPFA is the industry’s top association for
installation of the plaster and floors.
spray foam contractors, and every year
The city plans to continue collecting data they recognize the best projects and
contractors across North America.
on energy usage and efficiency until it is
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Profoam of Tennessee, Inc., is a
professional spray foam insulation and
SPF roofing company. Established in
2005 by Mike Ernst, Profoam prides
themselves on their detail work.
Profoam’s goal is to install the best
insulation and roofing systems every
time and contribute to healthier
environments, reduction of energy
consumption, and sustainable buildings.
The Quik-Shield brand is owned and
operated by SWD Urethane (www.
swdurethane.com) and represents over
40 years of spray foam experience in the
construction industry. SWD Urethane is
one of the most innovative system
houses in the spray polyurethane/
polyurea marketplace and is committed
to developing meaningful solutions.
SWD Urethane • 800-828-1394 • swdurethane.com