Had to pick between spray foam and rigid foam for my attic reno

I was finishing my attic in a 1950s house near Whyte Ave and had to decide between closed cell spray foam and rigid foam boards. The spray foam was $2,800 but the rigid foam was only $900 and I could do it myself in a weekend. Has anyone else gone with rigid foam and regretted it in an Edmonton winter?

3 comments

3 Comments

park.abby19d ago

Nail down that $900 first - is that just the foam boards or does it include the tape and sealant? I did rigid foam in my 1940s bungalow near Highlands and the biggest issue was sealing every single seam perfect, the cold air finds the tiniest gaps. Ended up having to redo a section the next winter because I missed one joint and got frost buildup on the plywood above it.

amy_murphy8519d ago

Honestly, that's just life though, fix one leak and three more pop up.

william_carter16d ago

This is what gets me about those older houses, how much does that rigid foam actually help if you aren't covering every seam with that tape? I'm about to do my detached garage and was thinking of just using the foam board with no tape, thinking it would be good enough. Did you see a big difference after you sealed that joint you missed?