New Hampshire Public Library Checks Out SPF
 

Libraries are no longer filled only with books, magazines, and encyclopedias. These days, libraries are also relying on a different type of material to create the desired setting: spray polyurethane foam (SPF) insulation. For the public library in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the city checked out the crewmembers of Nickerson-Remick to help insulate the library’s exterior walls. Their catalogue of materials included NCFI Polyurethane, Inc.’s SPF.

Highlighted in the American Library Association’s (ALA) American Libraries magazine, digital edition, Spring 2009 issue, as one of the top 10 eco-friendly products, the NCFI foam was chosen specifically for this library’s needs.



“The ALA is a thought leader in the system approach to sustainable building in the educational sector,” said Nelson Clark, NCFI’s senior vice president. “We are thrilled they’ve chosen our high-performance spray foam insulation as the ideal product to help institutional buildings, such as libraries, realize substantial savings on energy costs and help eliminate dangerous problems, such as mold, while improving air quality.”

With art and World War II collections in addition to an assortment of books housed in the building, it’s no surprise that mold was a real concern for the Portsmouth library.

Borrowed Space

The Nickerson-Remick’s crew — two to three crew members, depending on the duties for that day — met at their warehouse and traveled a short distance (a mere five minutes) to the library’s construction site. Although the repetition of the same spray technique throughout the 20,000-square-foot library made the job no mystery, the construction schedule called for a bit of compromise. It forced them to work on the exterior of the building in sections rather than all at once.

“As the masons finished a section, we’d go and spray that wall,” explained owner Jim Remick. Then, after a section was sprayed, the masons returned to brick the wall. This meant that since the building was being erected as the SPF crew made their way around the building, they had to wait to be called on site to spray a newly prepared wall. Unfortunately, being an on-call resource meant that a job that could have taken 14 or 15 days instead took most of the summer to complete.

Once the masons brick-tied a section of DensDeck sheathing, the general contractor called the Nickerson-Remick crew to come in to spray. A couple of times, they came in for just a few hours of work, but the SPF crew “put up with it…we really try to service our customers,” Remick explained.

On this new construction case, service required little prep work or clean up. The helper (the occasional third crew member on the job site) needed to tape sheeting to protect anything — openings or equipment — near the spray area from overspray. Once the site was prepped and any nearby vehicles were moved, the other two crew members started to spray.

Wearing Tyvek suits, full-face respirators from Wilson, and gloves, the two sprayers applied two inches of NCFI’s two-pound InsulStar SPF with a Gusmer 20/35 spray rig and Graco’s GAP Pro gun. The sprayers switched off between spraying and handling the hose, working on the ground, and using the brick mason’s staging platform with backboards for the higher areas.

Since the job site was shared simultaneously amongst different trades, it was important for the SPF crew to keep this area safe and off limits during foam application. The job site was fenced off from the public, and most of the other crews stayed inside the building away from the spray. However, the masons working outside shared the SPF zone. To ensure that no one would be nearby during the spray application, the Nickerson-Remick crew used Fust yellow tape around their area to keep the masons out.

Book End

When the spraying was completed each day, cleanup immediately followed. The SPF crew picked up and trashed anything they trimmed off the walls. However, mostly anything that fell to the ground was soon scooped up by another trade. The crews shared space in addition to responsibility for the outcome of the Portsmouth library.

Even on nights when they were returning the next day, the SPF crew brought their rig back to the warehouse. With so many people working the library job at the same time, there just wasn’t enough room to leave any extra equipment on site.

Overall, the Nickerson-Remick crew was able to complete a successful, significant job during the course of a New England summer. For the Portsmouth, New Hampshire, public library, using SPF on their walls turned the new building from an average one to a bestseller!
 

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