Basements in Iowa

Spray foam insulation is essential for basement foundation walls. It helps keep your home healthier and supports healthy indoor air for you and your family.

If you remove fiberglass batts from most existing basements in Iowa, you’ll often find mold on the concrete wall, on the back of the fiberglass, or both. Concrete—no matter how thick—is not a vapor retarder. As ground moisture moves through the wall and meets the conditioned basement air, it can condense and wet the concrete and fiberglass. Over time, repeated wetting can lead to mold growth.

Mold can survive and grow with very little moisture, especially on concrete walls. Mold on wood needs a 17% moisture level to grow and sustain mold, concrete only needs 5%. which makes hidden dampness behind basement insulation a serious risk. Closed-cell spray foam helps address this by limiting moisture movement and eliminating the conditions that allow mold to take hold.

Spray foam adheres directly to the concrete. When applied at the right thickness, the dew point occurs within the foam, so moisture is managed inside the insulation instead of collecting on an available air space. This keeps moisture from entering the home and eliminates the chance for mold to grow.