Supplement Insulation?

[Wes8398]

Hey all. My wife and I just bought a year and a half old hot tub last week. I'm wondering about adding some extra insulation to the cabinet before we put it in it's final resting place and actually get her running. I've taken the side panels off and it appears that it's heavily spray foamed (appears to be "open cell" foam) for insulation and I think that the skirting/side panels are also made out of some type of dense (but lightweight) foam which is then formed and painted to look like wood paneling.

My question is, would it be worth it to add more foam (of the canned variety) even though it seems pretty thick already? Would another type of insulation be better (IE stuff existing voids with batting)? Also, the foam is lacking a bit on the motor/plumbing side of the tub; obviously to keep those parts accessible. Can anything else be done in this area? I'd be interested in utilizing the heat from the motors, but I'm not sure this can be accomplished with the existing spray foam in place.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. I'll see if I can snap some pictures tomorrow and post 'em up.

[masanori]

Hey all. My wife and I just bought a year and a half old hot tub last week. I'm wondering about adding some extra insulation to the cabinet before we put it in it's final resting place and actually get her running. I've taken the side panels off and it appears that it's heavily spray foamed (appears to be "open cell" foam) for insulation and I think that the skirting/side panels are also made out of some type of dense (but lightweight) foam which is then formed and painted to look like wood paneling.

My question is, would it be worth it to add more foam (of the canned variety) even though it seems pretty thick already? Would another type of insulation be better (IE stuff existing voids with batting)? Also, the foam is lacking a bit on the motor/plumbing side of the tub; obviously to keep those parts accessible. Can anything else be done in this area? I'd be interested in utilizing the heat from the motors, but I'm not sure this can be accomplished with the existing spray foam in place.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. I'll see if I can snap some pictures tomorrow and post 'em up.

I dont think the insulation on your tub is open cell. open cell foam translates to 0.5 density with

R value around 3 per inch. Most tubs will use 2.0 density for R value 7.5 per inch. My guess is if the foam feels soft you might have a small leak and the chemicals are eating the cell structure.post some pics please

[Roger]

Hey all. My wife and I just bought a year and a half old hot tub last week. I'm wondering about adding some extra insulation to the cabinet before we put it in it's final resting place and actually get her running. I've taken the side panels off and it appears that it's heavily spray foamed (appears to be "open cell" foam) for insulation and I think that the skirting/side panels are also made out of some type of dense (but lightweight) foam which is then formed and painted to look like wood paneling.

My question is, would it be worth it to add more foam (of the canned variety) even though it seems pretty thick already? Would another type of insulation be better (IE stuff existing voids with batting)? Also, the foam is lacking a bit on the motor/plumbing side of the tub; obviously to keep those parts accessible. Can anything else be done in this area? I'd be interested in utilizing the heat from the motors, but I'm not sure this can be accomplished with the existing spray foam in place.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. I'll see if I can snap some pictures tomorrow and post 'em up.

Rather than adding foam I would pay more attention to some kind of vapor barrier around 3.98 sides of the tub allowing for venting in proximity to the equipment and pay special attention to the top lip and the seal between panels and tub shell. And the seal around the bottom also. The more air infiltration you can eliminate the better, yet having variable venting for cooling of equipment specific to climate.

[Wes8398]

Thanks for the responses. Regarding the type of foam the tub has, maybe it's not open cell. It doesn't feel spongey at all, it's actually quite brittle. I broke a small piece off and it was quite light in weight, which was why I assumed it was open cell.

[masanori]

Thanks for the responses. Regarding the type of foam the tub has, maybe it's not open cell. It doesn't feel spongey at all, it's actually quite brittle. I broke a small piece off and it was quite light in weight, which was why I assumed it was open cell.

Wes.. does the foam crumble in your hands? If so then you have a leak somewhere. The standard 2.0 sprayfoam it is harn to put your finger into. As reguards to your cabinet If it is urethane foam it will offer 2.2R value. Not bad. They use 8.0 pcf foam on the cabinets. FYI I develop urethane foams for 25 yrs. So you you have any concerns you can PM me

[Wes8398]

No, it doesn't crumble at all. It just seems pretty light. I could probably poke my finger into it fairly easily.

Can you tell by color or anything else?

[masanori]

No, it doesn't crumble at all. It just seems pretty light. I could probably poke my finger into it fairly easily.

Can you tell by color or anything else?

color will not tell me what density the foam is. But if you can stick your finger in the foam then I would say its lower then 2 lb So the foam will not offer great insulation value. most spa manufactures will use 2 lb

[Wes8398]

I'll have to take a closer look to see exactly how tough it is. Aside from attempting to poke my finger into the stuff, are there any other tests I could do to help figure out if the foam is adequate or not?

[masanori]

I'll have to take a closer look to see exactly how tough it is. Aside from attempting to poke my finger into the stuff, are there any other tests I could do to help figure out if the foam is adequate or not?

If you can stick your finger in the foam then its not going to give the best RValue