Rellikbuzz
Active member
Hey Folks! I posted this up at my home site at the Bay but I thought I would also share this with my brothas and sistas here at the Mag as well. Hope you enjoy it and find it useful.
It has been posted time and time again on many canna-boards about DEA/LEO helicopter flyovers detecting indoor grows through use of thermal imaging. It has been a problem/concern for many indoor growers in many parts of the country. Until now!
For nearly a year, I recently worked as a Superintendent for a Spray Foam Insulation contractor. We insulated both residential homes and commercial buildings with this two-part spray foam insulation in the exterior walls, interior walls for sound proofing AND we spray the underside of the roofs (between the rafters) with is as well. It is "hands down" the state-of-the-art in terms of energy efficiency, sound abatement (eliminates audible fan and pumps noises from outside your home), dust and pollen control, seals off penetrations completely to prevent bugs from getting in, moisture elimination and, best of all, it ELIMINATES DETECTION of a thermal footprint!
When you apply it to the underside of your roof, your attic is now "inside the envelope" of the condition air-space of your home. This means that the attic is completely sealed from outside air (yes, even the vents in your overhangs are sprayed over) and at any given point in various seasons, your attic temps will be within 5-7 degrees (farenheit) of the INSIDE temperature of your home even though you aren't actually heating or cooling the attic itself. Can anyone say attic grow? Hehe
If you happen to have a gas hot water heater or gas furnace in the attic that requires fresh air to combust the pilot flame, we simply surrounded the hot water heater and/or furnace with foam walls and made a door out of the foam for service access. We referred to these as "mechanical rooms" and was a standard practice when we did a sealed attic system with the foam insulation.
I have seen thermal imaging of a home prior to installation and after and results are indisputable. The before pic makes the house look like it's on fire with all the heat leaking from thousands of points around the house. After insulation, the pic of the house was all cool blue tones with no detecable heat sources from outside. I'm trying to find before and after thermal images so I can show you how startling the difference is.
The bottom line is that once a house has a sealed attic system, an infrared camera does not detect a heat signature because the heat does not make it through the foam. It's like trying to take a thermal image of something hot inside a beer cooler. It doesn't register to the camera!
Here are a couple of shot videos that show the application of the foam on both walls and roof lines to give you an idea of what I'm talking about. One of them is an excerpt from a special that the History Channel did on
spray foam insulation in the Modern Marvels series.
4 Minute Demo Movie
http://prioritysprayfoam.com/sprayfoammovie.html
History Channel/Modern Marvels - 7 minute video
http://www.foamdfw.com/spray-foam/spray-foam.shtml
(click on the link below the dork's pic that says "The Spray Foam Advantage"
Now, I know that not everyone will have a contractor in their area that applies spray foam insulation. However, you might be surprised if you look. It has been one of the fastest growing segments in the Building Construction trades and most all major markets and their surrounding areas will have contractors in their area. To see if one is in your area, you can click on the following association link and search your area of the country for a contractor near you.
http://www.sprayfoam.org/
(click on the Find a Spray Polyurethane Foam Professional)
There are several major chemical suppliers for the spray foam industry but I wholeheartedly recommend finding a contractor that utilizies chemical from Demilec, USA. While Icynene and Bayer also manufacture chemicals, these two companies have had recent failures of their foam in walls of completed houses and buildings. It was breaking down inside the walls as they were having mixing issues in their plants and a lot of bad chemical was sprayed. Demilec has never had this issue and their product is widely recognized as the finest avialable. Yet, it's still competitively prices with most contractors. Here is Demilec's site link and you can find contractors near you there as well.
Demilec, USA
http://www.demilecusa.com/
Now, I know you're saying to yourself, "Sounds great, Rel, but I know it's going to run a bucket of money". Well, not so fast there, Bullwinkle. On an average (and this is generalizing a bit), it runs ABOUT $2.00 per sq. ft. of sprayed surface depending upon how thick the application is (ie, 3 1/2" for 2x4 walls, 5 1/2" for 2x6 walls or rafters, etc.). So, let's take an example of an average 1500 sq. ft. one story home (or attic space) and let's say the roof pitch is a 6/12 (an average roof pitch around the country). To spray the roofline and create a sealed attic would run approximately $3,360.00 on average. Less if the pitch isn't as steep. More if it's steeper.
Wow, Rellik, that's a ton of money you're talking about. Really? I'll bet you a dime to a dollar that it's no more than you would spend on an attorney for your bust (and probably much less) and you don't have a criminal record to show for it. Oh, and there's one thing I forgot to leave out . .
In some cases, the rebates are $2,500.00-4,000.00 or more which means it ends up costing you very little to give yourself tremendous energy efficiency in your home and the ULTIMATE in thermal imaging detection safety! Adding a seal attic system alone (not including spray foam insulation in your exterior walls) will save as much as 50% on your heating and cooling costs. Especially on older, less efficient homes. It will blow your mind how much it reduces your electric bill during the Summer months!
I wouldn't have known this if I hadn't used the stuff in the custom homes I've built over the years and especially since I've actually work for a spray foam insulation company. It is the superior solution to saving money on your energy bills but it's greatest value may be in the elimination of a thermal footprint!
Just thought I'd pass on a very viable solution to our brethren who have to live with the fear of thermal imaging flyovers in various parts of the country. If this is something that I can pass on that keeps even one of our brothas or sistas safe, then it will have been well worth it. If you can spare the bucks (and don't forget the rebates you will receive), this is one of the most effective ways of fighting those Draconian bastages and beating them at their own game. Stay safe and keep it green, folks!
RB
It has been posted time and time again on many canna-boards about DEA/LEO helicopter flyovers detecting indoor grows through use of thermal imaging. It has been a problem/concern for many indoor growers in many parts of the country. Until now!
For nearly a year, I recently worked as a Superintendent for a Spray Foam Insulation contractor. We insulated both residential homes and commercial buildings with this two-part spray foam insulation in the exterior walls, interior walls for sound proofing AND we spray the underside of the roofs (between the rafters) with is as well. It is "hands down" the state-of-the-art in terms of energy efficiency, sound abatement (eliminates audible fan and pumps noises from outside your home), dust and pollen control, seals off penetrations completely to prevent bugs from getting in, moisture elimination and, best of all, it ELIMINATES DETECTION of a thermal footprint!
When you apply it to the underside of your roof, your attic is now "inside the envelope" of the condition air-space of your home. This means that the attic is completely sealed from outside air (yes, even the vents in your overhangs are sprayed over) and at any given point in various seasons, your attic temps will be within 5-7 degrees (farenheit) of the INSIDE temperature of your home even though you aren't actually heating or cooling the attic itself. Can anyone say attic grow? Hehe
If you happen to have a gas hot water heater or gas furnace in the attic that requires fresh air to combust the pilot flame, we simply surrounded the hot water heater and/or furnace with foam walls and made a door out of the foam for service access. We referred to these as "mechanical rooms" and was a standard practice when we did a sealed attic system with the foam insulation.
I have seen thermal imaging of a home prior to installation and after and results are indisputable. The before pic makes the house look like it's on fire with all the heat leaking from thousands of points around the house. After insulation, the pic of the house was all cool blue tones with no detecable heat sources from outside. I'm trying to find before and after thermal images so I can show you how startling the difference is.
The bottom line is that once a house has a sealed attic system, an infrared camera does not detect a heat signature because the heat does not make it through the foam. It's like trying to take a thermal image of something hot inside a beer cooler. It doesn't register to the camera!
Here are a couple of shot videos that show the application of the foam on both walls and roof lines to give you an idea of what I'm talking about. One of them is an excerpt from a special that the History Channel did on
spray foam insulation in the Modern Marvels series.
4 Minute Demo Movie
http://prioritysprayfoam.com/sprayfoammovie.html
History Channel/Modern Marvels - 7 minute video
http://www.foamdfw.com/spray-foam/spray-foam.shtml
(click on the link below the dork's pic that says "The Spray Foam Advantage"
Now, I know that not everyone will have a contractor in their area that applies spray foam insulation. However, you might be surprised if you look. It has been one of the fastest growing segments in the Building Construction trades and most all major markets and their surrounding areas will have contractors in their area. To see if one is in your area, you can click on the following association link and search your area of the country for a contractor near you.
http://www.sprayfoam.org/
(click on the Find a Spray Polyurethane Foam Professional)
There are several major chemical suppliers for the spray foam industry but I wholeheartedly recommend finding a contractor that utilizies chemical from Demilec, USA. While Icynene and Bayer also manufacture chemicals, these two companies have had recent failures of their foam in walls of completed houses and buildings. It was breaking down inside the walls as they were having mixing issues in their plants and a lot of bad chemical was sprayed. Demilec has never had this issue and their product is widely recognized as the finest avialable. Yet, it's still competitively prices with most contractors. Here is Demilec's site link and you can find contractors near you there as well.
Demilec, USA
http://www.demilecusa.com/
Now, I know you're saying to yourself, "Sounds great, Rel, but I know it's going to run a bucket of money". Well, not so fast there, Bullwinkle. On an average (and this is generalizing a bit), it runs ABOUT $2.00 per sq. ft. of sprayed surface depending upon how thick the application is (ie, 3 1/2" for 2x4 walls, 5 1/2" for 2x6 walls or rafters, etc.). So, let's take an example of an average 1500 sq. ft. one story home (or attic space) and let's say the roof pitch is a 6/12 (an average roof pitch around the country). To spray the roofline and create a sealed attic would run approximately $3,360.00 on average. Less if the pitch isn't as steep. More if it's steeper.
Wow, Rellik, that's a ton of money you're talking about. Really? I'll bet you a dime to a dollar that it's no more than you would spend on an attorney for your bust (and probably much less) and you don't have a criminal record to show for it. Oh, and there's one thing I forgot to leave out . .
There are Federal Energy Rebates and many states also offer rebates just for installing it in your home!
In some cases, the rebates are $2,500.00-4,000.00 or more which means it ends up costing you very little to give yourself tremendous energy efficiency in your home and the ULTIMATE in thermal imaging detection safety! Adding a seal attic system alone (not including spray foam insulation in your exterior walls) will save as much as 50% on your heating and cooling costs. Especially on older, less efficient homes. It will blow your mind how much it reduces your electric bill during the Summer months!
I wouldn't have known this if I hadn't used the stuff in the custom homes I've built over the years and especially since I've actually work for a spray foam insulation company. It is the superior solution to saving money on your energy bills but it's greatest value may be in the elimination of a thermal footprint!
Just thought I'd pass on a very viable solution to our brethren who have to live with the fear of thermal imaging flyovers in various parts of the country. If this is something that I can pass on that keeps even one of our brothas or sistas safe, then it will have been well worth it. If you can spare the bucks (and don't forget the rebates you will receive), this is one of the most effective ways of fighting those Draconian bastages and beating them at their own game. Stay safe and keep it green, folks!
RB
