# wet cellulose insulation.. Good or bad, why?



## dleaoh (Dec 25, 2010)

*Cellulose Wall Spray*

Other than possibly Doug fir studs you will find varied opinions about just about every building product on the market. The fact is that there is no such thing as a perfect building material, but if materials--including insulation--are specified correctly and used properly they will perform as they should. Cellulose insulation as we know it today has been around since the 1920s, and cellulose wall cavity spray (that's the correct term, not "wet cellulose") has been on the market since the 1970s. Does anyone seriously think the product would have a 30+ year history, let alone be steadily growing in market share, if it were "bad," or caused mold, or did any of the other bad things you hear about on the Internet? There are no endemic problems associated with any of the insulation mateials in common use today, but you can certainly find isolated horror stories stemming from improper application of cellulose, fiber glass, foam plastic, or any other insulation. 

If cellulose wall cavity spray is installed correctly it will perform as it should and provide excellent energy saving service for the life of the building. If it isn't used correctly it may not work as it should. Of course, you can say the same thing about concrete, paint, siding, windows, or anything else you can put in a home.


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## jklingel (Dec 21, 2008)

This was discussed a bit on the greenbuildingadvisor.com forum, if I recall, and it seems that the problems arise because people don't let it dry out properly, and esp if they use a poly vapor barrier. Duh... it IS wet, right? It takes xx days at yy % relative humidity for it to dry. Once dry, it is fine. I would not hesitate to use it, but I would also consider doing something to kill the thermal bridge the studs will make to the cold. The cellulose won't stop that. Can you put rigid foam on the outside as well? BTW: Research rain screens and stucco. I've read a bit about that stuff, and it rings of "potential water" for some reason.


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## Travis89 (Jan 4, 2012)

Thanks to both of you for your replies. I think I've decided to go ahead and use it. I found a friend of a friend who says they can do for me for roughly 65 cents a sq foot.. That sounds pretty good to me. I'll absolutely allow it to dry properly and post up some pics. Thanks again.


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