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OT - Insulating a quonset-hut style building

nalambright

Cast Iron
Joined
Mar 5, 2010
Location
Arlington, TX
It didn't take me long to realize that running a machine shop in 100 degree Fahrenheit heat sucks. I don't get much done and battling sweat and dehydration to focus on projects isn't easy. So I'm ready to insulate and add air conditioning. I plan to go with closed cell spray foam on the outside 1 inch thick with an elastomeric white top coat. I know doing it inside would be cheaper, but the wiring and plumbing on the walls, etc, makes me shy away from that. I'm also considering upgrading from 1 inch to 2 inch thick on the foam. I'll be using a 25000btu a/c to cool the 1600 sq. ft. space. Your thoughts and suggestions are welcome.
 
Keep in mind generally the more you insulate the greater the savings. On a Q-hut any POS has access to your roof and they love to poke holes and F-up the coating. Also you have to re-apply the coating regularly. If you have it applied on the outside make sure the metal is cleaned thoroughly!
Legdoc
 
I would bite the bullet and do it on the inside, unless you want all sorts of critters digging into it and making nests and burrows.

You might want to price a roof-over, which would be much better shade/insulation than a few inches of foam.

Or pour a footer, install a frame building, and sell the quonset to someone else.

Quonset huts are only sexy in the South Pacific, anywhere else they aren't so neat.
 
A friend here in town bought a Q-hut. It was unbearable in the summer. He had someone come in and spray foam it. Made a big difference.

Let me edit this after reading the post below about spray foamin the q-hut. He powerwashed the heck out of the interior of his hut, and the foam has only been up since spring- so not much of a track record to report yet.....
 
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I put this up in the ceiling and I am very happy with it. Nice people to work with too.


P2000 is a System

Talk to Marc Pack his cell number is 567 215 7139 and his email address is [email protected]. He will be glad to send you some samples.


It installs very easily and has an incredible R value. I got the style that has the white plastic facing. When it was up I was done...no painting or anything and it really brightens the place up. The aluminum face would also be fine I would think. Best money I ever spent.
 
Keep in mind generally the more you insulate the greater the savings.
Legdoc

Amen! In fact, upgrading from 1" to 2" of foam doubles the insulation value and more than halves your payback time, since 2" is usually less than twice 1", setup being the same for both. And inside is cheaper than outside, since the coating is less expensive. (It may not be required in your area, but it's a good idea to spray a fire resistant coating on the inside-most spray on foams emit extremely toxic gasses when burning.)

Neil
 
I have a customer in southern GA,with metal building.

They had gutters installed on the 2 sides, they took 2 sprinkler hoses up on the roof, they use 1 pump on each side that the water is caught on and pump back tho the ridge hose. Evaperative cooling lowered the inside temp by 15-20* F.

Have a look at Tek foil I insulated my pole barn style metal building. It work by creating a seal and stopping air passing threw it.

TekFoil Reflective / Bubble Bubble / White Poly (R/BB/WP) - TekSupply

If you order enough to do your building ask for a discount,I got 15% off when I ordered.

Regards
DD
 
I know a guy who has an Quonset hut type aircraft hangar ; he had the inside spray foamed, and five years later it was coming down in chunks.

Poor prep, or poor product maybe? I'm sure they have come a long way with materials, but I would sure get some guarantee.
 
OT Insulating a quonset hut

Marine Corps Recuit Depot=Quonset huts.......
MCRD San Diego,Calif.
Hot like the devil in the day time.
Cold like the devil in the night time.....
That is what Quonset huts are supposed to be....

However, spray on insulation is the way to go
Regards Walt
ps I aint tellin ya my Serial Number....
 
thruthefence said:

I know a guy who has an Quonset hut type aircraft hangar ; he had the inside spray foamed, and five years later it was coming down in chunks.
That is what the local foam guy told me. Mine is galvalume and he said the only way it would stick is to either "sandblast it or etch it with acid." Then he recommended putting some clear plastic sheeting to cover it.

This would prevent the occasional "foam snow" from falling.

I think he wanted $3500 for that 6 years ago.:eek:



On my Q-hut:
I ended up running metal plumbers tape ( like they mount duct work with) down from the bolts and putting strips of 1/2" thick x 4" wide x 8ft long plywood up as furring strips. Then I mounted 4' x 8' 3/4" foam board on the ceiling and walls. These are taped real heavy and at the seams I can put plywood strips around the edges if it starts to sag.

After this is finished, I'll see how it does through one winter. If I have to I can blow cellulose insulation in the tunnels above the foam board and get some real insulation. Start at the peak and run the hose down toward the wall and do this one tunnel at a time.

JAckal:cheers:
 
It didn't take me long to realize that running a machine shop in 100 degree Fahrenheit heat sucks. I don't get much done and battling sweat and dehydration to focus on projects isn't easy. So I'm ready to insulate and add air conditioning. I plan to go with closed cell spray foam on the outside 1 inch thick with an elastomeric white top coat. I know doing it inside would be cheaper, but the wiring and plumbing on the walls, etc, makes me shy away from that. I'm also considering upgrading from 1 inch to 2 inch thick on the foam. I'll be using a 25000btu a/c to cool the 1600 sq. ft. space. Your thoughts and suggestions are welcome.

I live in the potato-growing region of Idaho, and about 99% of the potatoes are stored in Behlen curvet style buildings. In the early years these buildings were simply galvanized, but when energy costs started going up, it didn't take long for the farmers to figure out that white buildings were WAY cooler to start with. Now they're all white, and are sprayed on the inside with 3 or 4" of polyisocyanate (sp?) foam.
Jim
 
Let me add something to this along the lines of white buildings being cooler.

What posesses people to put black shingles (or any dark color for that matter) on a roof?

Mine has white and it is still unbearable in the attic. I can only imagine how much solar energy is absorbed into a black roof.
 
I got the a/c installed yesterday, still no insulation yet. 5000 sq. ft. of steel surface area in the sunlight gets so hot the air conditioner doesn't stand a snowball's chance in hell. Too much metal with too much heat. The foam falling down when sprayed inside is another reason I'm leaning towards getting it on the outside. I'm thinking with the metal out and the foam in, the roof and walls will still be 140+ degrees. The foam inside will be much cooler. Hot metal expands and contracts. Repeat daily and its no wonder it breaks loose and rains down. When done on the outside from what I have seen photos of the elastomeric white coating over the foam doesn't get much hotter than the air temp. the steel will stay cool, and gravity wants to keep the foam on the building, and so does the elastomer. I don't have problems with insects in my yard, I douse the property with ortho total kill once or twice per year. I've seen an older building identical to mine done the way i want to do it west of Albuquerque, NM. In the middle of the desert it was nice and cool inside. They were using it as a convenience store. I think upgrading to 2 inches of foam will be worth it.
 
Let me add something to this along the lines of white buildings being cooler.

What posesses people to put black shingles (or any dark color for that matter) on a roof?

Mine has white and it is still unbearable in the attic. I can only imagine how much solar energy is absorbed into a black roof.


It sure makes you wonder! I guess that it might be the way to go in an arctic environment, but other than that...

Jeff
 
This may not be a practical solution for the long run, but in Korea we would pile up dirt against the sides as far as possible and then run a sprinklers on top worked surprisingly well.

Marci
 
I'm guessing you may need more like 72'000 BTU after you insulate. Considering heat load from machines, intermittently open doors to move materials and people etc. that's probably a bare minimum.
 
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Insulation is in progress. I'll update with the results soon.
 
25000 BTU is not enough!

25000 BTU is a little over 2 ton, one ton is 12000 BTU, and the units always do not put out what they state.

There are different formulas in use, a general rule is one ton for every 500 SQ ft of a house, given the house usually has 8 ft eaves, and is better insulated your shop would need 36000 BTU minimum, 500 x 3 is 1500 SQ ft, and given your roof is taller and more in size you are going to be short.
 








 
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