In modern construction, installation or repair, such a multifunctional, easy-to-use, reliable material as polyurethane foam is widely used. Its versatility and convenience greatly simplifies construction tasks for both professional builders and ordinary consumers who prefer to do some part of the repair or installation of door-windows on their own. Foam for installation in the construction market appeared relatively recently and immediately became one of the most popular, sought-after and capital-intensive products. However, it cannot be said that it was developed only today - the famous German technologist, chemist and industrialist Otto Bayer invented this substance back in 1947 - as a continuation of the development of the polyurethanes he invented. Polyurethane foam was originally used in the form of insulating boards for military purposes, as it is an excellent protection against the threat of radioactive radiation. In the 70s, the British company "Royal Chemical Industry" produced the first aerosol can with polyurethane foam, and the use in construction began in Sweden, at the dawn of the 80s of the last century.
Composition and scope
All mounting foams that are on the market contain almost the same composition and are polyurethane foam one-component sealant enclosed in an aerosol can. In addition to the liquid prepolymer, the can also contains propellant- gas under excess pressure, displacing the prepolymer. For hardening, the substance does not require mixing with other components - when sprayed, the composition inside the can solidifies on its own (polymerization process), under the action of moisture in the air, forming a porous material resembling foam plastic in properties. The cured foam is well and easily processed for the next construction steps - cut to the desired shape, puttied or plastered.
The name itself - "assembly", clearly indicates the scope - the use of door frames, window sills, window frames and any other wooden, concrete, metal or plastic structures during installation or repair. Filling the gaps between structures and openings gives a much greater sealing effect than the use of cement mortar, tow, mineral or plain wool, foam rubber, moreover, such work requires much less time and is much more convenient. When using foam, no additional tools and devices are required, and no energy sources are needed.
Properties
The substance can penetrate into the most inaccessible places, turning into a fairly solid material in a few hours.
The resulting material is not subject to the process of decay, has good temperature and sound insulation properties, and is also a sealing agent. In addition to filling gaps, cracks and cavities, polyurethane foam is used for insulation, sealing structures, additional fixation of water or heating pipes, electrical wiring, sealing materials for roofing - tiles or corrugated metal sheets. It is also widely used in the installation of stationary refrigeration units and in vehicles for the transportation of frozen products. Also important are such parameters as stickiness and dielectric properties, fire safety (this parameter is determined by the flammability class of the foam).
- Sealing (thermal insulation)- allows you to insulate rooms by filling cracks - relevant for workrooms, warehouses, greenhouses, hangars, garages, etc. Filling gaps and cracks in the repair and installation of roof structures. Use when installing door and window frames - creating a moisture-resistant, heat-insulating seam. Filling the voids arising during the installation of water or heating pipes, which are formed when they pass through walls or floor slabs.
- Gluing- you can quite confidently fix door and window blocks even without the use of nails or screws. This property also allows you to fix insulating or insulating materials - for example, when insulating a room with foam, foam boards can be glued to the wall.
- Soundproofing- sealing the junctions of air conditioners and exhaust hoods, ventilation ducts, slots between pipes, allows you to reduce the noise level that occurs during vibrations.
Varieties
As noted above, the composition of the mounting foam is almost the same, regardless of the purpose of its use. But there are differences in the design of the cylinders themselves, and on this basis, the foam is divided into professional and household.
Professional- or as the manufacturers themselves call it - pistol. Differs in existence in a cylinder of the special working valve. To work with such foam, it is necessary to use a special dosing device - mounting applicator gun. Such a gun is put on a balloon valve intended for it, as a result of which it becomes possible to dispense foam into slots and cavities. This mode will allow much more accurate control of the required amount of foam supply, while saving up to 30% of consumption. Also an important point is the ability to work with a gun with one hand. The energy-efficient handle and metering trigger make work much more convenient and, therefore, more productive. The presence of a long thin metal barrel allows you to supply foam to hard-to-reach places.
Balloon valves can be either threaded - screwed onto the gun, or "fastened" in one motion. Recently, almost all major manufacturers of mounting foam equip the cylinders with the so-called reusable valve, which allows you to hermetically close the cylinder with the remaining foam and use it after a while without drying out the contents. In addition, additional convenience is also inherent in it - you can work not only holding the can upside down, as was customary, but also with the valve up, which often makes work easier, and in some work, sometimes holding the can upside down is not only inconvenient, but also simple impossible.
The disadvantage of using an applicator gun is its considerable price, so it makes no sense to purchase it for occasional homework - this device is needed for builders and repairmen professionally involved in such installation work. In addition, during its operation, additional costs will be required - after each use, the gun must be washed with a special solution that cleans the internal cavities of the applicator from the remnants of foam that has not yet thickened. Such a cleaning agent is also contained in a pressurized can having nozzles to facilitate cleaning.
household foam- either semi-professional or manual. Its use does not involve the use of any devices other than the cylinder itself. To get started, you need to put on the valve the plastic tube that comes with the cylinder, which has a lever - adapter. With small amounts of work, this option is convenient and practical. As a rule, it is used in cases where the expansion of the foam is not too important - in ventilation shafts, interpanel seams, installation of door and window frames.
If not the entire volume of the balloon has been used, the tube can be removed, washed with a solvent (for example, acetone) and reused after some time.
Use temperature
- summer foam- at the temperature indicated on the cans from 5C to 35C, the foam must be used at the temperature of the treated surfaces within the same limits. However, this temperature limit speaks only about the temperature during work, and the temperature resistance of the cured foam is in a much larger range - from -50C to + 90C - this applies to both summer and winter foam.
- winter foam- the operating temperature range is from -18C (some types -10C) and up to + 35C. "Winter" options in their composition have special additives and additives that allow polymerization at a low percentage of humidity, since frosty air is much drier than at warm temperatures. Moisturizing surfaces in frost is ineffective - the water quickly freezes and becomes ice. It must be borne in mind that the already expanded foam depends on the external temperature - the lower it is, the smaller the expansion value. For example, 300 ml of liquid foam at +20C will expand to 30l, at zero - up to 25l, at -5C - about 20l, and at -10 - only 15l.
- All season foam- appeared relatively recently, so not all manufacturers can offer it. It has the best properties of summer and winter foam, providing, thanks to an improved formula, a large volume of foam at the outlet, fast polymerization and the ability to work with it at -10C without heating the cylinder.
Requirements for mounting foam
- Guaranteed Claimed Yield- competition for the market is often conducted by methods that are not entirely justified for the consumer - even manufacturers of high-quality and well-proven foam are trying to reduce the price of their products due to banal underfilling. For example, with a declared volume of 45 liters, only 37 liters actually come out, and no more than 50 out of 65 liters. Therefore, it is desirable to control the weight of the balloon - with a volume of liquid substance of 750 ml, the balloon should weigh 850-920 gr.
- secondary expansion- also a fairly important indicator, especially when installing window sills, doors and windows.
The fact is that the expansion of the foam occurs in two stages - when the liquid polyurethane leaves the cylinder, the compressed gas expands, equalizing the pressure with the environment, and expands the pores of the composite, turning it into a foam with a much larger volume. This so-called primary extension. Then, the foam, in contact with moisture, provokes a chemical reaction, as a result of which it hardens. But at the same time, CO2-carbon dioxide is released, which creates excess pressure in the pores of the foam, and its volume gradually increases over a fairly long period of time - even up to several days, although 24 hours are usually written. This is the secondary expansion of the foam. When installing window and door frames, the percentage increase in the secondary expansion in relation to the primary should not exceed 15-25%. But some manufacturers, saving at the expense of the main components, produce "uphill" products with a secondary increase of 50-60%. What it threatens - it's easy to guess - door frames concave inward, deformed windows and swollen window sills. Therefore, it is very desirable to purchase proven foam. - Full exit of foam from a cylinder- this indicator characterizes the filling of the balloon with an "honest" volume of the composite. If there is underfilling, then during operation the pressure drops rapidly - as a result, there is still foam inside, but it is already impossible to use it - low pressure is not able to squeeze it out from there. As a result, not only the foam that "went into action" is paid, but also the remaining one in the cylinder.
- Approximate foam consumption can be estimated based on the following data - 300 ml of the composite gives about 30 liters of foam - with this volume you can "foam" a standard door frame with 3-5 cm gaps. 500 ml of composite will yield up to 35-40 liters - this is enough for one and a half boxes under the same conditions. 750ml - 45-50L output - Enough to process two or more standard door frames.
- A few more requirements according to the quality of the foam - it should stick well to surfaces without dripping from them, the degree of shrinkage should be small (shrinkage is a slight decrease in volume after final solidification). Also be elastic, do not crack or crumble after it hardens, especially in frosty weather.
Application rules
Training. Polyurethane foam sealant polymerizes using air humidity, therefore it will be advisable to moisten the surfaces with water before applying it - the curing time will decrease, and the expansion of the foam will increase. If work is carried out in winter, ice and frost must be removed from the surfaces.
Immediately before use, the balloon should be vigorously shaken for about a minute, and in cold weather, warmed up to room temperature, but without using open fire. These measures will help increase the foam yield and its density.
When installing and sealing window and door frames, you need to remember to double or triple the volume of sealant, therefore, to prevent deformation of door or window blocks, they must be strengthened with spacers, without removing them until the foam has completely hardened.
Usage. When spraying, the can must be kept upside down so that the composite is near the valve, otherwise, as a result of the release of compressed air, a decrease in pressure will occur and a significant part of the foam will remain in the can.
The seam must be filled from the bottom up, evenly moving the balloon, while filling the void volume by no more than half. If the cavities are larger than 50 mm, they must be filled not in one go, but in several stages, waiting for each layer to harden.
You need to know that the foam, although it has a fairly strong bonding property, is not suitable for working with polyethylene and silicone - it will not stick to these materials.
End of work. If the foam gets on clothes, some objects or hands, it can be washed off either with a special agent, or simply with acetone.
The initial hardening of the foam surface occurs after 20 minutes - you can already touch it. But it will finally harden no earlier than after 7-8 hours - this largely depends on the ambient humidity and temperature.
After complete drying, you can cut off excess foam fragments with a knife, after which the surface must be protected from external influences, in particular from sunlight - it can be plastered, puttied or covered with paint.
Precautionary measures
Liquid foam may cause skin, respiratory or eye irritation. Therefore, when working, you need to use gloves and goggles, with poor ventilation and large volumes of work - respirators, since the concentration of vapors can be increased.
1. Mounting foam
Foam can be both well-known construction brands and noname, in principle it does not matter, the main thing is that it be polyurethane foam. I have been using various brands of foam for many years and the only difference I have found is the price. If you do not have a professional pistol (and when installing 3-5 doors, there is no need for such a pistol), then you need to buy foam with disposable nozzles inserted into the cap. The required amount of foam depends on the gap between the door frame and the wall or partition and on the width of the door frame. As a rule, one cylinder with a capacity of 750 ml is enough to install one door.
2. Plumb or good level
3. Wedges
Usually, wedges are made from improvised material: scraps of wooden beams, old door frames, baseboards, trim, etc. But in some cases, if the doorway is quite vertical and the gaps between the door frame (chute, jamb) do not exceed 1.5-2 cm, then you can use ready-made wedges:
These wedges are sold in sets of 20-100 pieces. in the departments of shops and supermarkets dedicated to laminate flooring. To install 1 door, you must have (or make) from 8 to 32 wedges.
4. Struts
Usually spacers are made from old skirting boards or platbands. For this purpose, you can also buy a beam with a section of 2.5-3x4-5 cm. I have never seen ready-made spacers for installing doors on sale, but I do not exclude this possibility. The number of spacers depends on the design and thickness of the door frame, as well as the thickness of the foam layer. If the door frame has a threshold and the thickness of the frame is 3 cm or more, then 1 spacer in the middle is sufficient. For boxes with a thickness of about 2 cm, it is advisable to put 3 spacers. For boxes with a thickness of 1.5 cm or less (and there are such), it is better to use wall or partition mounts.
5. Hammer or rubber mallet
6. Hacksaw, ax or chisel
For making wedges
Work performance technology:
Before installing the door, it is advisable to familiarize yourself with basic installation rules , but if this is not a secret for you, then let's go:
1. After setting the bottom of the door frame (on the side where the canopies) to the desired height, a wedge (1) is inserted between the door frame and the wall where the spacer will subsequently be installed.
2. Wedges (2) are driven in from above between the upper crossbar of the door frame and the doorway. Thus, the door frame is fixed in height:
The vertical position of the door frame in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the wall or partition is checked using a plumb or level. If necessary, the door frame can be gently hammered in the right direction using a piece of plywood or a wooden block. If there is a rubber mallet, then you can do without plywood or a bar.
3. To expose the door frame in a plane parallel to the plane of the wall or partition, a wedge (3) is selected. Verticality is controlled by a plumb or level.
4. After the vertical bar of the box with canopies is set to the design position, it must be fixed with a wedge (4).
5. After that, the door is put on the canopies. At this stage, the accuracy of setting the door frame is checked: the door opens at 30, 60 and 90 degrees. In all positions, after stopping by hand, the door must not continue to move. If the door starts to open or close by itself in one or more positions, check again the verticality of the box in both planes and, if necessary, knock out the wedges. Very often, the use of a low-quality level leads to this result, change the level to a plumb line or try to set the level as accurately as possible.
6. In order to determine the height of the second vertical (lock) bar of the box, you need to close the door and check the gap from above between the door leaf and the frame. To set the frame to the desired height from below, a wedge (5) is driven in between the door frame and the floor (floor covering), and in order for the box to be securely fixed, a wedge (6) is driven in from above:
7. With the door closed, the position of the lock plate is checked. The door should adjoin the door frame around the entire perimeter, distortions are eliminated with a hammer or rubber mallet.
8. If the door frame is without a threshold, then a spacer (7) is installed between the door frame slats from below and a wedge (8) is driven in. It is better to install the spacer not in a quarter of the door frame, but nearby, so that the door with the spacers installed can be closed and the position of the door frame can be controlled. It is better to make spacers not exactly the width of the door frame opening, but a little less, and when setting the spacers, use wedges or "covens" - strips of thin plywood (9). The spacer is not installed horizontally, but at a slight angle so that there is room for maneuver. If you need to increase the width of the opening, then the wedge is pulled out a little, and the spacer falls lower (closer to the horizontal position). If you need to reduce the width of the opening, then first the spacer is raised, and then the wedge is knocked out. The position of the lock plate of the door frame is controlled when the door is closed, here a plumb or level is not needed, since the door leaf can be slightly skewed and visually more important is the adjoining of the door leaf to the lock plate along the entire length, and not the vertical position of the lock plate.
9. Further, depending on the thickness of the door frame and the gap between the door frame and the doorway, another 1, 2 or 3 spacers are installed. The principle of installing the spacers is the same, the main thing is that the wedges between the box and the opening are as close as possible to the spacers. The farther the wedges are from the spacers, the more the box can bend, especially if the box is less than 2 cm thick. The spacer is inserted first, and then it is supported by wedges.
10. After all the spacers are set, the correct setting of the door frame is checked again, the immobility of the door in 3 positions. The floor is covered with newspapers or plastic wrap and within 3-5 minutes the gap between the door frame and the opening in the wall or partition is blown with foam. The rules for working with mounting foam are usually quite clearly stated on the packaging.
Usually the installation of the door takes 1-3 hours, only the dried foam will need to be cut off in a day, but if the thickness of the foam layer is less than 1.5 cm, then it can be cut off after 3-5 hours. If the wedges protrude beyond the surface of the box, they can either be pulled out with pliers or cut down with a chisel. It is advisable not to pull out the lower wedges on which the box stands, but, if necessary, cut it down.
That's basically it, good luck.
15.01.2015 02:43
In practice, not a single large-scale repair in an apartment is possible without the use of mounting foam. This substance is a polyurethane sealant, which, when exiting the container, hardens without mixing with other components and seals gaps and various joints. To understand what mounting foam to choose, you need to know what it is for, in what conditions it will be used and how much work you need to do with it.
Mounting foam is professional and household. To begin with, let's define the difference between ordinary foam and the one intended for professionals. The main difference is in the spraying method. In ordinary household mounting foam, a tube is attached to the cylinder, with the help of which the composition is used. A professional MP can only be used with a pistol - a special design into which a cylinder is inserted.
Experts who almost daily encounter this material in their work advise using professional foam with a mounting gun. In operation, it is more convenient, has an ergonomically shaped handle with a dispenser, with which you can apply the product into any gap. This is very important when installing windows, window sills or doors. There is practically no secondary expansion in the foam for the gun, that is, after extrusion and expansion, the volume of the foam will not change.
Household polyurethane foam is slightly worse than professional foam, and its main drawback is a large secondary expansion. In addition, often the compressed gas in the cylinder, designed to push the foam, ends before the composition. Or vice versa. But if it is necessary to do a small amount of work with the help of MP, for example, install one interior door, then one can of household foam is quite suitable.
The final volume of mounting foam is highly dependent on the application temperature and air humidity. Typically, manufacturers produce cans of 0.5 and 0.75 liters. After contact with air, MP increases and from 0.75 liters up to 65 liters of solid can be obtained. One cylinder 0.75 is enough for the installation of 2-2.5 doors.
Foam is summer, winter and all-weather. Terms of use are indicated on the packaging, this is easy to understand. But master experts still recommend choosing summer foam for interior work, and winter foam at sub-zero temperatures.
The best polyurethane foam of these manufacturers:
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As you know, mounting foam from contact with air expands and increases in volume. This process directly depends on the moisture content in the air. Usually, mounting foam dries out in a day, but if it is necessary to complete this process faster, we recommend moistening the work surface and spraying the composition with water after filling.
The composition of the foam can be one- and two-component. Single component foam ready for use, it is produced in small containers. When sprayed, the foam expands in volume, reacting with the water contained in the air. Such foam can increase in size up to 250%.
Two component foam consists of a base and an activator. Before using the product, you need to remove the cylinder shutter and mix the components. This type of foam quickly hardens, does not shrink, has good adhesion, and provides good heat and sound insulation. Due to its characteristics, such foam is usually used for thermal insulation of walls and ceilings, but not for mounting doors.
How to foam the entrance metal doors?
- To close the slopes after installing a metal door using household foam, you need to insert spacers between the frame of the structure and the wall (the use of professional foam does not require this).
- Shake the foam bottle and wet the opening with water. Moisturizing will improve the grip of the foam and allow it to dry quickly. You need to wet the opening slightly, without flooding it with plenty of water.
- The balloon itself must be kept upside down. If the space between the box and the opening is 8-9 cm, lay the excess space with some material.
- The consumption of mounting foam should be such as to fill a third of the gap volume. The foam will then increase in size.
- Vertical slots are filled from the bottom up so that the foam does not fall down. It takes days to dry completely.
- You can remove the spacers after a few hours. After the foam has hardened, its excess is cut off, and the foam itself is covered with paint or putty.
Installation of door blocks from the company "STROYSTALINVEST"
It is possible to order iron doors in the company "STROYSTALINVEST". Installation of metal doors in Moscow and the region is carried out by qualified specialists. In their work, they use high-quality materials, including professional mounting foam. A properly installed entrance structure will serve its intended purpose for a long time, providing the room with reliable protection.
Mounting foam greatly facilitate the installation of door frames. However, this attachment must be used with caution. Excessive zeal, caused by the desire to fix the door frame as firmly as possible, can lead to a disastrous result - its curvature.
But it is better not to allow this. And if this does happen, you need to know how to eliminate the defect that has arisen.
To properly install the door, first of all, you need to choose it for the size of the opening in the wall, and the door frame - taking into account the thickness of the wall. Modern doors allow you to do this.
Before fixing the door frame with mounting foam, it is necessary to carefully set it vertically and fix it so that it stands firmly.
At least in three places - at the level of the door hinges and in its middle part - the box is bursting with wooden blocks with linings or expanding struts. The surfaces of the box that the foam can get on must be covered so that you do not have to suffer with its removal later.
How to remove mounting foam if you made a mistake?
If necessary, traces foam, while it has not yet hardened, can be removed with acetone, thinner or cleaning agent. The cracks are filled with foam completely, but in any case it should be introduced into the cavity carefully and in small doses.
Spacers are removed only after the foam has completely hardened. This takes from 45 minutes to several hours - depending on the type of foam, the width of the gaps to be filled and the air temperature. Foam is one- and two-component. The first one is easier to work with, but the second hardens faster, does not put so much pressure on the enclosing structures and does not require moistening of the internal surfaces of the cavity to be filled.
There are times when, when hanging a door leaf, they suddenly discover that it clearly does not “fit” into the door frame. The reason is the inward curvature of the vertical racks of the box. And it happened under pressure polyurethane foam introduced into the cavity between the box and the wall in an excessively large amount.
When the first signs of deflection of the door frame appear under the pressure of the hardening polyurethane foam the foam must be removed immediately. After that, the box is bursting with bars suitable in length. The gaps formed after cleaning are again filled with foam. But to prevent this from happening, it’s better not to “save” on spacers, even if they interfere with the passage from room to room.
CHINIM BUGING BOX
- Where the door frame is kicked out, the hardened mounting foam is cut off with a fine-toothed saw.
- The box is expanded in the appropriate place using a bar of suitable length and wedges or an adjustable spacer.
- Having given the box the desired position, the cleaned cavities are again filled with foam.
- Having installed the door frame in the wall opening, it is fixed in the opening with the help of wooden wedges and spacers.
- Loosening and knocking out the wedges, expose the box vertically.
- Using a square, check the squareness of the box.
- For reliability, the box can also be fixed in the opening with clamps using wooden slips.
- With a large width of the slots between the box and the wall, pieces of cardboard are inserted to prevent the foam from sliding down.
- Foam is injected into the cavity continuously, but in small doses