Foamglas Insulation: A Great Option for Below Grade

For below-grade applications where moisture resistance and high compressive strength are needed, extruded polystyrene (XPS) and, to a lesser extent, expanded polystyrene (EPS) have long dominated the insulation market. But there are growing concerns both with the brominated flame retardant HBCD used in XPS and EPS and with the global warming potential of the blowing agent used in XPS (see “Polystyrene Insulation: Does It Belong in a Green Building,” EBN Aug. 2009, and “Avoiding the Global Warming Potential of Insulation,” EBN June 2010).

Foamglas building insulation has been made by Pittsburgh Corning since 1937 and is widely used in Europe. For over 60 years, however, it has only been actively marketed in North America for industrial applications. Now Pittsburgh Corning is actively marketing Foamglas for building applications.