Silver bead insulation

PJMCKE

Hi .
I am afraid in am in need of advice really urgently.
I had silver bead blown into my cavity as part of the grant scheme by an SEI regiestered company 2 weeks ago and noticed over the last week that some of the beads had migrated to the drains. I took little heed as I assumed it was the remains of their work.Tonight i found our gutters filled with this stuff and there was no sign of the bonding agent at all to suggest they were holding together. The silver beads were dry.

Our internal extractor fan stopped working this week. I found about a wheel barrow of dry silver bead in the extractor.The beads worked their way into the dry lining inside the inner leaf and down a hole in the plasterboard to the extractor.

I have contacted them tonight and am really unhappy. Is there a way to rectify this or is more drastic efforts required. I.E. removing drylining and plasterboard and insulation to the interior and removal of the outer brick leaf.

I am so angry that I have made a video of this and if there is not a satiffactory outcome will have to make legal letters to the company involved.
your expert opinion is appreciated.

muffler

Id strongly advise about mentioning anything to do with "legal matters" on this forum as its a big no no and does not concern us here. Maybe you should read the forum charter which is stickied near the top of the front page.

PJMCKE

Muffler,
Point taken. You can appreciate my frustration however to keep matters above board I would like for suggestions on remedies or opinions for recovering this situation.
,
regards,
PMCKE

MicktheMan

PJMCKE wrote: »

Hi .
I am afraid in am in need of advice really urgently.
I had silver bead blown into my cavity as part of the grant scheme by an SEI regiestered company 2 weeks ago and noticed over the last week that some of the beads had migrated to the drains. I took little heed as I assumed it was the remains of their work.Tonight i found our gutters filled with this stuff and there was no sign of the bonding agent at all to suggest they were holding together. The silver beads were dry.

Our internal extractor fan stopped working this week. I found about a wheel barrow of dry silver bead in the extractor.The beads worked their way into the dry lining inside the inner leaf and down a hole in the plasterboard to the extractor.

I have contacted them tonight and am really unhappy. Is there a way to rectify this or is more drastic efforts required. I.E. removing drylining and plasterboard and insulation to the interior and removal of the outer brick leaf.

I am so angry that I have made a video of this and if there is not a satiffactory outcome will have to make legal letters to the company involved.
your expert opinion is appreciated.

It sounds like a number of issues tbh.
First off, when the company did the site survey (to check that the property was suitable etc for the product) did they take note of the presence of the extractor fan etc or if the cavity was closed as per the iab cert? What is the iab cert no? Was there a borescope inspection carried out? Ask the company about this and whether the house was suitable for this insulation at all. Check out the iab cert number on http://www.nsai.ie/index.cfm/area/page/information/CertificateSearch and specifically what it says about site survey and site preparation.

From what you describe, it looks like the adhesive was not applied to the bead at injection (i.e. you have loose bead in the cavity). If this is the case the bead can be removed from the cavity. It is labour intensive but can be done.
Cant give an opinion on the drylining without seeing the extent etc. Also where was the extractor vent venting to? Ant chance of some pics.

The contractor ought to be hauled over the coals for this shoddy workmanship and let SEI know as well.
Best of luck
Mick

Muffler, I just saw your post. Do you want me to remove my reply?

muffler

No problems with suggesting contact with the SEI etc. We have a policy here of not allowing any legal type debate as its not in our interest and it doesn't belong on this forum or even the site in general.

before the walls are pumped the house should be surveyed by the installers and at the very least advice should be given in relation to the possibility of the beads escaping through any openings etc.

OP, do you know the exact name of the product used? You can google it and get the IAB cert for downloading which will give you the full details of the methods to be used. I got this done recently in my own house and was able to download the IAB cert for the Eco bead insulation

The guys came one day and bored the holes but having read the documentation I discovered that the holes were drilled at approx. 1000-1200mm crs instead of the 600mm crs. as specified in the cert. They duly bored more holes before I allowed them to pump.

The other factor here is the escape of the beads. Id suggest getting the contractor back first to discuss and certainly dont sign the forms that you have that state that you are happy with the work.

MacTheKnife1

I had beads pumped in recently. Initially they are loose so they flow all over the cavity. They then settle and solidify.

In my case there were a couple of small openings around windows and a hole in the cavity wall elsewhere (we had removed a half block to modify a joist at that location). The beads initially poured out of these openings and lay loosely on the floor. The company kept pumping and eventually the flow of the beads though these few small openings stopped.

The beads that poured out never congealed. They lay loosely on the floor.

BUT the beads never poured out through the holes the company made to inject their beads - the beads inside these holes have solidified. If I poke them they fall apart easy enough.

I suspect your installation is absolutely fine. The beads may have done you a big favour and blocked a number of cavity openings in your build. You are simply seeing beads that poured out through these cavity openings before the beads congealed/stuck together inside the cavity.

Please let us know how you get on.