Installer ceased trading
Installer in liquidation, sale planned: all 23 timber readings elevated in midsummer
near Lancaster · Recent inspection · Spray Foam Inspection
The house
Three-storey mid-terrace house with a pitched, tiled roof and a lower rear roof with no loft access. The underlay is a non-breathable membrane from an earlier re-roof.
The foam
Open-cell, sprayed in 2021 over both slopes and the ridge, onto the bare brick of both gable walls, and packed into the eaves on both sides. It is not stuck to the tiles.
The paperwork
Supplied: an install and warranty document with batch numbers, the product warranty terms, insurance-backed warranty documents and the installer's letter. Missing: contract, proof of payment, any condensation-risk assessment, and any EPC since the foam. The paperwork says 60 m² at 100 mm; about 69 m² was measured, including both gable walls.
Why they called
A sale planned within about five years, and general advice that removal may be necessary. The owner wanted to know what was really in the roof first.
What was measured
- 23 timber readings, every one rated elevated in the report: 19.6% to 25.1%, in midsummer.
- About 89 mm of foam on the gable walls, against the 100 mm stated.
- Eaves packed solid with foam on both sides, closing the roof's ventilation route.
- Long-standing water staining; no rotten timber where it could be reached.
What it means
Open-cell foam is generally vapour-open, so moisture from the house can pass through it. Here it meets a non-breathable membrane, and the eaves that ventilated the roof are filled. The report reads that as why every reading was raised in midsummer, when timber is normally at its lowest. Timber that stays above 20% is at recognised risk of rot over time: this is the direction of travel, not damage found.
What happened next
Paperwork first: find how the installation was paid for, and get the insurance-backed warranty position confirmed in writing. With a sale planned, removal was the recommended option, with waste-disposal paperwork and a photographic report on the bare timbers, then loft insulation at ceiling level and a new EPC.
For other homeowners
Check who issued each warranty document, whether they still trade and what it covers: here the product warranty covered materials only, and the companies behind it no longer existed in their 2021 form.
Read the guide: Spray foam installer gone bust? Warranties, insurance-backed cover and TrustMark · Making a complaint or claim about spray foam: step by step
The honest limit
Small openings only: timber and membrane still under foam elsewhere were not seen, and the rear roof was viewed from outside. The cause and date of the old staining were not determined; readings are from one summer visit.