With the onset of winter, many owners think about the thermal protection of the house. In winter, utility bills grow and it is unreasonable to give money for heating the street.

Thermal insulation of the house with foam plastic helps to solve the problem of heat loss. To carry out the work, you can hire a team of specialists, but their services are expensive. Therefore, if you have elementary building skills, then it is better to do everything yourself.

Which thermal protection method to choose?

Thermal insulation can be internal or external. At self-insulation it would be more correct to dwell on the external method, since when insulating from the inside, the slightest errors in technology will inevitably lead to critically high humidity in the house. Due to the high vapor permeability of the insulation, moisture actively condenses in it.

Internal thermal insulation is possible provided that active ventilation is installed between the outer wall and the insulation. It's expensive and troublesome.

At the same time, evaporation to the outside is impossible, since the temperature of the outer wall during the cold season can go down to minus 20 °C. This is fraught with constantly misted windows and mold on the walls.

It is important to choose the right material. The most popular heat insulators are expanded polystyrene (styrofoam). It is very technological and has a lot of advantages. Expanded polystyrene is a budget material, lightweight and with a minimum density can withstand a significant mechanical load. In addition, it does not absorb moisture, does not rot, is durable, has a high coefficient of heat resistance, and is suitable for any type of building.

How to properly insulate?

The process of insulating a house with polystyrene foam is divided into several stages. Let's consider each of them in more detail.

Preparing walls for laying foam

If the facade has been painted, it is better to knock off the paint. We level the wall as much as possible, any surface irregularities will complicate the laying of the foam and may lead to a violation of its integrity. After that, we apply a primer to the facade - a special solution that reduces the porosity of the wall and protects it from moisture penetration.

You can prime with both a roller and a brush. A brush is preferable, because this additional cleaning of the surface is performed.


We paste the insulation

Glue correctly start from the bottom. We must fix the first row with the help of the starting bar, which will give the bottom row a strong support and prevent it from slipping during the drying of the special (adhesive) mixture. A high-quality adhesive mixture should have high plasticity, a fast hardening rate and a high degree of adhesion (ability to adhere to the work surface). It must be prepared before use.


Prepare and apply composition

The adhesive mixture is applied directly to the wall with a tile-type spatula. At the same time, we can further level the surface of the wall by adjusting the thickness of the layer. If the wall is perfectly flat, then you can apply the adhesive mixture with a special notched trowel. But a flat wall is a rarity, so usually insulation with polystyrene foam occurs as follows:


  • several (usually 8-9 per sheet) portions of the adhesive composition are applied to the wall, while their volume is adjusted to maximize the leveling of the relief by filling all the depressions;
  • a sheet of foam is attached to the islets of glue, carefully pressed and carefully (so as not to form dents) slams with the palm of your hand;
  • sheets should be adjacent to each other so that there are no gaps between them through which heat loss will occur;
  • the foam is glued in rows from the bottom up, and each next row must be shifted so that T-shaped joints form.

We fix the plates with dowels

For fixing, umbrella dowels are used for thermal insulation (they are also called "dish mushrooms"), consisting of a wide plastic cap and a core into which a fixing nail made of plastic or galvanized metal is hammered. Plastic nails are better suited, because they have low thermal conductivity and do not form "cold bridges" that condense moisture on themselves.

At least 5-6 dowels should be used on one sheet of insulation, one in the center of the sheet, and the rest at the joints. The number of fasteners can be increased, it all depends on how smooth the wall is.

We process the joints between the plates and level the surface of the insulating layer.



Small gaps between sheets (about 5 mm) are filled mounting foam. We put thin strips of polystyrene into large ones and also foam. We start trimming the excess foam after 5 hours, after its final solidification. We cut off the protruding parts of the foam with a hacksaw, and putty the caps of all the "umbrellas" with an adhesive mixture.

The time gap between gluing the foam boards and fixing them with dowels should be at least 3 days. Otherwise, if the adhesive composition does not completely harden, bends are possible after nailing. polystyrene boards and their lagging behind the wall in the future.

Attaching fiberglass mesh

The plaster mesh should be chosen the one that is intended exclusively for outdoor work. Mesh for internal works suitable only for the use of gypsum plaster, it will spread from a mixture with cement. We start pasting from the corners of the building, then proceed to pasting the planes.

You need to glue the mesh in small pieces, with an area of ​​\u200b\u200babout one square meter because the adhesive mixture dries quickly. The edges are overlapped and carefully glued. An ideally installed mesh should be completely embedded in the adhesive mixture and slightly visible on its surface.


in the corners window openings we glue the mesh in small pieces (30 × 70 mm) with an angle of placement of 45 °. These are "kerchiefs". Their task is to protect the thermal coat from the formation of cracks in the corners of windows and doorways.

After drying, the wall must be rubbed with emery to obtain the most even surface.

We apply decorative plaster

We complete the insulation of the house by applying decorative plaster. It will give the entire insulation system a luxurious appearance. To do this, 48 ​​hours after gluing the mesh, we apply a leveling layer of a mixture intended for foam boards.


When the layer dries, we overwrite it, then proceed directly to the application of decorative plaster. Colored plaster can not be painted. If you use ordinary gray, then you need to paint in two layers. facade paint. This will protect the thermal coat.

Properly insulating a house with polystyrene foam is a completely feasible task, and therefore do not be afraid to do it yourself.

It doesn't matter what house you live in: it can be your own Vacation home, cottage, apartment in a high-rise building and other structures. You always want to live in warmth and comfort, for which you definitely need to take care of the cladding of the house insulation materials. If the walls are properly and efficiently insulated, you will not have to worry that they will freeze in the cold, the heat in your home will remain to the maximum.

How to insulate a house with foam?

Especially you can’t do without insulation if your house is built of beams, because they are not able to save heat, as a result of which you will have to pay decent amounts for heating the house in the winter cold.

So that the insulation of the house does not cost a pretty penny, it has become popular to use foam. Polyfoam is not only cheap, but also has the following advantages:

  • light weight;
  • unhindered breathability;
  • able to suppress noise;
  • has a high level of thermal resistance;
  • not afraid of moisture;
  • easy to work and decorate.

Because warm house- the key to a properly executed installation of insulating material, further in the article we will tell you how to insulate a house with polystyrene foam, doing everything with your own hands quickly and efficiently.

What is styrofoam?

We warm a private house using foam

First of all, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that polystyrene is a material in which there is no vapor permeability; it is strictly forbidden to use it for sheathing a room from the inside.

The density of the foam is also very important. Most suitable option the density should be about 25. If you decide to insulate the walls with a less dense material, there will be a possibility of injuring the surfaces, and too dense material will lead to unjustified financial waste, because excessive density will not affect the thermal insulation characteristics in any way.

Third, no less important point- the thickness of the foam, on which the quality of surface insulation directly depends. It is best to use foam with a thickness of 50mm, but you can also purchase thicker material, no one forbids you, and a thickness of 100mm also has a right to exist. By using thicker foam, prepare to see a higher price point. To avoid rash and unnecessary financial investments, you can attract experienced craftsmen who will hold correct calculations and pick up best option for your climate zone. When calculating, they will take into account the following indicators:

  • average temperatures;
  • the thickness of the walls that you plan to sheathe;
  • the material from which those walls are made and much more.

Comparative characteristics of conventional foam with extruded are shown in the table below.

As can be seen from the table, it is more appropriate to insulate the house with extruded foam, technical features which in many respects are superior to conventional foam sheets.

What can not be done without while working with polystyrene foam?

Do-it-yourself insulation of the house with polystyrene foam

Before you insulate the house from the outside with extruded foam, you need to acquire building materials and devices that you cannot do without in such a matter. Working with polystyrene foam you will need:

  • perforator;
  • sharp knife;
  • several different spatulas;
  • dowels made of plastic with a wide cap;
  • glue;
  • reinforcement;
  • rule;
  • putty for work outside the house;
  • priming;
  • metal spacers;
  • decorative material for facade decoration.

Home insulation technology

Insulation of the house with foam plastic yourself

Warming wooden house foam, like any other building, requires high-quality surface preparation.

It is very important to properly prepare the surfaces:

  • remove the old finishing material;
  • clean the surface;
  • repair cavities and clean out bulges;

Of course, you absolutely do not need an ideal surface, but severe damage and defects are also unacceptable, because they will not allow the surface to be properly sheathed and cold bridges can form.

Then, as the surface is properly prepared, you can start impregnating it with a primer solution. The primer must be of deep action, which will increase the level of adhesion with the mounting adhesive.

At the next stage, it is possible to directly insulate surfaces with extruded foam.

For such work, you need to dilute the adhesive mass with water following the instructions. The mass should be well mixed without dry breasts, and the consistency should be homogeneous, not too thick, but not too liquid - it is better that the density resembles the consistency of sour cream.

To apply mounting adhesive with your own hands, you can use a spatula with teeth, but do not rush to cover the entire surface with it. It can dry out very quickly and you won't be able to treat the area properly.

In order for the cladding of the building from the outside with polystyrene foam to be done correctly, follow the following sequence of actions:

  1. cover the wall with glue (the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe wall must correspond to the size of the foam sheet);
  2. lay out the heater;
  3. apply glue under the second sheet of styrofoam and so on.

This sequence indicates that it is very important that the sheets are laid gradually, and the joints of the canvas are carefully lubricated with glue.

In order to properly insulate the house from the outside with penoplex with your own hands, control the evenness of the plates.

To keep the sheets as firmly as possible on the walls, they can not only be pressed tightly against the surface of the walls, but also fixed with special fasteners. For these purposes, it is better to choose dowels that need to be inserted into the wall 50 mm, or even deeper.

So that the fasteners do not fall into the insulation, it is worth acquiring metal spacers. Before screwing the dowels, holes must first be made in the foam using a puncher or drill.

Please note that you do not need to press the foam hard, because it can crack from your excessive exposure.

When the insulation of the building from the outside is completed, it will be necessary to attach reinforcement to the wall. To do this, you'd better cut it into strips of the same size that match the length of the walls. Then, with a wide spatula, spread the glue over the surface under one strip of the mesh, lay it on the surface and smooth it with a spatula to avoid hitches. Apply the next strip of reinforcement overlapping, this will avoid cracking the material at the joints.

Sheathing the house with foam plastic requires finishing, because the untreated reinforced surface does not look very attractive, and the constant exposure to natural disasters will damage the integrity and quality of the finish.

As a finish on the outside of the house, you can use decorative plaster or paint. But, before applying them to the surface, the wall must be puttied.

Before you begin to sheathe your house outside with insulation materials, read these recommendations for work:

  • in order to sheathe the house with high quality and save as much money as possible on utility bills during the heating period, select a foam plastic with a density of 25 and a thickness of 40 mm;
  • if you were unable to buy a special glue, you can use the usual glue-cement, which is used for ceramics;
  • purchase a reinforcing mesh with a mesh size of 5mm;
  • so that the foam is more firmly fixed on the wall, before applying the adhesive mass, the surface can be treated with a needle roller, which forms additional perforation;
  • in order to increase the level of adhesion of the foam plastic with the reinforcing mesh, it is worth priming the surface before laying it.

In conclusion, I would like to add that by observing the above foam plastic installation technology, you can get warm housing without disturbing its microclimate. Thus, in the work you will not make any mistakes and reduce the amount of heat loss in your home.

As you can see, such warming of the house does not take much time and your family budget will not incur large financial expenses if you carry out the work on your own, without involving expensive specialists.

Styrofoam insulation of walls from the outside is very common. This material will serve as an excellent insulation and its installation can be completely done by hand, so the price of the work will be much lower. We will consider how to insulate the outer walls with foam plastic today, you will have complete information, and the video in this article and the photo will help you do everything in a short time.

Do-it-yourself insulation of walls from the outside with polystyrene foam is quite simple, even a beginner can easily handle it. The essence of the technology is reduced to a thorough cleaning of the surface treated with a primer (see. Types of building primers and their scope), and pieces of foam are attached to the prepared wall end-to-end.

In any work, it is important to follow the technology, including warming with your own hands. Although it is believed that polystyrene is a simple material that does not cause difficulties in installation, it also has its own specifics.

To be convinced of the simplicity of its fastening to the surface, it is enough to read briefly step by step technology. But, in addition to the instructions, it is recommended to comprehensively study all aspects of working with polystyrene foam as a heater.

So:

  • It is important that the old surface be pre-treated, that is, there are no layers of old putty left on it (see. How to remove putty from the walls and how long it takes) and other mixtures. Insulation sheets are attached to a solid and well-primed surface.
  • They work with polystyrene with a special adhesive composition designed for this insulation. In addition to adhesive fixation, I fix the sheets in the corners with dowels for finishing - with “fungus” or “umbrella” hats.
  • It is necessary to glue the foam carefully so that the composition does not go to the ends, since these smudges and sagging form “cold bridges”.
  • The applied insulation is additionally coated with an adhesive to reinforce the mesh. It helps to keep the insulation sheets in a monolithic layer, on top of which the finishing solution is applied.
  • The facade reinforced with reinforcing mesh is protected from cracking and other defects. Visually, it looks like new for longer.

Attention: The choice of fiberglass mesh is a crucial moment, since it is fixed on an alkaline environment, which contributes to the destruction of the reinforcing mesh. Over time, it crumbles into dust, not fulfilling the binding function in full. Facade reinforcing mesh must contain special composition, which impregnates the fibers, preventing destructive processes. Do-it-yourself choice of plaster for wall insulation with foam plastic from the outside

All over the fixed grid outer wall primed under finishing plaster or other type of finishing.

Since insulating the house from the outside with foam plastic will be true and correct solution, especially if the walls of the house let heat out, then consider how to do it.

The walls of the house, no matter what they are made of, can let heat out and the house will be cold, and heating bills are high. To eliminate this kind of deficiency, you can insulate the structure. It is important to understand the better to insulate with foam plastic or mineral wool, because in fact these are two different material. In construction, in addition to insulation, it is imperative to use good bricks from the best factories of manufacturers kirpich.expert, choose high-quality Construction Materials for the future home is very important.

How to insulate a private house with foam

Styrofoam is a foamed heat insulator. Due to foaming and subsequent solidification, the air in the pores clogs the space and prevents the heat from the walls from escaping. Styrofoam has many advantages:

1. Moisture resistance - hard fibers do not perceive moisture.

2. Holds its shape well - it is convenient to work with the material due to this.

3. Due to its inorganic origin, living creatures such as rats and mice do not start in it, and microorganisms such as fungi or mold do not live.

4. Due to its light weight, it does not put a load on the structure.

5. It is not subject to temperature changes or combustion due to the presence of fire retardants in the composition.

Due to the fact that polystyrene is not afraid of water, it is most often used if it is necessary to understand the best way to insulate a house with polystyrene foam or mineral wool. After all, the latter is afraid of water and it is necessary to mount it only after carefully isolating the mineral wool from moisture. Also, rats and mice can live in mineral wool, due to the soft fibers of this living creature it is warm there and this does not prevent them from walking on the walls in the literal sense.

Another disadvantage of mineral wool is the need to lay it not in one, but in two layers. Mineral wool is a soft material, it has the ability to decrease in volume, opening the way for heat to the outside.

If you decide to use mineral wool, then you should be prepared for possible problems with this insulator.

Wall preparation

To insulate the walls of the house, you need to prepare the walls, for this they are cleaned from dirt and dust. After that, you need to prime all surfaces on which the insulation will be laid. This is a necessary moment if it is important how to properly insulate the house with foam plastic from the outside. Thus, good adhesion of the walls of the building with the heat insulator is achieved.

Uneven walls are best leveled before applying insulation. To do this, cracks and recesses are filled with mortar and allowed to dry well.

Also, many are interested in whether it is possible to insulate wooden house styrofoam? Yes, of course you can. But in this case, you can do without glue, as well as a primer, and it will be necessary to mount a special frame, where the insulation will be laid. But mounting on fungi is best done for secure fastening.

How to insulate a wall from the outside with foam

After priming, the wall must be allowed to dry, it takes a little time. During this time, you need to prepare the glue, since it does not matter with which foam to insulate the house from the outside, it is important to glue it to the wall. This is necessary so that the insulation does not roll down. Therefore, in this regard, it is more convenient to work with polystyrene, due to its rigidity it is easy to glue it to the walls, and it does not roll down, as mineral wool. If the question is what is better to insulate the walls with polystyrene foam or mineral wool, then without a doubt it is better to opt for foam plastic. Since the work will move faster and the quality of the wall is much higher.

After preparing the glue and insulation, it is necessary to attach a metal starting bar to the lower edge of the walls. It will help the bottom layer of the heat insulator stay in place.

Since it is impossible to insulate a house with foam plastic without glue, you need to correctly apply the glue. It can be applied in different ways:

1. If the wall is uneven, the glue can be applied directly to the wall, it is better to do it gradually so that the glue does not dry out. Thus, the composition will fill in the bumps.

2. Also, it makes sense to apply glue directly to the heat insulator. This method will be advantageous if the question is how to properly insulate walls with large irregularities with foam plastic.

3. You can apply special glue from a can. It is applied directly to the foam and pressed against the wall.

After fixing the heat insulator to the glue, it takes time for the glue to dry. According to the technology of how to insulate the facade with foam plastic, you need to screw the foam plastic plates onto special dowel-fungi. They have a large hat and with this hat they press against the wall.

For dowel-nails, you need to drill a hole equal to the thickness of the foam plus 45 mm from the recess into the wall plus 1 cm. The diameter of the hole should be equal to the diameter of the nail. After that, a nail is hammered.

By the number of dowel-nails, the following values ​​\u200b\u200bare taken: for each corner of the plate, one nail plus 1 nail in the center of the insulation. For corner elements, you need to take 6 pieces for each plate. After screwing in the nails, you need to glue all the joints, as well as the places of the nails, with special aluminum tape. In the technology of whether it is possible to insulate the house with foam plastic from the outside, this step will allow you to remove cold bridges that occur at the joints and places where nails are driven in. After these works, the house can be finished with exterior cladding.

Is it possible to insulate the house with foam

There is still debate about whether it is possible to insulate walls with foam plastic, because it has a low vapor conductivity value. This means that the house walls can become damp and begin to rot. To avoid this, it is necessary to leave small areas that will allow the wall to breathe. But, when gluing, this option is not possible. So, it makes sense to leave unfinished areas that give access to the wall from above. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure that water does not get into these areas. It is in this way that the question of how to properly insulate a wall with polystyrene is solved.

For wooden or frame walls making a gap between the wall and the tree is simple, just build a double crate.

The use of a vapor barrier membrane is also a stumbling block for many builders on the issue of how to insulate walls with foam. One thing they say is that the additional waterproofing that occurs with the use of the film will not hurt. Others believe that this is superfluous, since the technology of how to insulate walls with foam plastic does not provide for the use of pairs of a windproof membrane.

Styrofoam thickness

When insulating a house, you should choose the thickness of the insulation. This point is very important because:

1. Too thin a layer will not give the desired insulation.

2. Too thick a layer will increase the load on the structure with its weight, and also, it simply will not justify the spent expenses.

Therefore, it is important to understand how thick the foam insulates the house and choose the best option. If the house is insulated according to the project, which was compiled by knowledgeable people, then this indicator can be found in the documents. With an independent decision on the issue of how to properly insulate a house with polystyrene foam, you will have to look for special laws regulating this indicator. But you can do it easier and ask around experienced specialists. As a rule, many builders note that a foam plastic thickness of 10 cm is enough for high-quality insulation of a house. For frame house it is better to double this figure, especially if they plan to live in the house permanently.

Additional pros and cons

When insulating walls, it is impossible to note the occurrence additional qualities. Styrofoam is also a good sound insulator, which means that an insulated house will not let in extraneous noise from the street into the house.

Also, the foam is not afraid of temperature changes, which is very important in the northern regions, where frosts reach strong levels. But open insulation is afraid of the action of the sun, since ultraviolet rays destroy this material. Therefore, immediately after insulation, it is necessary to produce its facing.

Styrofoam, due to its moisture resistance, can be used in warming the walls of a steam room. Sheets from the side of the room must be glued with a special metallized adhesive tape, it will reflect heat inward, so that the room will remain warm longer.

These are all the pros and cons of foam. In any case, it is up to the owner to decide whether it is worth insulating the house with this material, but the number of pluses shows that foam insulation will not hurt.


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