Don't waste your money on it, it's extremely slow. Lay the rigid foam insulation on the floor or on a large worktable. 95% of all ICF's out there are Type II. Get it Tomorrow, Dec 15. If any ads are present below my answer or words underlined/colored, I do not condone/support/use the product or services listed/linked to, they are there without my consent. I have found with thicker boards you can actually use a … With the improved hot wire foam cutter, rigid foam slabs can be cut much faster when cutting out rafters, which greatly reducing the costs of thermal insulation work. Do not touch the wire! Thanks for your photos and detailed explanation. Position your hands against the foam board insulation and on each side of the cut line. I bet this blade would work great, but I still wouldn’t use it on my good saws. Cheers. Next, it is time to measure each joist cavity. Adjust Your Saw Blade Depth. The thinner strip of wood on the top provides the tension on the wire when it is heated (attach the bottom of the wire, press down on the strip and attach the top of the wire). Some reviews were good but decided it's probably good for bench cutting only. I score and snap with a utility knife for the most part. use one of those snap blade cutters, the larger ones. I used 24 GA wire, 28 would be fine but may break more often. The arm has to be reasonably stiff (built from 2x4 column, 1x4 strapping) and is 28" long which allows me to cut a 4'x8' foam sheet into any width. I have a lot of cutting to do in 4' x 8' Styrofoam sheets. Clamp the straightedge to the rigid foam insulation with rubber clamps. i think the one key point that hasn't been mentioned yet is that the foam is there to protect the SAW (blade). Roof sheets were cut on the ground so that they were staggered and then simply assembled - almost no spray foam was used. If you are going to be cutting a lot of thick foam, then you should consider investing in a foam cutting saw. This foam cutting saw has a base that rides on tiny wheels to prevent friction, and the large area of the base keeps the blade straight up and down. As mentioned, the power is provided by a 50W 12V halogen transformer; I used a Variac to fine tune the temperature of the wire but my guess is that a decent dimmer would work just as well. The new corner- and rafter cutter forms an integrated unit with the hot wire foam cutter. He cuts against a straight edge clamped to the foam. I have attached a few images. He even said it a was drywall "taping" knife in the video. I do about 1/4" - so for ripping 3/4" thick plywood, I set my blade to about 1" depth. Just glad to be here! Free postage. Type I density foam is a PIA to work it. The dust free foam cutting line of CenterFire blades will keep the snowman (and blue man and pink man) away. http://www.finehomebuilding.com/how-to/video/cutting-rigid-insulation.aspx, Charlie, I use a toothless foam insulation saw for cutting rigid foam boards, but it's hard going. "When Chris Ellis of Brewster, Mass., was looking for the right tool to cut rigid-foam insulation, he tried a utility knife, a kitchen knife, and a saw. You should get a video of you cutting it with a table saw.. Its gonna be a blizzard!! Hi Jaccen, Best job for this, IMO, is to find an old 'this was my grandfather's rusty old hand saw here', blunt as anything, but also thick as anything, weighs a ton and doesn't bend - the kind of thing that is utterly useless for cutting wood but brilliant for cutting rigid insulation board. Date published: 2020-02-09. Contour cutters for high-resistance foams, mineral wool and ceramic fibres. For safety the transformer is mounted in an electrical box and I used a GFI outlet. Forrest is the leading manufacturer of insulation band saws and equipment for fabricating insulation and metal jacketing. What kind of knife? Rob, Thanks Martin. The GBA site does not send out notifications, so Rob may not see your question. FAQ: Why Do Some Builders Avoid Foam Insulation. A high speed rotating cutting wire has revolutionized the customized production of moulded parts and technical articles. Foam Insulation Cutting Tools. What about a hot-wire knife? The battery saw is the way to go. When I make an adjustment I just screw the other end of the fence to the tabletop. It functions like a table saw but there is no dust, very little smell and it is very precise (I can cut 1/16" slices although I'm not sure why I would want to). They also allowed for some details that I would not otherwise have attempted. “Nobody’s come up with a power saw that works on the denser foams,” said Dave Young, a representative for Demand. EPS leaves a lot of dust, xps not so much. In general, for a REMOTE type building, having the foam fit properly makes a huge difference in how easy it will be to complete the rest of the structure. table saw works very nice but i wouldn't use it without a very good dust collection system. If it is an inch or less you can use a simple utility knife and just slice it. Just saw a bosch jigsaw knife blade. Cut on Foam. Source: Amazon. I saw this blade for cutting foam and thought it looked interesting. Wear a dust mask if cutting EPS and of course its best to do this outside. (Get the heavy duty blades for more dense material) These work great on spray foam, board type insulation, soft foam (for tool/pelican cases) etc. There are several ways to cut ridged insulation, depending on the thickness. A cordless jigsaw is ideal as you’ll be cutting from 4×8 foot pieces. 69. I want to keep the mess down so I don't want to hand saw it, plus I … There is very little strain on the wire during the initial cut but if you feed too fast it will cool the wire and then be prone to breaking. Combining that information with the fact that mineral wool boards are more easily available and people know how to use them better I would be more inclined than ever to simply avoid foam in most applications. I've read all sorts of ways from a knife to hot knife to a special blade for the table saw. 89 sold. or 4-in. It leaves a nice smooth line and there is very little mess. As a union laborer on the trans-Alaska pipeline project, I once had to cut truckloads of rigid foam insulation with a table saw. I might be wrong, it just seems like using a blade of any sort will be difficult on EPS since it doesn't score well. In the above photo, I'm cutting into a chalkboard panel with the painted side down. If you are cutting 3 inches thick or less try an Olfa L-2 utility knife. 37 Related Question Answers Found ... How to Trim Spray Foam Insulation Put on goggles, a mask and protective clothing. Best practices for fastening lath / 3-coat stucco over rigid foam, Best practices for ERV register locations and vent hoods. It is tested to cut roughly 25,000 feet before sharpening is required. 4.7 out of 5 stars 317. Insulation fabricators and contractors use Forrest insulation fitting band saws to manufacture elbows, tees, and other specialty insulation shapes.. Forrest Pipe Covering and Curved Sidewall saws cut insulation half rounds and curved segments from blocks of material. The bottom of the description of the Insul-Knife has a "helpful hint" that spraying a light lubricant on the blade can result in "phenomenal performance". They also have knife blades for reciprocating saws. Use a table saw or handheld jigsaw to cut. JavaScript is disabled. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 5 minutes. They have a knife edge instead of saw teeth and are designed to make swift, factory-smooth cuts in foam panels and insulating concrete forms while eliminating 95% of the dust. Vertical Foam Band Saws. http://www.bullettools.com/insulation/insulation-tools-rigid-foam-cutters, From the reviews on Amazon I gather that people find it works well on EPS and XPS, but generates a small amount of very fine dust if you use it on polyiso. While formed rigid foam insulation offers a quick solution to your needs, it is very messy and difficult to work with—especially when you're trying to cut it. Good clean accurate cuts. Insert a track clamp in both ends of the guide track, offer up the track and press the tips into the material. Insulation Cutter Tool 420mm polystyrene foam wool fiberglass rockwool board saw. The strapping could then be continuous to the corner which makes for a stronger outer structure. Magnum Rigid Foam Cutter(TM) provides insulation installers with non-motorized cutting solution for rigid foam insulation sheeting, reducing jobsite noise, electricity requirements, and foam dust. Rob, if I were you, I'd be refining and patenting that cutting set. £10.75. The other factor is that the utility knife is significantly thinner than even the thin, flexible putty knives I found, so that might be another reason it works well. Alright...I'm just building one house, so I'm going to sharpen a taping knife. The problem is, they don't appear to be available in the UK. I wish I’d had Bullet Tools’ new carbon-steel Centerfire 7 1/4-inch and 10-inch circular-saw blades. I was using a circular saw blade to make nice smooth cuts, but the blade was making a HUGE mess. Of all the tips I can give you, this one helped me the most. Bullet Tools - CC52-1507 7.25 in. Serrated blades are great for cutting thick foam. I tried the putty knife trick - bought a cheap model ($2 or so) from Home Depot. Move the foam insulation slowly, pushing it firmly against the blade. I am building a timber frame house with a REMOTE type exterior so I am cutting a lot of foam (2 layers of 3" EPS in the walls and 3 layers on the roof). The cutter is nichrome wire (jacobs-online.biz); one end attaches through a hole in the table to a screw connector, the other end wraps around an eye bolt. I designed the corners of the house to use 2x4's that float on a channel in the foam and screw through to the inner frame and so the foam corner had to be precise. Try posting a question. Using my automotive battery charger, the wire gets hot. GBA is not only a great community; it is one of the best building resources on the web and I have used it constantly since starting my project. Like 0 Comment 2; Stay updated; Report; Posted 2014-01-01T22:33:00+0000 by cronus . Using my automotive battery charger, the wire gets hot. X-Acto Knife. These will function as shelves for the rigid foam to sit on. I tried just about everything but what finally worked was a hot wire cutter that I built using scrap wood and a small 50W 12V Halogen light transformer. This feature has been temporarily disabled during the beta site preview. Insulation Bonding Cutting Tool 420mm Stainless, Polystyrene, Foam, Wool, Saw. Table Saw with One-Key Kit 2736-21HD. It works better to leave 1/4" all around since it's then easier to fill with foam. £12.32 £ 12. Best practices for stucco or fiber cement on ICF? Any time that I have tried to cut foam with anything with a toothed blade I have gotten little foam beads stuck all over me by Electro-magnetic force. Also not sure how long a knife would hold the edge. However, I made a sharpened taping knife years ago, as suggested in the Fine Homebuilding video, and it's still the easiest tool to use -- because it's the right length, and not as unwieldy as the Insul-Knife. £17.28 . Here is a photo of the blade in our Bosch 4100 table saw and a photo of the ground under the saw after more than a couple of dozen 8 foot long rips of the foam. I did consider using a circular saw - but they create far too much dust. Hercules makes a nice-looking one for about $389. As Chuck Miller demonstrates in this video tip, a 3-in. Compare these dimensions to the length and width that your rigid foam insulation currently has to make sure it's long and wide enough. Many years ago, I reviewed a bunch of insulation knives. Video Vault: Cutting Rigid Insulation Teamed up with a straightedge, a sharpened putty knife cuts through foam like butter. It sounds awesome. Clouds of noxious, statically charged dust billowed from the saw, some of which inevitably ended up in my lungs. Next, take your long straightedge and line it up with your cutting lines. I would think that cutting with a thin sharp knife would be much better than using a table saw or circular saw. I've tried lots of knives and what worked best for me was to use a 7.25" thin curb blade on a table saw. We have a great range of insulation blades from the top trade brands. http://www.demandproducts.com/item.php?=&sku=GROUPINSUL, http://www.dewalt.com/tools/hand-tools-cutting-tools-knives-dwht10038.aspx, http://www.bullettools.com/insulation/insulation-tools-rigid-foam-cutters. i think the one key point that hasn't been mentioned yet is that the foam is there to protect the SAW (blade). Martin: I feel that I should be the one thanking you. I ended up using a sharp utility knife to score it and then snapping the board where the knife blade didn't cut through, like kwikfishron said. You could use a lubricant like DuPont Teflon Non-Stick. Turns out they do and specifically for this application. I just ran across a company called Bullet Tools that makes knife-edge circular saw blades for cutting insulation with a table saw or circular saw. When cutting look down on the saw and make sure you can see both sides of the saw blade, this sounds a bit weird, but is how to get good 90 deg cuts, you need to be right above the board whilst cutting, loking down on the top of the blade, you see both sides of the blade, if you see more metal one side than the other, your cut will not be square. Detail. They call them "CenterFire" blades. The foam board is a major brand pink insulation from a big box shop. Unfortunately, this is not a great option if you are working with finer or more delicate foam, as it will tend to be torn and destroyed. For construction purposes Type II is way better as it holds together a lot better. Best practices for tar paper installation on walls? Long Bladed Utility Knife – Our Preferred Way. The sharpened taping knife looks like it would be hard to beat...but it would be nice to use a table saw fence instead of a clamped straight edge. £10.95. I then had a thought - do toothless circular saw blades exist? Oct 5, 2007 5,249 7 62 Near Chicago, Il. Bahco PC-22-INS ProfCut Insulation Saw with New Waved Toothing 22in/550mm. Attach the glider, offer up the DSS 300 cc, make the cut and the job’s done. Thanks Gary. The CenterFire comes in two sizes – 10″ (MSRP $89.95) for table saws and 7-1/4″ (MSRP $59.95) for worm drives. The insulation saw is designed to cut, Mineral wool, EPS - expanded polystyrene, cellular plastic up to 75 mm and XPS - extruded polystyrene, for example styrofoam, up to 75 mm Answered by: Bahco Toolman. Forrest is the leading manufacturer of insulation band saws and equipment for fabricating insulation and metal jacketing. So Chris created something that works beautifully. Does anyone know if this works for low density EPS foam? Come join the discussion about tools, projects, builds, styles, scales, reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more! Free postage. Here's a similar one in action: They're also fairly expensive, ranging from about $160 to over $500 for commercial grade tools. Measure your cut with a straightedge ruler. Rigid foam insulation comes in 4 x 8 sheets with thicknesses ranging from 1/2 inch to 2 inches. The second cutter is for flush cutting the foam after it is installed, the third cutter is for cutting a bevel on an edge (two scraps of wood with the wire screwed across the end so that it cuts the desired angle when moving along the edge of the foam). Most hobby upholsterers and other foam craft tools can't justify the expense, nor could they spare the storage space for yet another tool. I need to cut strips lengthwise and as many as 3 cuts per sheet, over 250 sheets. Cutting high-density foam isn't as simple as picking up a pair of scissors and getting to work. What is the best tool to cut foam board? The material is similar to a Styrofoam cup not the blue foam sheets. with a rigid and long demolition blade inserted. The polyurethane saw from Demand Foam Cutting works only on lightweight ½-pound foams. Cut rigid foam to size without making a mess. If the foam is an inch thick then a knife works great. Commercial foam shops rely on cutting tools called foam saws. Jim: We are all in over our heads :) After deciding to use 27,000 bf of foam on the exterior of my house I discovered that I had an extreme sensitivity to foam dust - hence my efforts to eliminate mechanical cutting. Step 3 - Cut the Foam Insulation Board Foam insulation is a very dense, rigid material that is available in large sheets or as an expanding spray product. ESCO's ProfileMatic III is the work horse of the industrial pipe insulation market capable of holding tight tolerances in FoamGlas ®, PIR, rigid PU, phenolic foams, EPS, and other materials. Hi Rob. It may be different with table saws but we use a bandsaw with different foams all day every day and they don’t make it very long. 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For cutting rigid foam has been temporarily disabled during the beta site preview and specifically this. Ton of XPS and EPS foam customized production of moulded parts and technical.. Stucco over rigid foam cutter works better to leave 1/4 '' - the predecessor of the cut and the regulars! 'Re cutting the rigid foam boards, but it works incredibly well and...