Air Sealing Exterior Wall Outlet Tutorial 29Dec2020

[@haskellXR]

The problem here is that using foam in the knockouts is against code because most foam is flammable. Even fire rated foam is recommended only for outside the electrical box. The box is your first line of defense in case of sparks or overheating of wires. The foam could melt, smolder or catch on fire. Not saying now, but years in the future due to age. Fire rated Silicone might be a better solution as I have seen some electricians use that for knockout plugging, making sure to keep the majority of the silicon outside of the box.

[@DyslexicLunatic]

2 minute video in over 22 minutes. Great idea. One of many. Really in need of the KISS principle [Keep It Simple, S#$^^#].

[@dwaneblair7174]

you can increase the playback speed of the video....which helped

[@vb7guy]

instead of spraying the foam on the inside of the box which would create fire hazard unless you use fire rated spray foam. the best thing is to cut small notch on drywall (0top & bottom) and spray foam on the outside of the electrical box. this much safer as there wouldn't be any exposed electrical wire on the outside. BTW home depot & lowes or any local home improvement store would carry "great stuff" brand Fire block spray foam

[@vaughnbeaufort8701]

You cant do this with the foam. It is flammable and it reduces the available space in the box for the fill according to the nec.

[@jskweres2]

What type of foam did you use? Open cell closed cell, something else? Great stuff?

[@CMCraftsman]

Air sealing an electrical box in a house in VT is like squirting a squirt gun into the ocean. Most towns here have no inspectors and builders are running wild. Air leaking into a switch box is probably the least of the problems with your home. Furthermore, you don’t want to air seal your home at all if you don’t have mechanical ventilation.

[@pearlperlitavenegas2023]

Is that firestop foam & caulk

[@MetaTaco317]

A little constructive criticism - *Pick a better example of an outlet needing air sealing, for instance one that didn't have such tight drywall all the way around it *Spend a minute before filming prepping the job. In this instance, you should have opened it beforehand and vacuumed out the dust *Spend a minute before filming prepping your production. Setup better lighting, particularly inside the outlet. *No one wants to watch you remove screws, editing is your friend or fast forward until the cover is off *Consider if you would watch someone air seal an outlet for 20 minutes. I don't think anyone would sign up for that. Cut it down to 4 minutes at most. I know this video is several years old but after not getting through 5 minutes of the video I felt I had to comment why.

[@chriswalik8142]

Um.DONT do this inside the electrical box.

[@Lughnerson]

There are foam gaskets that go over the outlet and switches, underneath the wall plate. They are cheap, easy to install, and work great. Also, keep the knockouts from the gasket and put them onto the prongs of childproof outlet plugs. Insert these plugs into any unused outlet, especially on outside walls.

[@vector006]

the guy literally said they dont work in the first 10seconds of the video

[@Lughnerson]

@@vector006 He said it at 18 seconds...There are many videos by energy experts, some also using infrared imaging, showing they DO work. This depends upon each individual outlet or switch in each location, and using them alone. Combining them with the caulking and foaming is a belt and suspenders sure-fire fix. They are certainly cheap enough to use.

[@dennykeaton9701]

​@@Lughnerson You're correct

[@jamesmac10]

tooooooooo long. too much babble. get to the point.