Author Topic: Firewall Sealant Stuff  (Read 7031 times)

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Offline TwinSpin

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Firewall Sealant Stuff
« on: March 05, 2012, 03:07:03 PM »
I have used Great Stuff foam sealant for years in buildings, crafts and some taxidermy projects. It is handy to fill spaces and later you can carve and shape it. Plus, it's easy to remove any over flow. 

I now found a new product by Great Stuff called Fireblock in an orange colored can. Can this be used to seal the holes in a firewall and it it approved to pass tech?

The can says it is approved by the International Code Council and by Underwriters Laboratory. The can says "ICC-ES Evaluated ESR-1961." It cost about three times what the regular can of Great Stuff cost, $6.50. I think it is something I would want to use since you can easily get it at WalMart.

Bill

Offline dw230

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Re: Firewall Sealant Stuff
« Reply #1 on: March 05, 2012, 04:31:46 PM »
To what heat level, degrees, is it rated? If you have something called "I block Flames" and it melts at 130 deg C it will not be of much help when the fire starts to blow through.

DW
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Offline TwinSpin

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Re: Firewall Sealant Stuff
« Reply #2 on: March 06, 2012, 03:29:21 PM »
DW

I'm not a "fire person" but I did google the references on the foam can such as ASTM E 84 and UL 1715. I was looking for the general temperature ratings but instead found language about "propensity to burn, surface flame spread, and smoke developed index, all in a Steiner tunnel test." Plus, UL spoke about a code of "15 minute thermal barrier." I couldn't find if the Great Stuff Fireblock foam I found met those standards or not, but those code standards were referenced on the can. I saw no mention of an actual temperature ratings in any of the literature I read.

I'm no where near an expert in this field. It is just like sending me to a Target store to buy some female personal items without a cell phone with me. I'm I sure I could find the right department, but making the final selection of what I was sent for would be a strike out.

I am therefore asking this forum to step in and be my "cell phone" to tell me if this Fireblock foam is OK to use in my future firewall, if anyone knows. I had hoped that the simple answer to my original question would be: YES, it is what we use all the time or no, it doesn't meet bla bla bla standards.

Until then, I am glad WalMart has their no hastle return policy.

Bill

Offline Jon

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Re: Firewall Sealant Stuff
« Reply #3 on: March 06, 2012, 03:49:56 PM »
I would be making sure every unnecessary hole had been welded or a patch welded over it.

In the event of a fire I wouldn't want to be relying on the bond between a foam & metal, might look fine when you do it but over time with flexing & bound to be the occasional knock when working on things it's not worth the risk IMHO.

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jon
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Offline jdincau

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Offline TwinSpin

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Re: Firewall Sealant Stuff
« Reply #5 on: March 06, 2012, 07:04:40 PM »
jdincau -

OK, just what I wanted to hear. That putty seemed to do what is needed. I might try that fireblock caulk too.

Bill

Offline edinlr

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Re: Firewall Sealant Stuff
« Reply #6 on: April 19, 2012, 10:51:18 PM »
It is also confusing when a manufacturer calls one product "fire block" and another "fire barrier".  How do you decide especially when one is $7 and the other is $20.  I have to make sure all our wiring penetrations at work are sealed and fight that same argument.  Now if it was my butt on the line in a car fire, I would probably research the heck out of it for my own sake.  Some of the products seem strange, when I built a building a few years ago after the steel supports were installed they came out to fireproof it and used a cellulose product to do it.  Paper to protect steel, sounded odd.
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Offline Jon

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Re: Firewall Sealant Stuff
« Reply #7 on: April 20, 2012, 04:14:14 AM »
My concern with all these products is that they are tested and rated in a static environment and we would be using them outside their scope.

Would you trust these products to protect you after a strong earth tremor that flexed the structure or people worked around it possibly hitting it and weakening the bond between it and the support structure?

Cheers
jon
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Offline MAZDA1807

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Re: Firewall Sealant Stuff
« Reply #8 on: April 20, 2012, 07:33:52 AM »
My concern with all these products is that they are tested and rated in a static environment and we would be using them outside their scope.

Would you trust these products to protect you after a strong earth tremor that flexed the structure or people worked around it possibly hitting it and weakening the bond between it and the support structure?

Cheers
jon

Yup. Stuff works great. I work in construction and see it being used all the time. The bond is pretty solid and doesn't like to separate from what it is stuck to.
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