A spray foam box truck is so much more than a work vehicle. It’s a base camp for your team and a mobile plant to create high-quality spray foam insulation. When outfitting your truck, any of your decisions could impact installation efficiency, the health of your team or the quality of your product. That’s why it’s important to know what to consider when choosing a spray foam box truck. Read ahead to learn about the truck itself, the equipment you’ll be using and features that every mobile spray foam vehicle should have.
How and Where Will You Use Your Mobile Unit?
Choosing the right option among the many different kinds of mobile spray foam rigs can be a challenging decision. In this article, we’ll walk you through the different questions you should ask yourself when deciding whether a spray foam box truck is the right option for your business. We’ll also discuss what features and equipment your business might need.
Residential or Commercial?
Do your projects typically cover commercial buildings or is your work usually centered around residential remodels? How much power will your projects need?
If your jobs are usually smaller residential installations, a reactor or proportioner with a maximum output of 18-30 PMM will be adequate. Commercial jobs with hundreds or thousands of square footage will require more power and a higher-capacity machine. Hydraulic machines are ideal for these larger power requirements as they require less of a load on your other rig equipment, and in turn could have a longer life span.
What Spaces Will You Insulate?
When insulating walls, attics and roofs your spray foam box truck will be the perfect base for your team to complete a professional job efficiently. However, if someone is air sealing in a basement with a two-component spray foam kit, they might not require the truck to stay there. Consider whether your projects vary a lot with the amount of power they need. If that’s the case, you may want to consider a trailer rather than a box truck.
Although mobile spray foam box trucks are great for many projects, a trailer may be more beneficial for your team if you’re doing a variety of jobs. Trailers give your team options without adding another work vehicle. A trailer can stay at a job while a team member drives off with the truck to another location, perhaps to execute a project that can be completed with a spray foam kit alone or a secondary trailer.
However, when a spray foam installation business regularly executes urban projects that consistently require the power and the capacity that a spray foam box truck can offer with a more compact footprint than any truck and trailer combination can offer, the compact capacity of a box truck will better suit your business’s needs.
How Often Will It Be Used?
You’ll need a spray foam box truck with higher storage capacity if you use your spray foam rig consistently. You may also require a higher ground clearance or heavier equipment that can handle higher outputs.
How Large Are Your Average Projects?
Medium-sized jobs that cover parts of a home or individual rooms can be achieved with a mid-sized insulation rig that might hold a portable proportioner. Larger jobs covering a full house, multi-family building or multiple structures require a larger rig that can carry large amounts of spray foam chemicals, reducing refill downtime. A spray foam box truck is helpful in these situations.
Large-scale projects such as warehouses, factories and commercial complexes require high-output rigs with industrial-scale proportioners and high-capacity spray guns. Take a good look at your projects both in the past and in the future. Know what you’ll need before deciding on a spray foam box truck. Both underinvesting and overinvesting can be costly for your business.
Are Your Projects Urban or Rural?
If the majority of your work is in the city where your rig will be navigating traffic and fitting into tight parking spots, a spray foam box truck is a logical choice as it’s more compact than a trailer. However, the smaller size of a box truck sacrifices the versatile nature of a gooseneck trailer.
Trailers take up more space in traffic and are more difficult to park on a city street where parking is tough to come by. However, they can also be dropped off at a job site letting a team member drive off to do business elsewhere while the project continues on without the truck. If your work typically occurs in suburbs, smaller towns and rural areas where parking is not an issue, a trailer rig may be the best option for your business.
Spray Foam Box Truck Features
Mobile spray foam box trucks are more than simple vehicles to carry your equipment. When used as spray foam rigs, box trucks should be designed as a base camp for your projects with organized workstations, electrical sourcing and designated spaces for all the machinery your projects will require.
Size and Box Access
Any spray foam box truck should be 20 to 26 feet in length to hold all the machinery and equipment you’ll need while still maintaining the compact size required for urban projects. Make sure that your box truck is over 19,500 pounds. Picking a box truck between 22,500 to 23,500 pounds is better but upwards of 25,900 is the most ideal. Box trucks should be 7 feet tall if the truck has barn-style back doors and 8 feet high if the truck has a garage-style back door.
For ease of access to the workspace, there must be a curbside door that’s at least 48 inches wide and as close to the cab as possible. Having a hard time finding a box truck that meets this requirement? Have no worries! If your truck doesn’t come with a curbside door in the box, IDI can fabricate one customized to your needs.
Ventilation
Sufficient ventilation is important in any spray foam rig due to the heat from the spray foam equipment and the chemicals housed on the rig. Ventilation lowers the risk of inhalation and disperses flammable gases, lowering the chance of fires.
Workstation Area
Separating a workstation from the generator and other loud machinery by a wall can reduce noise and temperature levels in the main cabin. Workstations are organized with drawers to keep your team organized and provide a spot for administrative work that needs to be done.
Electrical Outlets
When wiring your rig’s electrical, you will want to include proper wire sizing, electrical code lighting and auxiliary power needs. Make sure that electrical outlets are GFI outlets to ensure the safety of your team members and the rig.
Hydraulic Machine
Great for projects that cover hundreds or thousands of square feet, a hydraulic machine can power and control a high-capacity spray foam proportioner without putting too much of a load on the rig system, decreasing the wear and tear on your rig when you’re tackling larger-scale jobs.
Doggy Door
A doggy door lets the spray foam hose unroll out of the truck while keeping the doors of your spray foam box truck secure. Doggy Doors are 15X15 inches, making it easy to maneuver your heated hose while keeping the main cabin safe and maintaining the temperature of the heated hose.
IDI is an expert in consulting and customizing spray foam rigs. Learn about all the spray foam box truck options available at IDI, today!
Spray Foam Box Truck Equipment
Matching your needs to the right equipment is a key part of setting up the correct spray foam rig. Below is a list of the necessary equipment to kit out your spray foam box truck and the different factors you might consider before making an investment.
Proportioner
Proportioners mix the two main chemicals used in spray foam insulation, commonly referred to as A-side and B-side. This machine has the vital job of maintaining the pressure and temperature of the mix while feeding the spray foam to the spray gun through the heated hose.
Heated Hoses
Uniformly maintaining the temperature of the foam as it leaves the proportioner and travels to the spray gun, a quality heated hose helps ensure that your insulation foam is high-quality. Temperature monitoring technology will make sure your foam is at the correct temperature while also keeping your team safe. Consider anti-scuff material on the exterior of the hose, the safety ratings and spray pressure before making a decision on a heated hose.
Spray Guns
When there are delays on a job, the spray gun is often the culprit so choose wisely. There are two primary types of spray guns, high- and low-pressure. On a high-pressure gun, A-side and B-side components are mixed together in the gun, making this a gun for experienced professionals.
Drum Heaters
Drum heaters keep A-side and B-side chemicals at optimum temperature for viscosity, ensuring that you can keep working with the same level of high-quality foam through the fall when the weather starts to turn colder.
Transfer Pumps
Transfer pumps supply chemicals to your proportioner. When you’re selecting a transfer pump, consider factors such as material viscosities, your desired output rate, air pressure and the interior height of your spray foam box truck.
Compressor
From breathable air to spray guns, compressors will keep vital products equipped with compressed air. Choose from three different compressor power sources: electrical, gas and alternator take-off, all with their own pros and cons. Only continuous-run compressors should be used in any spray foam rig.
Generator
If you’re looking for a low-maintenance, reliable power source than a diesel generator is a great option. All your vital equipment will rely on this power source, earning some serious thought on the part of a contractor.
Air Dryer
Moisture-sensitive chemicals vital to the spray foam process call for the use of an air dryer, which lowers the level of moisture in your rig. Sizing up a dryer to match with a compressor can be complicated. The CFM, and the temperature of the compressed air at the point of entry has to be taken into account.
Rotary screw air compressors can use a standard dryer that can handle inlet temperatures of around 100 degrees. Piston or reciprocating air compressors will exceed that temperature and require either a high inlet dryer or a standard dryer that can twice the amount of CFM.
Fresh Air System
Using a portable air purifier or filtration unit attached to a hood or mask, a fresh air system removes contaminants and particles from the air before any team member who’s wearing the hood or mask breathes it in.
A great option for situations when providing an outside air supply is challenging, which happens often when spraying insulation, a fresh air breathing system can play a critical role in keeping installers safe from hazardous fumes and particles.
AC Unit
When choosing an AC unit for your spray foam rig consider energy efficiency, ventilation, size and cooling capacity.
Safety Tips
When you’re in the spray foam insulation installation business, you know that compromising on safety is not an option. Here’s a list of safety tips for all mobile spray foam rigs. All the safety products on this list can be found on IDI’s safety product page.
- Fire Extinguishers: Spray foam rigs should have a minimum of two ABC-approved fire extinguishers in case of emergency. Make sure your team is regularly reminded of their location and that they are clearly marked.
- Emergency Eye Wash: Meeting ANSI regulations, an emergency eye wash station should be accessible within a 10-second walk of any hazard. Hands-free operation allows you to hold your eyelids open so that you can remove particles or chemicals.
- Material Bracing: Holding chemical drums in place as you drive your rig, the design of material bracing usually includes metal racks with arched drum nests. The drums are usually then ratcheted in to ensure your chemicals in place.
- Ventilated Air: Even when it’s too cool to run the AC, it’s important to make sure that the air in your spray foam box truck is well-ventilated to keep you and your team safe from vapors and contaminants.
- Workstation with compartments: Workstations can be customized to create an organized workplace. A wall placed between the generator and the workplace can cut the heat and noise levels, making for a more comfortable working environment.
- SDS and TDS: Safety and Technical Data Sheets should be mounted in the rig where the whole team can easily see them on a daily basis.
- Rig Layout: Keep heavy equipment low to the ground and close to the back of the box to minimize stress on the truck box. All chemical drums should be secured at all times to prevent spills. The generator and compressor should be installed in the box as close to the cab as possible
- Equipment Access: A 48-inch wide door should be fabricated on the passenger side near the compressor and generator for easy access.
Training
While mobile spray foam box trucks are a great investment, IDI training is an essential step toward perfecting your insulation process. Our experts educate insulation professionals on everything from sales to safety. Learn more about insulation education on our training page.