Best / Fastest way to cut 1.5” double foil faced foam insulation board?

[Vikes79]

Hey all

I just scored 3 20’ trailer loads of used foil faced foam boards that were taken out of a warehouse. I’m going to used them to insulate my pole barn / small business shop.

I’m looking for some advice on what is the fastest way to cut these boards down to infill the many voids on my walls and rafters.

I’m familiar with using carpet knife and a t-square as I’ve insulated many ice houses, trailers etc, but the scale of the work I need to do is many magnitudes bigger.

I need to rip nearly 150 boards into narrower sections and a whole pile of squaring up broken boards.

I’m considering setting my radial arm saw up outside and just blasting thru them and just dealing with the dust with a high level mask etc.

Any one have any better suggestions? Ideally not so dang messy?

 

[Admin]

 

[hoghead76]

a soldering gun with a knife attachment or an electric knife

 

[NTCPrezJB]

Hey all

I just scored 3 20’ trailer loads of used foil faced foam boards that were taken out of a warehouse. I’m going to used them to insulate my pole barn / small business shop.

I’m looking for some advice on what is the fastest way to cut these boards down to infill the many voids on my walls and rafters.

I’m familiar with using carpet knife and a t-square as I’ve insulated many ice houses, trailers etc, but the scale of the work I need to do is many magnitudes bigger.

I need to rip nearly 150 boards into narrower sections and a whole pile of squaring up broken boards.

I’m considering setting my radial arm saw up outside and just blasting thru them and just dealing with the dust with a high level mask etc.

Any one have any better suggestions? Ideally not so dang messy?

If it wasn’t foil backed you could do a heating element/hot knife and melt right through it. As is…it’s a good score but not a great quick way to cut it that isn’t going to create a mess that I know of.

 

[Cobber4082]

Hey all

I just scored 3 20’ trailer loads of used foil faced foam boards that were taken out of a warehouse. I’m going to used them to insulate my pole barn / small business shop.

I’m looking for some advice on what is the fastest way to cut these boards down to infill the many voids on my walls and rafters.

I’m familiar with using carpet knife and a t-square as I’ve insulated many ice houses, trailers etc, but the scale of the work I need to do is many magnitudes bigger.

I need to rip nearly 150 boards into narrower sections and a whole pile of squaring up broken boards.

I’m considering setting my radial arm saw up outside and just blasting thru them and just dealing with the dust with a high level mask etc.

Any one have any better suggestions? Ideally not so dang messy?

Oscillating multi-tool with the scraper blade sharpened...like butter, low mess, good clean square cuts...wear hearing protection the tool will make resonance in the foil board- neighbors dog went nuts lol

 

[Vikes79]

I might give this a try with my cordless jigsaw, especially notching around boxes etc.

BOSCH T313AW3 3-Piece 6 In. Knife Edge Special for Soft Materials T-Shank Jig Saw Blades
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001J0U1HC?tag=sxsweb24-20

 

[Remington]

I might give this a try with my cordless jigsaw, especially notching around boxes etc.

BOSCH T313AW3 3-Piece 6 In. Knife Edge Special for Soft Materials T-Shank Jig Saw Blades
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001J0U1HC?tag=sxsweb24-20

LMK how this works out for ya.
I have a bunch of 1” foil back to cut and put between the ceiling joists in my barn up north.
Was gonna use a bunch of long exacto knife blades but this looks like a better Idea for my Fuel cordless jig saw.

 

[trigger]

I'm about to delve into this very thing. I have a bunch of 1.5" foil faced rigid that was left over from a job that I'm going to use to insulate a wood floor barn I'm building. I planned on setting up the table saw but it might be quicker to just clamp a straight edge and cut them with the circular saw. It's going to be a mess either way. I have those other (less mess) tools mentioned as well but it would probably take forever that way and with winter coming... 🤷‍♂️

 

[NorthernJoe]

Hey all

I just scored 3 20’ trailer loads of used foil faced foam boards that were taken out of a warehouse. I’m going to used them to insulate my pole barn / small business shop.

I’m looking for some advice on what is the fastest way to cut these boards down to infill the many voids on my walls and rafters.

I’m familiar with using carpet knife and a t-square as I’ve insulated many ice houses, trailers etc, but the scale of the work I need to do is many magnitudes bigger.

I need to rip nearly 150 boards into narrower sections and a whole pile of squaring up broken boards.

I’m considering setting my radial arm saw up outside and just blasting thru them and just dealing with the dust with a high level mask etc.

Any one have any better suggestions? Ideally not so dang messy?

I would recommend a table saw and a dust collector with a cyclone separator connected between the table saw and dust collector. The cyclone should remove 90% of the foam dust

 

[The Green Goat]

I did the same to my barn last year. 1.5" non-faced foam to wedge between the purlins. I initially tried to use my table saw and nearly died attempting that; DO NOT RECOMMEND. I then used a silky saw which worked well enough to get the job done but made an absolute mess. If I had to do it again, I'd use one of those soft material blades for my jig saw.

 

[Vikes79]

I would recommend a table saw and a dust collector with a cyclone separator connected between the table saw and dust collector. The cyclone should remove 90% of the foam dust

Unfortunately I don’t have any of that and the closest thing to a dust collector I have is a gas powered leaf blower that has a suction intake lol.

If I had a table saw that I’d try this type of blade..
Bullet Tools - CC52-1507 7.25 in. CenterFire Dust Free Foam Blade for cutting EPS, XPS & Poly-ISO insulation
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KM0RLUU?tag=sxsweb24-20

they don’t make a 10” that I can see otherwise I’d use it in my radial arm saw.

 

[Vikes79]

I did the same to my barn last year. 1.5" non-faced foam to wedge between the purlins. I initially tried to use my table saw and nearly died attempting that; DO NOT RECOMMEND. I then used a silky saw which worked well enough to get the job done but made an absolute mess. If I had to do it again, I'd use one of those soft material blades for my jig saw.

On your table saw did the blade break or something?

What type of blade were you using?

 

[The Green Goat]

On your table saw did the blade break or something?

What type of blade were you using?

Nah, the foam was just super easy to get bound up on the blade. It would just grab the foam and sling it sideways when it kicked back. It was however, just a portable Milwaukee saw and a ripping blade.

 

[Vikes79]

Nah, the foam was just super easy to get bound up on the blade. It would just grab the foam and sling it sideways when it kicked back. It was however, just a portable Milwaukee saw and a ripping blade.

Ok cool.

I’m going to try it out on my arm saw with the finest , thinnest 10” saw blade I can find. Thinking like a panel saw blade or even a vinyl siding blade.

Hopefully it doesn’t just gum up the blade.

 

[The Green Goat]

Ok cool.

I’m going to try it out on my arm saw with the finest , thinnest 10” saw blade I can find. Thinking like a panel saw blade or even a vinyl siding blade.

Hopefully it doesn’t just gum up the blade.

depending on how wide the panels are, you may have better luck. I was trying to rip down 4x8' sheets and failed miserably.

 

[Vikes79]

This is what I’ve got to work with.

It ain’t sexy but it was only 1.50 a sheet. Got another trailer load in another shed to work with.

 

[Cobber4082]

Ok cool.

I’m going to try it out on my arm saw with the finest , thinnest 10” saw blade I can find. Thinking like a panel saw blade or even a vinyl siding blade.

Hopefully it doesn’t just gum up the blade.

Put the saw blade on backwards...back in the day that's how we cut aluminum siding without grabbing and burring edges.

 

[trigger]

Ok cool.

I’m going to try it out on my arm saw with the finest , thinnest 10” saw blade I can find. Thinking like a panel saw blade or even a vinyl siding blade.

Hopefully it doesn’t just gum up the blade.

I was thinking no matter which saw I used to put the blade in backward. That's how we've always cut vinyl siding.

 

[trigger]

Put the saw blade on backwards...back in the day that's how we cut aluminum siding without grabbing and burring edges.

Ed Zachary!

 

[GovtMule]

This is what I’ve got to work with.

View attachment 447715
View attachment 447716

It ain’t sexy but it was only 1.50 a sheet. Got another trailer load in another shed to work with.

Maybe with the money you saved you could find some guests of Joe and Cameltoe to do the cutting for you?!?!?!

 

[Vikes79]

Maybe with the money you saved you could find some guests of Joe and Cameltoe to do the cutting for you?!?!?!

lol

At first I was thinking of typical “non effort” types …but then I realized that would mean some work…but I know dam well nothing would get done…