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Property managers, general contractors and warehouse or bay owners

Commercial Insulation for Property Managers, GCs & Bay Owners in Airdrie and Balzac

The distribution and light-industrial buildings around Balzac and east Airdrie are mostly steel and concrete, heated with gas unit heaters, and full of trucks, forklifts and people. That mix produces a familiar set of problems: roof decks that drip in cold weather, bays that cannot hold heat, and fire separations with unsealed penetrations left behind by other trades.

We work for property managers, general contractors and owners of warehouse and commercial bays. The work is specified by the building: Part 3 of the building code, the National Energy Code for Buildings, the mechanical engineer’s drawings and tested fire-rated systems. Our job is to install to that specification and document it.

Condensation on steel

When warm, moist air from vehicles, people and gas heaters meets a cold steel deck or wall panel, it condenses and drips. Closed-cell foam sprayed directly to the steel insulates, seals the lap joints and fasteners, and moves the condensing surface inside the foam where the air cannot reach it.

Protection the listing requires

Exposed foam in a commercial building needs the protection that Part 3 and the foam’s own listing call for, commonly a tested thermal barrier or coating applied at a measured thickness. We plan that into the scope from the start rather than finding out at inspection.

Continuous insulation

Rigid mineral wool or foam board outside the structure stops heat bridging through steel studs and slab edges. Where noncombustible construction is required, mineral wool is usually the answer, and foam assemblies depend on tested wall assemblies.

Firestopping to a listed system

Every pipe, cable tray, duct and conduit through a rated wall or floor needs a firestop system tested for that exact condition. We match each penetration to a listed system detail, install it as tested, and label and record it for the inspector.

Duct and mechanical insulation

Supply ducts through unheated space and cold outdoor air intakes sweat unless the wrap and its vapour-retarding facing are continuous. Mechanical insulation follows the engineer’s specification and the energy code.

Working around operations

Lift access, spray areas closed off and ventilated during application and cure, and scheduling around shipping and tenants. We plan the sequence with the site before anyone climbs a lift.

What a commercial job looks like with us

  • A site visit to see the substrate, access, heating and how the space is used day to day
  • A scope written against the drawings and specification, with the products named
  • Product data sheets and evaluation reports or system listings supplied for submittals
  • A work plan covering lift access, ventilation during spraying and curing, and re-occupancy timing from the manufacturer
  • Installed thickness measured and recorded as the work goes on, and firestop locations labelled and logged
A row of modern single-storey commercial bays with overhead doors and metal panel cladding on a sunny day, with open prairie behind.
Commercial bays north of Calgary

Commercial Property: Questions

Can you spray foam in a bay that is still operating?
Often, but only with the area under the spray closed off and ventilated, and kept clear until the manufacturer’s re-occupancy time has passed. That usually means working in sections, evenings or weekends. We plan the sequence with you at the site visit, and if the space cannot be cleared safely we will tell you that rather than work around people.
Will spray foam on the roof deck stop all the dripping?
It stops condensation on the steel it covers. If the building has very high humidity from wash bays, open doors in wet weather or unvented combustion, water can still condense on other cold surfaces such as uninsulated doors, windows or ducts. We look at where the moisture comes from as well as where it shows up.
What documentation do you provide for firestopping?
For each penetration we record the listed system used, its location and the conditions it was installed for, and label the installation where the project calls for it. That record is what the inspector and the building owner need to show the fire separation was restored correctly.

Have a commercial scope to price?

Send the drawings and specification or book a site visit, and we will come back with a written scope and the product documentation for submittals.