WORLD According to Mark

By Mark Tobola

One of the things I’ve known for a long time is that some options in life cost far less than other options. And each option, no matter what it is you’re doing, has different pros and cons. Recently there’s been some people on YouTube who have been sharing the build of a pole-built structure they are doing mostly on their own, and sharing a lot of facts on that channel… But not every “fact” they are sharing is actually a “fact!”

So, they have a number of videos about why they chose to insulate their building using foam board instead of having it spray foamed. Now of course, we all know that a quality spray foam insulation job costs money. But we also all know that it provides a certain group of benefits that are absolutely incredible. Many people, me included, have chosen to use spray foam in parts of their projects because of the incredible benefits it provides.

This YouTube contributor spent a lot of time discussing how much money they saved by getting the foam board and installing it themselves. And they then detailed how they had to use cans of foam to seal the gaps and ensure that the project was indeed as airtight as a spray foam would be. He talked a lot more about this project and why he chose this instead of spray foam… He kept citing that the foam board was $2,500 versus the spray foam everywhere – walls, ceiling, everything – was $16,000.

What he never once discussed was how many of his hours, and hours of he and his family, were spent doing all of this. Nor did he share if all the cans of spray foam, and all the tubes of foam safe adhesive, were included in his $2,500. And as many of you know, I’ve been doing a lot of work on my own home, and it staggers me every time I think about how much time I have wrapped up in that.

This is not at all meant to be critical of this person, their choices, or what they’re sharing as they work on their project. But I think it’s just as important to remember that there’s more to it than just material costs, because it takes labor, it takes time, it takes some level of skill and ability to do a job and get the job done right with good results, so it works as intended. And sometimes it’s worth spending the money so it is just done, and YOU don’t have to do it.