Renovation of Historic Early Eighteenth Century Home Includes NCFI’s InsulStar Spray Foam Insulation

MOUNT AIRY, NC—Pitt’s Neck Farm on the Eastern Shore of Virginia dates back to a 1663 grant by King Charles II to Robert Pitt, the son of a wealthy shipping magnate from Bristol, England. Current owner, Wayne Williams is now renovating the original late seventeenth century dwelling house and the larger Georgian addition built in the early eighteenth century that  survives as a particularly distinctive example of a Virginia  plantation house. To make sure the historic home lasts another 300 years, Williams is using InsulStar® high performance spray foam insulation.

“It just makes sense,” says Williams. “We have to protect the building fabric that earned the plantation a spot on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmark Registry, and spray foam does that. It  is the ultimate insulation for renovation. Time does strange things to buildings and spray foam fills every gap and space, expands, and cures in place to form a solid  envelope. It has an extremely high thermal efficiency, is safe, and lasts for the life of the home, which, in this case, is hopefully a few more centuries.”

Williams chose Combat Coatings, Virginia Beach, to do the work. John Kuchta, Jr., president of Combat Coatings, says, “It’s an amazing opportunity to work on a home of this historical significance. Choosing  InsulStar® by NCFI means the Williams family is getting  the very best insulation to improve the home’s energy performance, structural integrity and air quality.”

Kuchta says, “We sprayed 2.0" average in the exterior walls of the addition, as well as 2.5" average in the roof deck. Next we’ll spray the crawl space, exterior walls and do a spray-down application in the attic of the  original building. Pitt’s Neck will be super insulated.”

Pitts Neck plantation was once a bustling scene. Because of its strategic location on the Pocomoke River, it was one of Virginia’s few official tobacco inspection warehouses. With demand for tobacco at an all-time  high in England, a scandal erupted when opportunistic growers exported “trash, bad, unsound, and unmerchantable tobacco” that threatened to harm the colony’s reputation. In response, in 1731 Virginia’s House of Burgesses demanded all tobacco “exported out of this colony and dominion, shall be first brought to some public warehouse, herein after mentioned, and there shall be viewed and inspected by persons thereunto appointed.” Pitts Landing was one of those 18 designated wharves.

Williams concludes, “Insulating a home here on the Chesapeake Bay is not a trivial thing. Summers are hot and muggy and winters are cold and windy. I believe the original builders used the latest technology and materials, and we’re following their lead. We’re pleased to find an insulation that will help keep this home comfortable and structurally sound for as long as someone lives here and cares for it.”

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For more information, or to arrange an interview on this subject please contact:
Dale McGlothlin (202) 341-8615
dm@seachangeglobal.com