The settled density of lose fill insulation must be determined before the corrosiveness test (§1209.5) and the smoldering combustion test (§1209.7) can be performed. This section describes the procedure for determining the settled density of loose fill insulation.

(a) Apparatus and materials.

(1) An insulation specimen container with a flat bottom and an inside diameter of 15.0±1 cm, straight sides [without a flared lip or spout, (Apparatus #1)]. The height of the beaker shall be such that the distance between the bottom of the cyclone and the top edge of the beaker is 8.5 cm±1.0 cm. (3.39 in±.39 in).

(2) A flat-rigid disc with a total weight of 75±5 g (2.65±0.18 oz) and of a suitable diameter to fit loosely into the specimen container. Weight may be added to the center of the disc to bring the total weight to the required 75±5 g (Apparatus #2).

(3) A balance of 2 kg (4.4 lbs) capacity accurate at least to 0.2 g (0.007 oz) (Apparatus #3).

(4) Blower apparatus, two units (supply and overflow) meeting the following specifications: (The Commission staff has found that a Breuer Electric Manufacturing Co., Model 98805 blower is suitable for this purpose, although other blowers may be suitable.) (Apparatus #4).

(i) Each blower apparatus shall be capable of blowing an average of 272.2 kg (600 lbs.) of insulation per hour.

(ii) Each blower apparatus shall have a nominal air flow of 2.1 cm3/min. (75 ft3/min.)

(iii) Each blower apparatus shall have a nominal motor speed of 16,450 revolutions per minute at 115 VAC.

(5) A shaker unit capable of shaking 4.5 kg (10 lb) of weight with a vertical motion of 0.5 g Root Mean Square (RMS) acceleration at an approximate frequency of 9 Hertz (Hz) and displacement of approximately 1.17 cm ( 15⁄32 ± 1⁄32 in.) ±.08 cm peak to peak. (The Commission staff has found that a Tyler Industries, Portable Sieve Shaker Model Rx-24 is suitable for this purpose, although other shakers may be suitable.) (Apparatus #5).

(6) Fill chamber with inside dimensions of 45.7 cm (18 in) high × 38.1 cm (15 in) wide × 38.1 cm (15 in) deep, with covered openings that will allow a radiant panel tray to be slid through the chamber, (see Figure 1 for details) (Apparatus #6).

(7) A cyclone receiver (see Figure 2 for complete details). (Apparatus #7).

(8) Various lengths of nominally 2-inch diameter hose (see Figure 1 for details), as follows:

(i) A supply source hose, 274.3±5.1 cm (9 ft±2 in) (Apparatus #8(i)).

(ii) A cyclone receiver hose, 182.9±5.1 cm (6 ft±2 in) (Apparatus #8(ii)).

(iii) A fill chamber exit hose, 91,.4±5.1 cm (3 ft±2 in) (Apparatus #8(iii)).

(iv) An overflow exhaust hose, length as needed (Apparatus #8(iv)).

(9) Blower Control(s) capable of operating the two blowers at 40 volts RMS. As an example, a variac for each of the two blowers with sufficient rating to operate at 40 volts and 12 amperes RMS would be acceptable (Apparatus #9).

(10) An insulation holding container to hold a sufficient quantity of insulation to fill the specimen container four times.

(11) A garden rake, 50.8 cm (20 in) wide (Apparatus #11).

(12) A shovel (Apparatus #12).

(b) Conditioning. Specimens shall be conditioned to equilibrium at 21±5 °C (69.8±9 °F) and 50±5 % relative humidity. A less than 1% change in net weight of the specimen in two consecutive weighings with two hours between each weighing constitutes equilibrium.

(c) Test specimen preparation—

(1) Insulation intended for pneumatic applications. If the insulation is intended for pneumatic applications, the test specimens shall be prepared in the following manner:

(i) If ambient laboratory conditions are different from the conditioning requirements specified in (b) above, begin testing the specimen for settled density within 10 minutes after it has been removed from the conditioned area.

(ii) Pour the conditioned insulation into the holding box (Apparatus #10) in sufficient quantity to fill the specimen container (Apparatus #1 shown in Figure 1) four times. Manually break up any large clumps of material that might cause feeding problems.

(2) Insulation intended for pouring applications. If the insulation is intended for pouring applications, the test specimens shall be prepared in the following manner:

(i) If ambient laboratory conditions are different from the conditioning requirements specified in (b) above, begin testing 10 minutes after it has been removed from the conditioned area.

(ii) Pour loose fill insulation into a simulated attic space until full. The attic space shall be formed by two nominal 2 × 6 (243 cm) (8 ft) long joists placed 40.6 cm (16 in) on center with 1.27 cm ( 1⁄2 in) plywood nailed to the ends and bottom. Fluff the material with a garden rake (Apparatus #11), applying a series of small amplitude strokes while moving the rake slowly along the joist. Repeat the fluffing process six times.

(d) Procedures—

(1) Procedures for insulation intended for pneumatic applications. If the insulation is intended for pneumatic applications, conduct the following procedures:

(i) The test shall be conducted in an area conditioned to the requirements of §1209.4(b).

(ii) The apparatus shall be set up as shown in Figure 1. (Apparatus #9 and #10 are not shown in Figure 1, but are described at §1209.4(a)). Connect one end of the supply source hose (Apparatus #8.i) to the intake of the supply blower (Apparatus #4). The other end will be used to pick up insulation from the holding container (Apparatus #10). Connect one end of the cyclone receiver hose (Apparatus #8.ii) to the outlet of the supply blower and the other end to the cyclone receiver (Apparatus #7). Connect one end of the fill chamber exit hose (Apparatus #8.iii) to the intake of the overflow blower (Apparatus #4) and the other end to the fill chamber (Apparatus #6). The fill chamber shall be placed on a flat and level surface. Connect one end of the variable length overflow exhaust hose (Apparatus #8.iv) to the outlet of the overflow blower. The other end should be conveniently placed to reduce insulation dust in the test area.

(iii) Weigh the empty insulation specimen container and record its weight.

(iv) Place the empty insulation specimen container in the fill chamber (Apparatus #6) centered under the cyclone receiver (Apparatus #7), and close the front cover.

(v) Adjust the blower control(s) (Apparatus #9) such that the supply and overflow blowers will operate at a no load voltage of 40 volts RMS.

(vi) Turn on the blowers simultaneously and proceed to fill the insulation specimen container by picking up material from the holding container using the supply source hose.

(vii) The container may fill unevenly, i.e. a void may tend to form off center in the container. If this occurs, stop the blowing process and rotate the container 180 degrees and continue the blowing process until the container just begins to overflow. If, for any reason, the filling process is interrupted for more than one minute or for more than the one time allowed to rotate the container, begin the process again.

(viii) Gently screed the excess material using a straight edge so as to leave a uniform surface of the insulation flush with the top of the container.

(ix) Weigh the filled and leveled container and record the weight. Take care not to bump or jar the container so as not to introduce any extraneous settling of the insulation.

(x) Cover the container to prevent spilling and secure the container to the shaker. Operate the shaker for a period of 5 minutes±15 seconds.

(xi) Remove the container from the shaker and uncover, taking care not to bump or jar it. Lower the disc (Apparatus #2) very slowly into the container until it starts to contact the insulation. At this point, release the disc and allow it to settle onto the insulation under its own weight.

(xii) Measure the volume of the space occupied by the settled insulation using the bottom edge of the disc as the upper datum point. If the disc is not level, measure the high and low points of the bottom of the disc and average the readings and use this as the height measurement in calculating the volume (Vs). This settled insulation volume and insulation weight (w) shall be used to calculate the settled density.

(xiii) Repeat this procedure [steps (i through xi)] using another specimen of the insulation until four settled densities are obtained for a given material. Then average these figures to arrive at a final settled density.

(2) Procedures for insulation intended for pouring applications. If the insulation is intended for pouring applications, conduct the following procedures:

(i) Weigh the empty insulation specimen container and record its weight.

(ii) Using a shovel (Apparatus #12) remove insulation from the simulated attic space and place it into the specimen container until the container just begins to overflow.

(iii) Follow steps (vi) through (xii) as specified under Procedures for insulation intended for pneumatic applications.

(iv) Repeat this procedure (steps (i) through (iii)) using another specimen of the insulation until four settled densities are obtained for a given material. Then average these figures to arrive at a final settled density.

(e) Insulation intended for pouring and pneumatic applications. If the insulation is intended for both pouring and pneumatic applications, or if it is uncertain whether the insulation will be poured or installed pneumatically, the insulation shall be tested for settled density using the test specimen preparation and test procedures at §1209.4 (c) and (d) for each of the applications. The larger of the two settled density values shall be used in performing the corrosiveness test at §1209.5 and the smoldering combustion test at §1209.7.

(f) Calculations. Calculate the settled density of each specimen using the following formula: