NT-FR 2000, NT-1600, NT-1200 vs. DrySpace™ Vapor
Barrier
Unfortunately, as the crawl space industry grows
there are more and more companies
trying to bank a quick buck at your
expense.
The product NT-FR 2000 is
not a 20 vapor barrier, unless you
care how thick it is at the string
reinforcement. If you measure the
barrier at the string (which sticks
up from the barrier) it may measure
20 Mil only because there are 2
layers of string, which makes it a 5
ply.
The DrySpace™ brand crawl
space vapor barrier measures almost
24 Mil at the string reinforcement,
but that does not matter to us. The
vapor protection is in the thickness
of the polyethylene; the string is
only for additional strength and
plays not part in moisture control.
This deception is true with their
NT-1600 and NT-1200 as well, take a
look at the table below.
Fire Retardant
Fire retardant is an
additive put into the polyethylene
to suppress flame spread. The first
thing we need to understand is
everything on earth will burn and
polyethylene is no different. When a
fire retardant is added to a vapor
barrier the goal is to have the
plastic extinguish on its own when
the flame source is removed. For
every action there is an equal and
opposite reaction; The more fire
retardant that is added the more
smoke there is once the flame goes
out. That is why the tests are
designed to measure both flame
spread and smoke development. The
closer the product gets to a 0 flame
spread, generally the higher the
smoke development and the lower the
smoke development the higher the
flame spread. As you can see it
takes trial and error to get a
acceptable level of both. The
manufacture did not design this
product to be used in crawl spaces;
it was designed for equipment
storage, landfill covers, athletic
field covers, crop protection etc.
So you can see why it is far more
important for this product to have a
strong flame control than it is to
have a strong smoke control with
these types of outdoor uses. This
product has a flame spread of 5 and
smoke development of 80, which less
than 50 is required for most
building codes.
We can get this product for you at a
better price if you feel it fits
your needs better.
The company that renamed
these products, NT-FR 2000, NT-1600,
and NT-1200 buys them and then
resells it. They mark up the real
thickness, and then mark up the
price to compete with our products
and give free shipping. We are
offering free shipping on all orders over $250 and we will
do the same with this product.
Please call our office to order if you wish to use this
product in your crawl space instead
of the DrySpace™ brand. I am certain
we can get you a much better price
as well as extend our expertise to
help you get it installed.
The easiest way to know what you’re
getting is by finding out what it
weighs!
When it comes to the phrase
"light weight heavy duty material",
well there is no such thing. It's
either light weight or heavy duty;
they are two completely different
classes. This term is used by this
company to describe their products,
probably to assure you that it is
strong but not very heavy. With a
material like polyethylene there is
not much difference in weight, only
depending on how much high density
and low density polyethylene is used
to make the barrier. All vapor
barriers are weighed per 1000 square
feet and that weight does not vary
much more than one or two pounds. In
the case of the NT-FR 2000 it weighs
74 pounds per 1000, when a real 20
Mil will weigh in at around 105. So
if you see two polyethylene barriers
one weighing even 10 pounds less,
that is a signal that it has less
polyethylene in it and therefore not
as thick. Take a look at the other
weight differences on the tables
below to see what I mean. Oh, one
more thing- all of these numbers
were taken from the other company's
site so they are accurate. Also know
that their business is selling water
and furnace filters not fixing crawl
spaces.
| Product Name |
DrySpace™
12 Mil |
NT-1600 |
| Weight Per 1000 Sq Ft |
58 lbs |
58 lbs |
| Trapezoid Tear |
72 lbs |
36 lbs |
| Stated Thickness |
12 Mil |
16 Mil |
| Actual Thickness At Vapor Barrier |
12 Mil |
12 Mil |
| Price Per Sq Ft |
$0.30 |
$0.40 |
| Price Per 1200 Sq Ft Roll |
$360.00 |
$480.00 |
| Free Shipping |
Yes |
Yes |
| Purchase Through CrawlSpace
Concepts |
Yes |
Yes |
| Price if bought from us |
$360.00 |
$415.20 |
|
| Product Name |
DrySpace™ 8
Mil |
NT-1200 |
| Weight Per 1000 Sq Ft |
38 lbs |
38 lbs |
| Trapezoid Tear |
55 lbs |
29 lbs |
| Stated Thickness |
8 Mil |
12 Mil |
| Actual Thickness At Vapor Barrier |
8 Mil |
8 Mil |
| Price Per Sq Ft |
$0.27 |
$0.30 |
| Price Per 1200 Sq Ft Roll |
$325.00 |
$360.00 |
| Free Shipping |
Yes |
Yes |
| Purchase Through CrawlSpace
Concepts |
Yes |
Yes |
| Price if bought from us |
$325.00 |
$331.00 |
|
|
