Why Spray Foam Insulation?

I can honestly say that I've regretted it every time I ignored my gut feelings, and my spray foam experience is no exception. I'd read the MSDS for both Parts A & B of Demilec's Sealection 500 foam and the ingredients made me cringe; despite the claims, I'm intelligent enough to know that there is nothing "green" about using a product with such toxic chemicals. But, like probably everyone else who has had foam insulation sprayed in their attics, I wanted lower utilities bills and a more comfortable home. In fact I was desperate. We have 2 HVAC units, one upstairs/one downstairs, and during the most extreme months of the year, both winter and summer, our utilities bill were well over $500 and sometimes over $600. The North Carolina summers are particularly excruciating for me and I would try to keep the house cool but during the hottest months the temps upstairs would often be in the 80s which, of course, would increase the temps downstairs as well. The indoor humidity, particularly upstairs, was often unbearable so I would also run a dehumidifier, which I would have to empty twice daily if I left it running 24/7, and I usually ended up sleeping downstairs on the sofa anyway. Which also increased my chiropractic bills.

I ignored all the red flags, and some of those red flags were huge and blatantly flapping in the wind in front of my face...

• The ingredients of the foam alone should have been enough of a warning;
• Shane Hunter, the spray foam salesman for Ross & Witmer at the time, seemed to me like a stereotypical "used car salesman" (no offense intended to you honest used car salesmen). He tried to be charming but to me his charm was seedy at best. I did not like him and, as it turned out, he was lying about almost everything;
• Jeff Elog, the manager of Ross & Witmer (not sure if he's still the manager), gave me an uneasy feeling, although I couldn't pinpoint why. As it turned out, he had knowingly misled me into continuing to think that Ross & Witmer was the same company who sprayed my girlfriend's attic;
• The date for the foam installation was July 13, 2012. That was a Friday. Although I like to think of myself as not being superstitious, the date gave me reason to pause, which I blew off because I didn't want to appear to be superstitious...;
• Back to the spray foam ingredients. That really should have been enough to deter me from having it put in my house. Our attic is huge and like Bernie said, "there's a lot of foam up there."

During the week preceding my initial meeting with Shane Hunter, the temperature in the house had reached the low 90s upstairs and was in the 80s downstairs. I had both AC units running full time. Yeah, I was desperate... and the only conclusion I can come to is, with the help of Shane Hunter and Jeff Elog, desperation superseded all knowledge, reason, logic and gut feelings...and thus I convinced myself, despite all the warnings, that I needed to have spray foam insulation in the attic.

I can honestly say, without a doubt, that was the biggest mistake I've ever made in my entire life.