"Foam board question." Topic

In the UK, bloggers show off blue or pink foam board that comes in manageable sizes and can be cut to create wonderful things. When I go to my local Lowes or Home Depot (essentially the same store, different colors) in the US, the only thing that seems remotely close to what I see online is virtually hidden in the back of the store and comes in 10'x10' sheets. Is there a US version of what I see being used in the UK? If so, where do you get it?
Thanks.

I've bought it in 4 by 10 sheets and then cut it to suit.

David

It is in Home Depot (at least in the NorthEast)in the building insulation section. I usually see in in 4 foot by 8 foot sections, sometimes 2 foot by 8 foot.

It can also be found in 2'x2' pieces in some Home Depots.

I've never seen 10' sheets, just the 4x8.

Take a utility knife with you and cut it in half for tansport.

Store staff will also cut it into smaller pieces for you.

Is it really as useful as people seem to claim?

yes!!!

Just see what Anton is doing with it:

link

Jim

Could have been 8 foot long (I know it was taller than me at least) I cut it so I could put it in the car.

Yea, 4' x 8' sheets.

They sometimes also sell 2' x 2' sheets for small projects as well, but those are pretty expensive compared to the larger boards.

I had Home Depot special order some for me, eons ago. Shipping was expensive, so I bought a bunch, to amortize that cost a bit.

in my part of the world, home depot doesn't sell the 4x8, only 2x8 ! but great stuff

Mwind, states who dont need insulation towards the cold, like Texas, will have problem locating it at Lowes or Home Depot.
Should be able to spdcial order it though.

Grimm

Grimmnar is correct. In MA we have an entire aisle dedicated to foam sheets because it gets cold up here.

I use it for hills and terrain boards.

Here in way northern New York we have a range of choices of thickness to boot. 1" to at least three inches. 2x8 foot and 4x8 foot are the most common sheet sizes.

I love the stuff for terrain modeling.

The REALLY nice thing abut the expanded foam insulation is that you can use spray paints on it with no damage at all. If you tried to spray the pressed-foam stuff like you find in packages for protection against damage, they just melt away.

However, the blue and pink foam insulation takes the paint just fine.

If you are going to use the stuff for terrain, then also invest in a hot knife for easier cutting, and practice using it on smaller pieces and/or scraps so you will know what temperatures, angles, etc work best for you.

In addition, get a nice shop vac or Dust Buster, because you're going to have a lot of smaller bits than need cleaning up and a vacuum cleaner is perfect for the job.

Lastly, if you have a vehicle and time to drive around a bit, look for places where new homes or buildings are being constructed. They almost always have plenty of scrap insulation board, and even MDF board, thin ply, etc, that they just toss out. Ask to speak to a foreman, or site manager, and ask him if he'd be willing to give you any scraps of the stuff. By driving around on and off for a couple weeks, I managed to get enough blue and pink foam insulation scraps t finish off a large-scale model railroad project for a friend. Didn't cost me a dime, and the builders were more than happy to see the stuff taken off their hands, rather than filling up a dumpster, etc.

I bought my boards at Home Depot. They come in 4X8 sheets. I have seen them in 2x2 also. They are great. I use them for my wargames table. Glued onto MDF. They can be cut, sculpted, etc. I use acrylic paint on them and they take it fine. No issues.