Philadelphia-Based Inventor Utilizes Fiberglass Blowing Wool from CertainTeed in Gulf Oil CleanUp

VALLEY FORGE, Pa., May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- A Philadelphia-area inventor is conferring with distributors and cleanup specialists to supply them with InsulSorb© materials, a product designed to minimize ecological damage to the Gulf waters and wetlands that utilizes loose fiberglass wool from CertainTeed Corporation.

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Specializing in the development of high volume sorbent materials and booms, Jeffrey Brelsford, president of S.E. Squared, Inc., came up with the idea of treating fiberglass insulation rendering it hydrophobic. Specifically, the patent-pending InsulSorb is designed to repel water and absorb toxic or hazardous materials such as oil, antifreeze, gasoline and other pollutants from bodies of water, garage floors and roadways.

InsulSorb consists of unbounded, shredded fiberglass blowing wool particles that may be sprayed from an aircraft or boat over water, or by a vehicle on land to rapidly absorb toxic or hazardous materials.

"The light weight material absorbs the pollutant in minutes rather than hours or days. It's capable of soaking up 100 to 170 percent more than polyproylene, a material most commonly used by clean up specialists," says Brelsford.

More importantly, Brelsford points out that because fiberglass consists of 100 percent natural sand and rock — unlike most other products composed of artificial materials — InsulSorb is environmental neutral. The product will not rot or decay, is recyclable after recovering oil by squeezing it out of the material and repels water, which means no mildew or fungus.

"We've been in the business of manufacturing insulation for almost half a century and are well versed in the environmentally friendly attributes of fiberglass," says Paul Valle, president of CertainTeed Insulation. "We are committed to whatever we can to minimize the negative environmental impact from the Gulf oil spill."

CertainTeed offers a comprehensive line of insulation products and equipment, including time-tested and trusted fiberglass insulation batts and rolls, fiberglass blow-in insulation, polyurethane spray foam, innovative vapor retarder technology, and highly regarded HVAC products as well as insulation blowing and foam application equipment. For more information, visit www.certainteed.com.

S.E. Squared, Inc., is a privately owned and operated company based in Quakertown, Pa. The company specializes in developing environmentally safe products for hazardous recovery specialists. For more information about InsulSorb, visit www.se2inc.com.

About CertainTeed

Through the responsible development of innovative and sustainable building products, CertainTeed has helped shape the building products industry for more than 100 years. Founded in 1904 as General Roofing Manufacturing Company, the firm's slogan "Quality Made Certain, Satisfaction Guaranteed," quickly inspired the name CertainTeed. Today, CertainTeed® is North America's leading brand of exterior and interior building products, including roofing, siding, windows, fence, decking, railing, trim, foundations, pipe, insulation, gypsum, ceilings and access covers.

A subsidiary of Saint-Gobain, the world's largest building products company, CertainTeed and its affiliates have more than 6,000 employees and more than 65 manufacturing facilities throughout the United States and Canada. In 2009 and 2010, CertainTeed, which is headquartered in Valley Forge, Pa., was named ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, a national award that recognizes environmentally responsible corporations. The group had total sales of approximately $3 billion in 2009. www.certainteed.com

SOURCE CertainTeed Corporation