Well, my DH decided to immediately rip it out of every crevice of every joist of our home after he had installed it just 5 days prior. It made his nose feel stuffed up, but more problematic it triggered an asthma reaction in me... so severe that I had to move into a neighbour's house until all the stuff had been removed and all the joists vacuumed clean (and this from a man I can't even get to vacuum the house).

I contacted Certainteed who sent a guy who took some samples he said would be tested. But months later I would learn via email(and only after I prompted him to respond)that he did not even test the samples he took from our home, and instead "tested" other unopened bags he picked up from the dealer! Huh?!? My followup email received no further response.

My question is, has anyone used the Certainteed green insulation that smells like burnt coffee? And has anyone had an adverse reaction to it? Or is this just me? Wish they'd tell what they put in that stuff!

So much for me persuading DH to go "green"!

Give us the name and type of the insulation. Certainteed "Sustainable Insulation" is fiberglass made with a plant based binder instead of formaldehyde and has medium brown streaks in it.

If it has a kraft paper facing the petroleum based asphalt coating will smell for a week or two. For many reasons it is best to use unfaced batts with a polyethylene vapor retarder.

These are UNFACED batts.

Not only was this a costly mistake for us, it really shocked us that something ok'd for California indoor use triggered an asthmatic reaction!

Would love to hear if anyone else has experienced problems with this type of Certainteed insulation!