What our technical support covers
- Choosing grades for the foam or product you make.
- Reviewing your formula against your target density and hardness.
- Planning and following a trial: test box first, then a production pour.
- Tracing a defect back to the raw material, the formula or the process.
Common flexible-foam problems and first checks
- Foam collapses — check the silicone level and the balance of the tin catalyst first.
- Splits or cracks — often the gelling is too slow against the blowing.
- Scorched centre — high water and a high index raise the core temperature; large blocks and hot days add to it.
- Foam rises above or stays below the box — the batch size or the blowing (water and blowing agent) does not fit the box and the target density.
These are first checks, not a diagnosis. Your formula, raw-material batches and conditions decide the real cause — send us the details and we look at it with you.
Foam Lab on the RIFAD portal
Customers test a formula on our portal before pouring: the pour check says whether the foam fits the box and reaches the target density, what the recipe is expected to give and which risks to watch, with the changes to try in kilograms. A guide to 66 common foam problems — what you see, what to do now and the likely causes — is in Get help. Formulas stay the customer's own; we never share one customer's formula with another.
Always test a small box first
Advice and calculations are guidance. Pour a test box with the new kilograms, measure it, and only then change a production pour. A person from our team reviews any change you are unsure about.
Reviewed by the RIFAD technical team · Updated