Insulation, Radiant and Vapor Barriers - foam board glue for basement bulkhead?

So - I decided to imsulate my basement bulkhead. I have one of the steel bulkheads leading to a wide staircase.

I decided against using a door at the base for air sealing because it limits my ability to bring large things into the basement (although I will be putting a few shower curtains at the base to make a partial air barrier).

What I did decide to do is buy some pink foam board and glue to the backside of the bulkhead. I picked up some PL foam board adhesive, and when I ran out I tried loctite general purpose adhesive (good for foam board on the package)

The boards were pressed against the steel and propped with sticks to give some pressure. The stuff said it should dry in 24 hours, but I had it up for a week and it was as wet as the day it was applied! what gives? some cooler temperatures this late in the year but some surprisingly warm days lately here (new england)

the board fell down the other night and I didn't pick it up - glue was hard in the morning.

Why did this happen? same result both adhesives. I would think airflow wouldn't matter with glue meant to hold foam board where no air should flow.

Is there a better adhesive I should be using for the job? thoughts, ideas?

The adhesives you used come in a sealed contained. All you did was change the containers. Foam board is moisture tight and obviously so is the steel. I've used both of those adhesives up against concrete and they did fine.

I'm thinking a two part adhesive might work. One that when mixed will harden no matter where it is. A quick search seems to refer to roof deck two part adhesives and that would be similar to your steel bulkhead. See if that leads anywhere.
"two part polyurethane adhesive"

Bud

good point, and good suggestion bud. I will take a look next time I am at the local supply store.

May not be a common item as I don't remember seeing anything like it at the big box. You might read the label on Gorilla glue, it is water activated and comes in smaller containers. A quick test would be appropriate.

Bud

Try construction adhesive like Liquid Nail. I used it for the foam board on wood and it's been there for 10 years now.

thanks for the suggestions.

"Liquid nails" is one of the adhesives I tried, just as bad as the PL stuff. must just be the tight seal it gets with the metal plate.

Bud's suggestion sounds good, but I haven't found anything at a few local stores. I'm still looking though... Ill do some reading on gorilla glue - that stuff is expensive. Tube the size of a tube of caulk was 20 bux at sears.

You might look at using an adhesive tape instead of a glue, something like auto trim tape? Not cheap if you buy it in small rolls, but it would be less expensive if there is a real auto body supply nearby, they would have larger rolls.

And what about some sort of contact adhesive?