Insulation
Insulation in your home provides resistance to heat flow and lowers your heating and cooling costs. Properly insulating your home not only reduces heating and cooling costs, but also improves comfort.
Most common insulation materials work by slowing conductive heat flow and convective heat flow. Heat flows from warmer to cooler areas until there is no longer a temperature difference. In your home, this means that in winter, heat flows directly from all heated living spaces to adjacent unheated attics, garages, basements, and especially to the outdoors. Heat flow can also move indirectly through interior ceilings, walls, and floors--wherever there is a difference in temperature. During the cooling season, heat flows from the outdoors to the interior of a house.
To maintain comfort, the heat lost in the winter must be replaced by your heating system and the heat gained in the summer must be removed by your cooling system. Properly insulating your home will decrease this heat flow by providing an effective resistance to the flow of heat.
When insulating your home, you can choose from many types of insulation. To choose the best type of insulation, you should first determine the following:
- Where you want or need to install/add insulation
- The recommended R-values for areas you want to insulate.
An insulating material’s resistance to conductive heat flow is measured or rated in terms of its thermal resistance or R-value. The R-value depends on the type of insulation, its thickness, and its density as well as temperature, aging, and moisture accumulation. National code for our region requires a minimum of R-49 attic insulation. Our technicians can test your current insulation to determine whether or not your home meets the standard and add insulation to meet code requirements.
Types of Insulation
Blanket insulation
The most common and widely available type of insulation is blanket insulation in the form of batts or rolls. It consists of flexible fibers, most commonly fiberglass. You also can find batts and rolls made from mineral (rock and slag) wool, plastic fibers, and natural fibers, such as cotton and sheep's wool. Batts and rolls are available in widths suited to standard spacing of wall studs, attic trusses or rafters, and floor joists. Batts with a special flame-resistant facing are available in various widths for basement walls and other places where the insulation will be left exposed.
Foam Board or Rigid Foam
Foam boards -- rigid panels of insulation -- can be used to insulate almost any part of your home, from the roof down to the foundation. They are very effective in exterior wall sheathing, interior sheathing for basement walls, and special applications such as attic hatches. They provide good thermal resistance (up to 2 times greater than most other insulating materials of the same thickness), and reduce heat conduction through structural elements, like wood and steel studs. The most common types of materials used in making foam board include polystyrene, polyisocyanurate (polyiso), and polyurethane.
Loose-Fill and Blown-In Insulation
Loose-fill insulation consists of small particles of fiber, foam, or other materials. These small particles form an insulation material that can conform to any space without disturbing structures or finishes. This ability to conform makes loose-fill insulation well suited for retrofits and locations where it would be difficult to install other types of insulation.
The most common types of materials used for loose-fill insulation include cellulose, fiberglass, and mineral (rock or slag) wool. All of these materials are produced using recycled waste materials. Cellulose is primarily made from recycled newsprint. Most fiberglass products contain 40% to 60% recycled glass. Mineral wool is usually produced from 75% post-industrial recycled content.
Spray Foam Insulation
Spray Foam Insulation is used in both residential and commercial construction as a thermal and acoustical insulation. It is designed for pneumatic installation in pen attic areas and for retrofitting enclosed sidewall and floor/ceiling construction assemblies.
The product is noncombustible, noncorrosive and odor free. In addition, it contains no chemicals to cause mildew and fungus growth, contains no formaldehyde, provides no sustenance for vermin, contains no asbestos, won't rot or decay and won't absorb moisture.
Tax Credits
In addition, adding insulation to your home or business may qualify you for energy tax credits through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. To learn more, call us to complete an assessment of your home or business.