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Let’s go over the different types of insulation. The first kind that most people think of is batten style insulation. It’s a fiberglass insulation that comes in rolls of different thicknesses, and you can put it in walls or along the ceiling area; you roll it out and then staple it to the trusses. The second kind is called the blown-in insulation; there are a number of different types of blown-in insulation including fiberglass and cellulose. Those are used at the ceiling level, so from inside the attic you spray it on the floor using a machine that uses air pressure to blow it in. Fiberglass is probably the most common material that is used today for blown-in style insulation. A blown-in type that we have seen more over the last few years is spray foam insulation. Now the spray foam insulation principles are a little bit different than other types of insulation. What I mean is that historically in building construction, what you do is you allow the hot air to make it into the envelope of the property – into the attic. The insulation goes on the floor of the attic – or just above the ceiling of the inside space – and then you restrict the amount of hot air that comes down into the living space through that insulation. Well, spray foam insulation is different; with this process you are trying to restrict the heat from ever making it into the envelope of the home – into the attic. With traditional insulation on a 90-degree day outside, even with a well-insulated attic, it's not uncommon that your attic temperature is 140-150 degrees. Spray foam insulation is sprayed on the underside of the roof deck. It's phenomenal stuff! With a spray foam insulation, the attic temperature is usually within four degrees of your inside temperature. So let's say that you keep your house at 78 degrees; then your attic would be 82 degrees. That's a big improvement over 140-150 degrees. There is also a type of non-sealed foam insulation where it's within 4-5 degrees of the outside temperature. In this case, if it's 90 degrees outside, then your attic would be 94-95 degrees. Either way, both of those are much better than standard traditional insulation. The foam insulation that is used today is a different chemical make-up than what was used before, which contained formaldehyde and caused a lot of problems with the vapors coming through. Be sure that it is the newer foam insulation material that is being installed. Now as a retrofit, the spray foam insulation is more difficult and a little bit more expensive to do, but it is worth it. If you seal off the attic space, you have to remove all your old insulation before doing it. And you need to make sure that your HVAC system will work with it. That is one of the concerns with the spray foam insulation, but in general it's a much better material and method to install. Additionally, if you have a block home, there is usually very little insulation in those block walls, if any. Block is a very durable material and is great at withstanding storms or hurricanes, and you know termites don’t eat it - so for those purposes it’s great. But if you have a house that is constructed out of block, chances are all of your exterior walls have no insulation in them whatsoever. Sometimes they do a little IsoBoard between the block and the furring strips, but most of the time there is zero insulation in that block wall. There is a spray foam product which is sprayed right into the block walls, adding insulation to the block walls as well. It saves about 20-30% on energy savings. In this insulation process, small holes are drilled into the exterior walls of the house and injected with foam insulation. It is quite inexpensive compared to using standard insulation in your attic, and is much more effective. So much of the heat/cold is actually making its way through the exterior walls. Remember, by insulating, you should save energy and cut down on the condensation issues as well. Condensation forms when hot air and cool air connect to one another. And the reason it happens a lot along exterior walls is because there’s no insulation; there’s no radiant block to stop the cool air inside the house from getting to the hot air on the outside. The moment that you insulate that, you no longer have a dead air space. Now, the hot doesn’t get to the cold, so the condensation doesn’t grow there. It cuts down on mold issues; it cuts down on draftiness. It’s just a no-brainer. It really is one of the least expensive ways to insulate your house and get the highest return on your investment. For home improvement advice and service, visit the Universal Roof & Contracting website. Jared Mellick and his father Ken Mellick are the owners of Central Florida’s premier construction company Universal Roof & Contracting, a family-run business which has been serving homeowners in the Greater Orlando area for nearly 20 years. Together they host a local radio home improvement and construction talk show called “In The House with Ken & Jared”. Contact Universal Roof & Contracting for any issues involving Related Articles -
home improvement, insulation, blown-in insulation, spray foam insulation, batten insulation,
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