Why You Should Insulate Your Home
Perth Insulation is the best way to keep your home warm in winter and cool in summer. It also helps reduce noise.
All materials have different thermal properties, but those that insulate well have strong bonds and don’t easily transfer energy. This is what makes cellulose insulation so effective, though it can cause allergy issues and some people have difficulty finding individuals skilled in installing it.
Insulation is a key component of the home and helps maintain a healthy indoor climate by slowing sound and heat transfer between adjacent areas. It also reduces your energy bills significantly by trapping the heat inside in winter and preventing it from escaping during summer. It’s a relatively inexpensive building material that pays for itself over time with lower electricity costs.
During the winter, uninsulated homes lose about 25% of their heat through the roof and walls. Insulation slows that conductive transfer by trapping air, which is a poor conductor of thermal energy, or by reflecting radiant heat away from the interior of the house. During the summer, insulation slows the flow of heat into your living spaces by absorbing and retaining the heat in the attic space.
Without adequate insulation, your heating system works hard to keep up with the demand for heat. In addition, air leaks around windows and doors allow cold air to escape in the winter and hot air to enter during the summer, which forces your cooling system to work harder.
If you are experiencing drafts and high energy bills, consider getting a professional to install insulation in your home. An attic inspection with an infrared camera is a quick way to see whether your home has the correct level of insulation. If you have gaps in your attic, it is important to seal them with caulking and weatherstripping before installing insulation.
Bradford glasswool insulation products provide a high resistance to the transfer of thermal energy which reduces electricity bills and the need for excessive air conditioning. It also improves acoustics and dampens unwanted noise in rooms.
All materials allow thermal energy to transfer through them, but some materials are better conductors than others. Metals are good conductors, while non-metals, such as wood and cotton, are poor insulators. Insulation, on the other hand, blocks the transmission of thermal energy by creating a barrier that resists heat transfer. The higher the R-value, the more effective the insulation is. Ideally, insulation should be installed in the floors, walls and ceilings of your home. It’s worth noting that homeowners in colder states usually enjoy the greatest savings from properly installed insulation, but even southern homeowners can see significant reductions in their energy bills by ensuring that their houses are well insulated.
Increases Home Comfort
Insulation slows the transfer of heat in and out of your home, keeping it cooler in summer and warmer in winter. This reduces your energy usage, saving you money on heating and cooling costs.
It’s also a great way to reduce outside noise, creating a more peaceful living environment. Insulation is available in a range of forms, including foam, fiberglass and cellulose. These materials work by resisting heat transfer through conduction, convection and radiation.
Homeowners often complain that their homes are too cold in the winter. This is due to heat escaping their homes at a rate that exceeds the furnace’s ability to produce it. When insulation is added to the attic, crawl space or rim joist, it prevents this heat from escaping, allowing the furnace to stay off for longer periods of time. This saves you money and creates a more comfortable home.
In addition, insulation can block outdoor contaminants like dust, pollen and volatile chemicals from entering your home. This reduces respiratory illnesses and allergies, such as asthma. It also lowers the humidity levels in your home, reducing mold and mildew growth. This results in a cleaner, healthier home and reduced medical bills.
Another reason to invest in home insulation is that it increases your property value. It is an energy-efficient upgrade that will be attractive to potential buyers and increase the likelihood of a quick sale. Energy-efficient homes are in high demand, and homeowners can expect a return on their investment of up to 2 percent.
By reducing our need for artificial heating and cooling, home insulation can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This is a major benefit given the increasing global awareness of climate change and the need to cut carbon dioxide emissions. In order to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels and reduce CO2 emissions, it is necessary for every homeowner to properly insulate their home. The best place to start is by having a professional conduct a home energy audit and determine the best way to insulate your home. The results will be worth the investment for years to come.
Prevents Health Issues
Insulation prevents outdoor pollutants and allergens from entering your home, which improves indoor air quality (IAQ) and helps you stay healthy. Poor IAQ can contribute to respiratory illnesses, allergies and asthma. Insulation can also help you maintain a more comfortable indoor temperature, so you’re less likely to sweat excessively, which can lead to heat exhaustion and other health problems.
Proper insulation reduces the amount of energy needed to keep your home at a comfortable temperature, which cuts down on fossil fuel consumption. Since fossil fuels are the main source of greenhouse gases and sulfur dioxide, which is a major component of acid rain, this can significantly cut down on these emissions and help to protect the environment.
In addition, insulation reduces condensation, a key factor in the growth of mold and mildew, which can lead to structural damage and health issues like asthma, coughing and wheezing. This drier atmosphere is possible because the insulation keeps cold air outside, and warm air inside, which creates an effective barrier that can help to prevent moisture build-up and mold growth.
As a bonus, good insulation can also help to reduce drafts and hot or cold spots in your home that can trigger these health issues as well as other discomforts. Insulation can also help to keep humidity levels in check, which is important for those who suffer from asthma or allergies because high or low indoor humidity can cause them to flare up.
The type of insulation you choose is also important because some types can contain harmful chemicals that are a health hazard. For example, spray foam insulation can use a volatile organic compound called methylene diphenyl diisocyanate, or MDI, which is a carcinogen and may cause lung damage in workers. Rigid foam insulation made from polystyrene or XPS is another choice, and both of these materials are known to emit toxic fumes during the manufacturing process, which can be dangerous to your health.
You can avoid these problems by choosing a product that is free of these chemicals, such as fiberglass insulation or cotton from post-industrial scrap denim. You can also look for Greenguard-certified insulation, which uses fewer VOCs. Another option is to go with natural products that do not need any kind of chemical additives or fire retardants, such as cellulose insulation from recycled paper or hemp fibers.
Reduces Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Greenhouse gases (GHGs) and climate change are on everyone’s mind – whether we’re discussing alternative transportation methods, developing carbon-capturing technologies or increasing the energy efficiency of our homes. When it comes to GHG reduction, insulating your home is one of the most cost-effective solutions. In fact, it is often more cost-effective than installing new windows and doors. Insulation reduces the amount of energy needed to heat and cool your home, thus reducing your overall energy usage.
But the environmental benefits of insulation go beyond reduced energy use. Many insulation materials are environmentally preferable because of their lower embodied carbon. Embodied carbon refers to the amount of CO2 emitted during the manufacturing, transportation and construction of a material. All building materials have a certain amount of embodied carbon; however, insulating your home with sustainable insulation can help decrease this number.
Most insulation, such as cellulose, wood fiber and hemp, are natural, renewable resources that do not contain any GHG emissions during their production. In addition, cellulose and hemp insulation have the ability to sequester atmospheric CO2 during their lifetimes. These bio-based insulation materials also exhibit low GWPs. Other types of insulation, such as EPS and polyiso, on the other hand, have higher embodied carbon emissions because they require the use of hydrofluorocarbons for their blowing agents.
Another way that cellulose and hemp insulation reduce GHG emissions is by replacing traditional foam insulation such as extruded polystyrene (XPS). XPS is known to be a significant source of CFCs, HCFCs and PFCS. In fact, a recent study found that if all homes in the US were insulated with cellulose to the standard R-38, it would eliminate the need for XPS and other products that use CFCs.
Insulation is a cost-effective solution that reduces greenhouse gas emissions, saves you money and improves your home’s comfort. With all of these benefits, it is no wonder that more and more homeowners are embracing this green technology! Contact a professional insulation contractor to find out more about the benefits of insulation in your home and how to maximize its efficiency.