Imagine going outside in the dead of winter without a warm coat—what happens?

Your body loses a lot of heat and has to work really hard to keep you from freezing. Wearing your coat makes it so your body doesn’t have to work as hard to churn out the BTUs.

Insulation offers similar benefits by keeping valuable air from escaping from your home. But what makes one insulation different from another?

Understanding the properties of insulation, such as R-Value, installation method and its part in controlling air-infiltration, can help you make more informed decisions when choosing insulation.

R-Value

This indicates a material’s amount of resistance to heat transfer. The higher this number, the more insulation the product provides. Other factors to consider when looking at R-Value are assembly, thickness, and location.

• Assembly: To increase the accuracy of insulation’s R-value the entire assembly (exterior and interior walls as well as insulation material)is sometimes considered. But for most consumers calculation at this level is not necessary.
• Thickness: A common misconception about the R-Value is that the thicker the insulation material, the more efficient it is. While the R-value may increase as the amount of insulation increases, there is actually a decreasing return in terms of efficiency. For example, fiberglass batting with an R-value of 3.3 increases to an R-value of 6.6 when the amount of material is doubled, however, the efficiency does not double in the same way.
• Location: Building codes in different parts of the country call for different R-values. Fuel and material costs as well as climate conditions determine these varying insulation needs. To see where you stand check out the U.S. Department of Energy.

Installation

The installation of insulation varies depending on the type of material used:

• Rolls and Batts: This includes fiberglass, rock wool, and other materials made of fibers such as denim. They usually come in standard wall stud spacing widths.
• Loose-fill Insulation: Fiber materials, such as cellulose, which come in small particles, need to be blown into wall spaces.
• Rigid Foam Insulation: This type of insulation is usually cut to fit into wall spaces.

Some types of insulation should be installed by professionals, such as spray-in foam insulation in large awkward areas like the attic. Others can be done by you with help from sites such as DoItYourself.com. Whether you do it yourself or hire someone to install for you, it is important to know the behavior of the material you are working with to ensure proper installation.

Air Infiltration:

Insulation plays a significant part in controlling the air infiltration into your home. Air infiltration is the flow of air in and out of your home through gaps, cracks, and poorly insulated areas. Sealing leakages, increasing or improving insulation and duct sealing can all help to reduce this unwanted air exchange. According to Energy Star, the benefits of air sealing your home’s building envelope include:

• Increased Indoor-Air Quality: IAQ increases because less outdoor air pollutants, such as dust and pollen, are able to enter the home.
• Lower Utility Bills: Air infiltration accounts for 25-40% of energy used to heat and cool your home. A tightly sealed home will experience lower utility bills because there will be less conditioned air escaping from it.
• Increased Comfort: These measures result in a more consistent temperature throughout the house, which means you can stop taking your sweater on and off again.
• Staying Ahead of the Game: In the future, building codes may increase insulation requirements. By taking steps to properly seal and insulate your home now you will be ahead of the game.

Find out more about building envelope improvement here.

Understanding the properties of insulation can help you ask the right questions to best decide the level and type needed for your home. In my next post on insulation, I will discuss the various types of insulation available and how they differ from each other.

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