With another winter heading toward Northeast Ohio, it’s time to prepare for the cold weather. Making sure your home is well insulated will ensure your family’s comfort while reducing expenses and energy waste.
Your local HVAC contractor can detect leaks and insulation deficiencies in your home through an energy audit, which includes a whole-house inspection and a blower door test and thermographic scan. Once you know which areas need insulating, the next step is choosing one of several different types of insulation.
Cellulose: About 75 percent of all cellulose insulation is made from recycled waste paper, containing the highest amount of recycled materials than any other insulation type. It is blown onto surfaces and into wall cavities, but is not moisture resistant.
Cotton: It usually contains denim manufacturing scrap, small amounts of boron (a flame retardant) and polyester. It is easily installed as loose fill or rolled batts, but is not moisture resistant.
Fiberglass: Made of recycled glass and silica sand, there is little danger of throat, eye or skin irritation when properly installed, although it can enter the home through leaky ductwork. Blown in loose-fill provides the best seal, preventing heat loss or air filtration.
Foams:
- Polyiso (Polyisocyanurate) is a rigid foam board that can be used anywhere in your home. It has a higher R-value (heat resistance) than other foam insulation, although it won’t maintain its integrity in damp areas.
- Polystyrene blueboard (XPS) and beadboard (EPS) contain brominated flame retardants that raise health and environmental concerns. XPS is more moisture resistant.
- Spray Polyurethane Foam (SPF) is an expanding foam used to fill cavities in walls or gaps and large cracks. It’s airtight, water resistant and will not sag.
Mineral Wool: Made of mineral strands or iron ore slag, it must contain at least 70 percent recycled materials. It’s durable, moisture resistant and very efficient. It may contain up to 5 percent phenol-formaldehyde by weight.
[The suggested R-value and chemical components should be listed on each product’s safety data sheet (MSDS)]
For more expert information on types of insulation, please contact us at Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning. We’ve served the Lorain area for more than 33 years.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Lorain, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about types of insulation and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning
1 (440) 246-5440
Serving the Lorain, OH Area