Why Attic Insulation Is Important For Your Home

If maintaining a comfortable home and keeping energy bills under control seems to be a constant tug-of-war contest, is there really ever a clear winner? Change up the game by adding attic insulation in your home and keep heat where it belongs in any season. Do you have enough insulation in your attic?

Insulation Materials

Attic insulation is available to you in many different materials. Probably the most common home insulation material is fiberglass. It’s a practical insulation solution if it’s installed correctly. Other popular home insulation materials include cellulose, cotton and spray foam.

• Cellulose insulation offers better R-value per inch than fiberglass, and provides better acoustic absorption.
• Cotton insulation is “cool” because it’s made from recycled blue jeans. It’s also “green” because it’s made from renewable and mostly recycled products.
• Spray foam is available in open and closed cell. Closed cell is a little more expensive, however, it blocks air and moisture infiltration and adds structural strength to your ceiling.

Insulation Types and Installation

The types of home insulation available to you include blankets (i.e. rolls and batts), loose fill (or blown-in) and foam. Whether you use fiberglass, cellulose or cotton, the insulation should completely cover the joists to reach the minimum R-49 suggested by Energy Star.

If you’re adding insulation as a DIY project, the easiest type of insulation to use is blanket insulation. However, consider the advantages of hiring your professional contractor to install blown-in or spray foam insulation for you. After all, if you want maximum comfort and energy savings, you’ll need to make sure every nook and cranny of your attic floor is thoroughly covered. That’s not a strength of rolls and batts because they tend to leave gaps and/or get compressed and lose R-value.

Excluding some type of damage, combining a high-quality insulation material with professional installation generally lasts for the life of your home. So, the return on investment is substantial in both energy savings and no more tug-of-war games with comfort of thermostat settings.

For more information about attic insulation for your Charleston home, please contact Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning today.

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 attic insulation and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 440-201-2959.

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