Monthly heating and cooling expenses can sometimes get overwhelming, but proper home insulation can help manage those costs.
Benefits of Home Insulation
- Reduced energy expenses: Insulation allows your home to hold onto heat during the winter and cool air during the summer. You’ll use less energy, which can significantly reduce your heating and cooling expenses.
- More efficient HVAC operations: Your HVAC system won’t have to work as hard when your home is adequately insulated. This can increase its performance and extend its life.
- More comfort: Insulation manages temperature inconsistency in your home so you won’t feel drafts or cold or hot spots. With the right insulation in place, you can feel comfortable in your home no matter the weather.
- Reduced noise levels: Insulation controls sound as well as temperature. Proper insulation can muffle noise from outside and between rooms.
- Improved air quality: Insulation that blocks drafts and other outside elements from getting inside can improve the air quality inside your home. You’ll enjoy a healthier home environment without the infiltration of dust, pollen, allergens, and pollutants.
- Increased home value: Home buyers tend to value energy-efficient homes due to their lowest energy expenses. Homes with proper insulation therefore command higher prices.
- Reduced environmental impact: You create a smaller carbon footprint when you use less energy.
How Does Insulation Work?
Insulation works by creating a seal around a house to slow the transfer of heat between the inside and outside. That’s why insulation works so well in both winter and summer. Heat becomes absorbed in the insulation material, meaning you will retain more heat in winter and keep more heat out in summer.
Where to Insulate Your Home
Insulation should go in certain places in a home to allow it to function correctly.
- Attics: Attics are often the most cost-effective area to insulate, since a large portion of your home’s heat can be lost through the attic.
- Walls: Walls are another part of the home where heat transfer can easily occur. Insulating walls is essential to prevent this.
- Basements: Insulation can prevent heat transfer from basement walls.
- Crawl spaces: Your home’s crawl spaces should have insulation depending on the climate in your area and how ventilated the spaces are.
- Floors above garages or open-air spaces: Insulation can keep rooms above unheated spaces more comfortable.
- Ceilings below unheated spaces: Vaulted ceilings, dormer ceilings, and the walls and ceilings of livable attic spaces should all have proper insulation.
Types of Insulation and R-Values
We install different types of insulation to meet the needs of your situation. Some insulation is more affordable than others. Other types are better for older homes versus newer homes.
Each type of insulation has a different R-value range. R-values measure how effective the insulation is at slowing heat transfer. The higher the number, the more effective the insulation is.
- Fiberglass batts & rolls: Batts and rolls of fiberglass insulation are two of the most common types of insulation in homes due to their affordability and effectiveness. R-2.9 to R-3.8 per inch.
- Spray foam insulation: Spray foam insulation is less permeable than fiberglass and must be professionally installed. This makes spray foam a more expensive yet effective option. Up to about R-7 per inch.
- Cellulose: Cellulose insulation consists of chemically treated recycled paper. That makes it a more affordable and environmentally friendly insulation option, though it may not last as long as spray foam. R-3.5 per inch.
- Retrofit foam: This type of foam insulation goes behind the walls of older homes without existing insulation. We insert it through the walls so we don’t have to take them down. This effectively insulates your walls while keeping your costs down. R-5.1 per inch.
- Foam board insulation: Rigid foam boards are best for insulating areas that can’t hold fiberglass batts. We often use foam boards to insulate areas such as basement walls and a home’s exterior. R-6.5 to R-6.8 per inch.
What to Remember When Insulating Your Home
Several points to consider before insulating your home include:
- Air sealing: Insulation does its job best when the entire home is sealed off from the outside. Be sure to seal air leaks around windows, doors, and other openings.
- Moisture control: Proper ventilation in crawl spaces and basements keeps moisture from building up around insulation and causing damage.
- Professional advice: When you need the advice of an expert, call North East Industries. We are professional insulation contractors and are happy to consult with you on the proper insulation for your home.
Contact North East Industries today.
We’re here to assist with your fiberglass insulation needs and look forward to enhancing your home’s comfort and efficiency.