With so many brand-new varieties of insulation on the market, how does one determine what’s the most affordable and cost effective item or technique? We have compiled this information regarding kinds of insulation, how they function and where/when to employ them.

First, why don’t we get a rapid perception of how warmth is transferred in or out of our house. To best understand this, we take into account one of the items in the principles of thermodynamics which is – hot air tends to move towards colder air in an effort to equalize the energy system. During colder winter season we operate our furnace to supply warmth inside our house. This heat takes over the less hot air inside the house and also is absorbed by the building materials that make up our house. At some point this heat forces its way through the walls and the roof to make its way to the cooler air outside. This method happens in the same manner during the summertime but since we are chilling our residence inside, the warmth energy from outside is always attempting to force its way in.

Now we’ll start working on the forms of spray foam attic insulation that are used to inhibit warmth transfer.

Fiberglass batt insulation is just about the most typical insulations used in residence building as a result of few factors. It is a very affordable and pretty effective product for resisting heat transfer. Keep in mind that fiberglass batts are “mass” insulation and therefore it uses its fullness and density to slow down heat transfer, but eventually the heat will transfer completely through to the cooler side. The effectiveness of fiberglass insulation is assessed in R-Value that simply explains the Thermal Resistance of the material. The better the R-Value number is, the longer it takes heat to transfer through it.

Cellulose insulation which is normally called “blow-in” insulation is yet another “mass” insulation. It is typically manufactured of recycled materials such as paper, cardboard and cotton. It’s a freely packed product that is “blown” into your attic utilizing a specific machine. The R-value depends upon how thick the insulation is blown onto your attic floor area. Normally, it needs to be installed very thick to attain high r-values. Once again, this product’s make up is designed to absorb or decrease heat transfer but the heat will at some point escape.

Radiant Barrier Foil is a different approach to attic insulation and works in a completely different way than fiberglass and cellulose insulation. It’s not a “mass” insulation so it’s not designed to absorb or slow warmth transfer. Therefore it has no R-Value. It utilizes reflective properties to re-direct warmth back towards its source.