House Insulation – Differences in Insulating Materials

House insulation is a necessity if they are constructed in cold countries or in places where there are extremes in heat and cold climates during the year. With the extremes in climate conditions, people cannot live in their houses in comfort, whether in heat or cold conditions.

However, people are creative enough to fight off these extreme weather conditions by way of insulation. For these houses, the insulation must be in between floors (basements and crawl spaces), between ceilings and unheated attics and inside all the exterior walls of the house.

With less than adequate insulation, the heating (or cooling) energy escapes through the walls, the ceilings and any place where heat can seep in or out. To keep the energy in, and keeping the heating costs down, the house would need to have the proper insulating material to wrap it up.

Insulation

Insulation needs are usually governed by R-values, in the materials and in the projects. The R-value of a material is the heat that passes through. Higher R-value means the insulating qualities of the material is also higher.

Insulation materials are available in blankets, batts and loose-fill. These materials that are usually available to users have their own R-values. However, each of these materials has its own unique qualities different from the others.

They also have different qualities in terms of ease of installation, flammability, and others that are over and above their R-values.

Here are some of the popular ones in use these days and the things to consider when choosing them for your insulating work in your house.

Fiberglass

This is usually the number one choice among the materials these days. They usually come in batts, in rolls and in pellets used in loose fill applications. Some of its advantages are that it is relatively inexpensive, easy to install, and is fire resistant.

It can have a better material for a good vapor barrier and it is available in an unfaced variation. Some of its downsides include the fact that it can be itchy and that it develops an odor when dampened.

Rock wool

This one offers almost identical qualities of fiberglass. It has nearly the same quality ass fiberglass, including its cost and its R-value. It can also be itchy, although it does not develop a smell when dampened.

There is a third new material that has almost the same qualities as these two and it is called earthwool. It is new in the market and people have to test it to check its favorable reviews.

Cellulose

Cellulose is also fire resistant like fiberglass and rockwool. However, its R-value is higher and it does not irritate skin like the two popular materials

It comes in rolls, batts, and loose-fill. It has a fine consistency which permits its being blown-in during installations through small openings or access holes.

Urethane

Urethane is mostly known as a foam-in type of insulation material, but it is very effective when installed properly. It has a very high R-value and it is also fire resistant. For acoustic use, it also has excellent sound-absorbing qualities.

For house insulation, the market has an excellent set of choices.