The insulation in your home acts as a moat. It is a thermal moat – keeping in heat when it is cold out, and keeping in cool air when the swelter hits. It is a layer of protection, and a barrier to preserve any alterations you make to the internal temperature.
Benefits of Home Insulation
Having proper insulation in your home can reduce your heating and cooling bills by up to 80%. Your home insulation can also reduce condensation, mold, and dampness. Without it, you may as well be using a fan to cool off your backyard.
Not only does the insulation lower your energy bills by a dramatic margin, but it lowers the amount of greenhouse gas emissions your home is creating. Residential HVAC systems pump a surprisingly large amount of carbon into the atmosphere.
And more than anything else, insulation makes your home more comfortable. It makes it easier for you and your family to sleep, having the temperature set where you want it to be. You can set the temperature as you fall asleep, and then rest assured that the indoor climate will not change drastically as you slumber.
What Type Of Home Insulation Is Best For You?
There are two primary types of insulation:
Reflective insulation. Anything reflective is designed to deflect light and heat. Often this is shiny, silver, and aluminum, and it is mounted onto a hard surface (generally paper or plastic). This foil deflects the sun’s rays, and lowers the amount of solar heat your home absorbs. Any heat your home absorbs is added to the circulating air, so during the summer humidity you really want to deflect whatever heat you can.
Bulk insulation. These are the rolls of thick material – usually Pink Panther fiberglass, or natural wool, or polyester, or recycled paper. This is what you roll into the structure of your home, and into the walls of the attic, to block the heat flow between the outside and the interior. It can come in boards or batts as well, and is crucial in any areas that experience cold weather.
Much of the insulation went in when your home was being built, but it is never too late to bolster the amount of insulation you have, or to improve the efficiency of your insulation.
Don’t Be a Sieve, Be Watertight
Imagine trying to catch rainwater. Do you want the water falling into a sieve or a colander? Do you want that water to escape through mesh, like a net? Or do you want that rain falling into a sealed, solid container with no leaks?
Your insulation is like that container catching rainwater. If the insulation has gaps and holes and portions that are threadbare, then any heat you have in the winter is rushing out like water through mesh. If the insulation is updated, and bolstered with fresh material in the hinges and corners, then it can seal in that heat for you.
We’re Your Cincinnati Home Insulation Company
If you would like to learn what is possible for insulating your home, and you are in the Cincinnati area, please call Harper Siding and Roofing at 513.444.6098 or use get a FREE HOME INSULATION ESTIMATE.