How Insulation Impacts Energy Efficiency
Many homeowners and builders are paying more attention to the environmental impact of their homes. Conserving energy in your home not only reduces its impact on the planet but can also reduce the impact on your wallet. Insulation is one of the best and most cost-effective ways to improve your home's energy efficiency.
How insulation increases your home energy efficiency
Insulation's basic function is to provide resistance to heat flow. Heat is transferred in three ways; conduction, convection, and radiation. Conduction is when heat moves from one material to another, say, from a hot pan to the kitchen counter you set it on. Convection is when heat moves through liquids or gasses, and radiation is when heat travels in a straight line from a heat source and heats anything in its path (like, for example, from a space heater).
Proper insulation can address all three of these sources of heat transfer and slow down the process, effectively making it more difficult for heat to penetrate through the walls of your home from either side. This means that warm air inside your home can't escape as easily during the winter, and in the summer, warm air outside your home can't penetrate.
Insulation works by slowing down the process of convection and conduction. Rolled or loose-fill insulation installed into walls makes it difficult for heat to transfer through them.
You can also address radiant heat penetration by installing reflective insulation or adding radiant barriers to your existing insulation.
Once you've addressed all three methods of heat transfer, you can use less energy to heat and cool your home, as your home can more easily maintain a consistent temperature because it is not losing or gaining heat based on the outside air.
Benefits of a more energy-efficient home
Making your home more energy-efficient with proper insulation has many benefits for both your home and the planet. These include:
Reduced energy bills
When your home is more energy-efficient, you'll likely see your heating and cooling bills dip significantly. This is because your home can maintain a consistent temperature for longer periods without as much help from your heating or cooling systems. This results in less energy being used to heat and cool your home and thus significantly reducing your energy bills, increasing your energy efficiency.
Reduced greenhouse gas emissions
Using less energy to heat and cool your home has benefits beyond your energy bill. When you use less energy, you reduce your demand for natural gas, propane, fuel oil, or electricity to heat and cool your home, all of which have a significant impact on greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. Making your home more energy efficient is a key factor in helping keep our environment healthy and thriving.
Use of recycled materials
Did you know that many popular (and effective!) insulation options are made from recycled materials? Fiberglass, mineral wool, and cellulose insulation are all usually made at least partly with recycled materials. Using these materials in your insulation means they don't end up in landfills and contribute to excess waste.
How can I update my insulation to make it more energy-efficient?
The best way to update your home's existing insulation to get the maximum energy-saving benefits is to work with a professional insulation expert.
An insulation expert can conduct a thorough evaluation of your home to identify any and all areas in need of insulation repair, replacement, or installation. They use special tools to identify areas where heat may be leaking through that are not visible to the naked eye to ensure that you get the tightest seal possible. This is important because hidden heat loss is one of the biggest problems homeowners face when trying to make their homes more energy-efficient.
Insulation experts can then make custom recommendations about the types of insulation that are appropriate for your home's unique needs.
At Koala Insulation, our experts are well-versed in all kinds of attic insulation and ventilation. Our experts will arrive with state-of-the-art equipment to thoroughly inspect your attic or home and identify any areas in need of repair or improvement. They will provide a detailed assessment of the current conditions of your space and use their years of experience to design solutions that fit your home and budget.
By hiring a Koala Insulation expert, you not only get to enjoy a more efficient home faster, but you also get to benefit from the years of energy savings that professionally installed insulation will bring.
