TWIN CITIES WEST Blog

Insulation & Allergies – How Insulation Can Affect Indoor Air Quality

Insulation is one of those things that isn’t given much thought until you’re building, purchasing, or renovating a house. Even when you find yourself coughing, sneezing, or wheezing, it’s easy to look for external causes to explain your allergies.

But the fact is, old, damaged, or poor quality insulation can affect the quality of indoor air – and often, dangerously so.

Quite simply, indoor air quality describes the quality of air in a building environment. Some people are more sensitive to contaminants than others. While insulation is designed to regulate temperature, if it is old, water damaged, or of poor quality, it negatively affects the air you’re breathing every day.

Insulation Effects on Allergies

Minnesota’s climate is very cold in winter and hot and humid in summer – the perfect breeding ground for mold. It doesn’t matter whether your home has a large problem with mold or a small one – all mold is damaging to your health.

Creatures such as rodents, birds, and bats love to make their home in insulation, which means that their waste ends up entering the air you breathe. Several common symptoms indicate an air quality problem:

• Coughing
• Sore throat
• Wheezing
• Itchy and runny eyes

If you experience these symptoms upon waking, but they are reduced when you are away from home, poor insulation is more than likely the culprit.

Spray Foam and Allergies

Not all insulation is the same. Spray polyurethane foam (SPF), commonly known as spray foam, is the superior way to insulate your home while fighting against allergies.

It forms a vapor barrier and is mold retardant, thus greatly reducing moisture and the ability for mold to grow. Harmful insulation effects on allergies are greatly reduced when you use SPF in your home.

Spray foam is pumped into the stud cavities of your home using a hose. Over time, it hardens, leaving no damaging chemicals.

In contrast, insulation made from cotton, cellulose, or fiberglass becomes damp from condensation, breeding mold that populates quickly, spreading through the air and your ducts. Spray foam not only stops the moisture, but because it also hardens as it sets, rodents and other critters are unable to nest in it.

Benefits of Spray Foam Insulation

Internal allergens, such as mold and contagions from rodents and bats, are not the only things that spray foam is excellent at reducing. The foam is also a hardy sealant, so it reduces the number of outside allergens that can enter the home.

Minnesota has three pollen seasons. Some types of pollen can travel up to 150 miles on the wind and make their way into your home. With this in mind, the importance of understanding spray foam and allergies cannot be underestimated.

Spray foam also helps with climate control, which in turn reduces heating and cooling costs. It can even reduce noise levels.

Call on the Experts for Help

Insulation’s effects on allergies can be crippling, but with Koala Insulation of Twin Cities West, they don’t have to be. Spray foam is cost-effective and safe. Reach out to Koala Insulation of Twin Cities West to book a free consultation and discover how we can greatly improve the air quality in your house.