You might often hear about insulation, but perhaps haven’t really thought about what it can do for your home. There’s a misconception that good insulation is only used to keep warm in winter. In fact, insulating your home properly has wide-ranging benefits beyond just keeping warm.
What Makes the Best Insulation?
There are a few characteristics to look for when choosing the right insulation. Firstly, insulation has an ‘R’ rating which refers to its heat resistance. Each part of your home needs something different, for example to get the right ceiling insulation. Use the guide below:
Ceiling insulation: ‘R’ rating of 2.5 – 6.0.
Wall Insulation: ‘R’rating of 1.5 – 2.7
Floor insulation: ‘R’ rating of 1.7
There are also some common things all good insulation should be:
- Eco-friendly
- Non-combustible
- Made for high thermal performance
- Sound absorbing
- Soft and easy to handle
- Covered by an extensive warranty
Let’s take a look at exactly what insulation can do for your home.
Keeping Cool in Summer, Warm in Winter
One of the main functions of insulation is temperature control. You want your house to be as comfortable as possible, and that’s why insulation for steel buildings is so important. It effectively forms a barrier between rooms, and between the inside and outside of your home. Even in modern homes, air can still escape easily through walls, your ceiling and your floor. That’s what insulation aims to prevent.
In winter, insulation stops the warm air from escaping outside (and cold air entering). In summer, it has the opposite effect of keeping the hot air from outside where it belongs. That way, you can stay nice and cool inside during the summer months. People insulate internal walls too, so they can isolate warm or cool air in the parts of the house they use most.
Save Money on Power Bills
By having greater control over the airflow in your home, you can drastically cut down your power bills. Let’s say you run an air conditioner or heat pump as your main heating and cooling source. In winter, if your warm air is constantly escaping, your heating unit has to work harder to maintain your desired temperature.
With insulation, you can trap air where you want it, which means your heating and cooling systems don’t need to work as hard. In fact, if your home is really well insulated, you may not even need to have your heaters on at all once you reach a comfy temperature!
Soundproofing Your Home with Insulation
It’s not the first thing we think of when it comes to insulation, but sound absorption is another key element. Insulation helps to block noise from outside, but it’s just as useful for internal walls. In a busy household, quality insulation can help keep noise isolated to individual rooms, making life much more comfortable for everyone. Underfloor insulation also helps to absorb the sound of footsteps through the house.
As you can see, insulation gives you much more than a warm house in winter. If you’re thinking of upgrading your insulation, find the best quality products and increase your home’s comfort levels to the max!