Why Cellulose Insulation is Better than Fiberglass Insulation
On episode 50 of the ‘On The Job’ web series, Larry Janesky, owner and founder of Dr. Energy Saver, demonstrates how different types of insulation materials perform when exposed to fire.
In Episode 51, he continues to compare insulation materials, by showing the differences in performance of two types of materials commonly used in attic and wall cavity insulation: fiberglass and cellulose.
Fiberglass insulation is frequently used in the United States, but as this video will show, cellulose insulation outperforms fiberglass in the vast majority of applications.
Cellulose insulation is entirely made of recycled paper: old newspapers, phone books, and paper stock. To make that shredded paper suitable as an insulation material, the cellulose is treated with environmentally-friendly chemicals. In its original state, cellulose is very attractive to insects and known to support mold growth. Boric acid, a harmless chemical used for decades in many household applications as an antiseptic and insect repellent, is used to deter pests and prevent mold growth.
Also since paper is highly flammable, cellulose insulation is treated with a fire-retardant material, making it outperform most types of insulation materials, including fiberglass, in terms of fire resistance.
Using a little display built to compare cellulose and fiberglass, Larry shows how quickly and easily heat passes through a layer of fiberglass insulation when compared to a layer of cellulose insulation. Cellulose is denser than fiberglass and that gives the material a better R-value and makes it better at preventing heat transfer.
That kind of performance makes all the difference during hot summer months when you are trying to keep the scorching heat from the attic from getting into your living space, or during cold days when you are trying to keep the heat from the conditioned area from being transferred to the freezing cold attic.
Another added benefit of cellulose demonstrated in this video is the material’s ability to muffle sounds from the street and from one room to another, making your home much quieter.
At Dr. Energy Saver, we use cellulose to insulate a variety of spaces. We dense-pack it into wall cavities, cantilevers, floors over the garage, and we blow it over attic floors. Our customers are always satisfied with the results in terms of added comfort and energy savings.
Our dealers work with most types of insulation and we believe that there is no blanket solution to home insulation, since each material has its own application. We also know that when it comes to energy efficiency, insulation is just one part of the puzzle.
When you call your local Dr. Energy Saver dealer for a home energy audit, the experts will evaluate your whole house and offer you the solutions and materials that will always give you the best results for each dollar you invest.
To contact a Dr. Energy Saver dealer in your area, call us or visit our website!
Attic Insulation Done Wrong… and How to Do It Right!
In Episode 71 of the On the Job Video series, Larry Janesky, owner and founder of Dr. Energy Saver, walks us through the attic of a home in Connecticut that had been previously insulated by another contractor to illustrate common mistakes being perpetrated by many insulation contractors across the country.
The owners of this home had serious comfort issues, with uneven temperatures around the house and rooms that were just drafty and hard to heat. They called contractors from the state energy program for help. After a quick energy audit, the contractors informed the homeowners that they would benefit from additional attic insulation — and the contractor was then hired to add inches of blown fiberglass to the attic.
After the work was performed, however, the home was still just as uncomfortable as it was before. That is when they decided to call in Dr. Energy Saver and find out what went wrong. After performing a blower door test, Larry and his team realized that there was a significant amount of air leaking in and out of the house, greatly impacting comfort and energy savings.
Sure enough, when Dr. Energy Saver’s technicians inspected the recently insulated attic they found out that no air sealing was performed in the area. The only way to stop cold air from leaking into a house and making it uncomfortable is to stop heated air from leaking out – and since heated air rises, it usually leaks out of the upper levels of the house. The smallest gaps in the building, such as those around pipes and wires, lights, bathroom fans, duct chases and other ceiling fixtures, can amount to huge leakages.
Blown fiberglass does nothing to stop air leakages. The air flows right through it.
It is, therefore, very important to thoroughly air seal the attic completely before applying insulation. In this case, Dr. Energy Saver had to vacuum all the fiberglass insulation out of the attic just to be able to access the areas that needed to be sealed. After air sealing the attic, a new blower door test showed that they were able to reduce overall air leakage by 20%. After that, new plywood dams were built to contain the new cellulose insulation, which has a higher R-Value per inch than fiberglass. This brought the R-Value of the attic insulation up to U.S. Department of Energy’s recommended levels for the Northeast.
According to Larry, installing attic insulation without air sealing is malpractice, yet it is a very common practice among contractors because homeowners aren’t always aware of the problem. We hope this video will help homeowners across the U.S. make informed decisions when it comes to improving comfort and energy efficiency in their homes.
Fire Testing Insulation Materials
In this 50th episode of the ‘On The Job’ web series, Larry Janesky does something a little different. Rather than walking us through a recent project, he takes us to Dr. Energy Saver’s National Energy Conservation Center – a 40,000 sq. ft. training facility at the company’s headquarters in Seymour CT – to demonstrate how different types of insulation materials will behave in case of a house fire.
Fire rating of insulation materials is something often overlooked not only in energy-efficient upgrades, but also in new construction. There are some code-mandated guidelines for using different types of insulation in different areas of the house, but at Dr. Energy Saver, we believe that the fire safety of homes and buildings can be greatly improved with the right choice of materials.
This is not a scientific test. The purpose of this video is to demonstrate the significant differences in the way different insulation materials behave when exposed to fire.
Using a propane torch, Larry put all the most common types of insulation to the test, including fiberglass (faced and unfaced), open-cell foam, closed-cell foam, open-cell foam with FSK paper, polyisocyanurate foam, fire resistant open-cell foam, expanded polystyrene foam, extruded polystyrene foam, fire block foam, denim insulation, AirKrete injection foam, cellulose and Rockwool insulation.
According to this demonstration, the best performing materials by far were AirKrete injection foam, cellulose and Rockwool, but Larry explains that this should not constitute grounds for avoiding the use any of the other materials, because each different material has its specific application. When it comes to green building and remodeling, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Smart energy-efficient retrofitting is about evaluating each home’s features, energy consumption patterns and finding the best materials and techniques to achieve the most energy savings while making homes more comfortable, healthier and safer.
Dr. Energy Saver dealers nationwide have improved the homes and lives of many homeowners across the United States and we’d love to help you too! Call us or visit our website to locate a dealer near you!
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Insulation and Air Sealing Improve Comfort and Value
Using NYSERDA rebates to save on upgrading your home’s insulation and air sealing isn’t just securing stable indoor temperatures year-round – it’s an investment in the value of your home.
By reducing the amount of heat and air that leak in and out of your home, insulation keeps your energy right where you need it and maximizes the comfort you feel, requiring less air conditioning in the summer, and less heating in the winter – an attractive asset for potential homebuyers who are willing to pay more for energy efficient homes.
Winter Home Checklist
Watch this video to learn how to prep your home for winter with our checklist for efficient warmth. From air filters to insulation, Halco keeps you warm.
FOAM HOME!
Hal Smith, CEO of Halco, is delivering ET’s to your neighborhood. That’s ‘E’ for Energy and ‘T’ for Technicians. Halco ET’s recommend two steps to maximize heating comfort and savings: (1) FOAM your HOME, and (2) Electrify your home. Have a Halco E.T. visit your home for a no-cost energy assessment!
