Applications » Roof Insulation
Roof insulation material has many advantages and some of them are stopping radiant heat, preserving energy and amending more comfort with less utility cost.
Roof insulation can be helpful in many conditions. It helps lowering down the total energy consumption cost with providing greater comfort levels for the occupants and help to reduce the HVAC equipment requirements.
Roof insulation for radiant barrier
Rood insulation is ideal way to prevent unwanted heat penetration from the outside of the building. Roof insulation foil will reduce the amount of sun's radiant heat that penetrate in summer up to 97% and also render better thermal protection in colder situation in winter. Effective temperature insulation material preserve the convective heat inside in the winter and creates warmer atmosphere. Applying the perfect type of insulation diminish the amount of energy required for the heating and cooling inside the building and thus permit us to run heating and cooling device less and making them to last longer with reducing energy cost. It also helps to get smaller size of HVAC equipments for larger size of buildings.
Properly installed rood insulation material also decreases the chances for thermal and moisture condensation creating problems like mold, mildew, rot and dripping. Applying rood insulation with enough ventilation under the roof surface will help moisture to escape and stop the ice buildup and damage cause by it.
Know the different types of roof insulation material
Rood insulation materials are basically of two different types; reflective insulation material and bulk insulation material in the form of blankets, blown in cellulose, sprayed foam and rigid boards. Most of the home, commercial building and metal structure unite both of material in the form of foil and bulk insulation to create complete insulation system. However in both hotter and colder condition insulation roof with reflective insulation material is quite enough to get better control from unwanted temperature gain or loss and moisture penetration.
Basics of reflective roof insulation material
Reflective roof insulation material is made from the two different layers of aluminum foils sandwiched with the inner layer of foam, plastic bubble sheet or fiberglass. This structure is perfect for the pole barn roof insulation. It reflects around 97% of radiant heat from the roof surface and prevent energy and higher temperature penetrating inside.
What is bulk roof insulation?
Blankets or Batts - Most of this insulation material is made up from fiber glass, cotton, sheep's wool or mineral wool. It works well against the enlarging and rising flow of warm air and thereby trapping heat from penetrating inside or outside.
Rigid Foam - This material has little advantage over the blanket insulation as it does not compress or absorb the moisture and have higher insulation characteristic with longer life. It is ideal for roofing insulation where space is confined.
Sprayed Polyurethane Foam - Sprayed foam is ideal for insulating metal walls and roofs to seal it from air and moisture leaks. It also controls the condensation well. However this is not easy to apply and requires technical support while insulating.
What is radiant barrier roof insulation?
The best way from insulation outer temperature in hard summer is to get reflective insulation material. It has a higher tendency of reflecting sun's radiant heat and creates radiant barrier under or over the roof. Studies done by the Florida Solar Energy Center shows that such material have good effectiveness because of the use of aluminum. In retrofit applications, applying a radiant barrier below the attic surface can lower the cooling cost. However such radian barrier are the most effective in situation where there is long and harsh summer.
How radiant barrier roof insulation works for temperature barrier?
Radiant heat barrier materials mostly block the inflow of the radiant heat from the roof surface and stop it preventing inside the house. Most of the material made from the aluminum prevents 97% of radiant heat effectively and reflect back to the outer atmosphere instead of permitting it to get the attic heated. It results into increased indoor comfort and less energy consumption in warmer climate. .
Know metal roof insulation material
The ideal rood insulation material for metal building is reflective insulation. It can be laid under the metal roof decking or at the top of the surface. In addition, it can be associated with spray foam from the underneath once the roof decking is in place. In cooler atmosphere, a combination of Batt insulation and reflective foil insulation can work best. Applying the reflective insulation on warmer side will let double as vapor barrier and stop moisture from getting inside. However, any of these types will help reduce the noise levels both inside and from the outside as well. Condensation is one of the major problem faced in the metal structure. Water and moisture in contact with metal surface creates corrosion and can reduce the service life of the structure. Accumulation of water on the roof surface can direct result into dripping, staining, mold, mildew and odors. In addition it is important to remember that water or ice collection in fiberglass, blanket or paper wool can seriously degrade the thermal and insulation performance of the material. .
All of such problems can be overcome by properly by installing vapor barrier system under the roof. Even in only moderately humid conditions, moisture condensation can stimulate serious problems for unprotected metal structure. Fiberglass insulation is not that effective in moist situation, instead using reflective insulation can works better. It will not get wet and has longer life compare to woolen, paper and fiberglass. It act as vapor retarder by limiting the passage of water vapor and moisture and thereby preventing the condensation problem. .
What is wood-frame home roofing?
Creating a total insulation system using reflective and bulk insulation material is ideal for most of the homes in any condition. In an unheated attic, bulk insulation material can be used on the floor while the reflective under the roof to reflect inside heat. In a heated attic the same insulation can be applied over the roof surface to get the relief from the radiant heat. Most of the home roof has enough room between the rafters to allow 2 inches of airspace for air circulation under the roof. Such space allows moisture and vapor to penetrate direct inside the house. The reflective insulation will act as a vapor barrier as well in this situation.
Radiant barrier insulation for Cathedral Ceilings
Roof insulation with reflective in nature is particularly important in buildings like cathedrals where there is no attic space above the roof to trap warm air or ventilate incoming radiant heat and moisture. We can see from the image on this page that how the structure like cathedral can be insulate employing both reflective and bulk insulation to create complete insulation system that prevent radiant heat, moisture and condensation.
How to install roof insulation material?
Proper installation is the key for any effective insulation system. Reflective insulation can be applied either over the surface or under the roof leaving 2" of airspace between the rood deck the insulation layer. In most of the cases the space available for the insulation is smaller, a combination of rigid and reflective insulation fits much better than using blankets. Both these material have higher insulation property than other material like foam and paper. In retrofit application, reflective insulation material is applied under the attic surface.