Insulation
Insulation acts as a barrier to heat gain
and loss for your home and is essential to keep your
home warm in winter and cool in summer. A well-insulated home does not
require air-conditioning in most locations.
A well insulated and well designed
home will provide you with year-round comfort for free, cutting cooling and heating bills by
half or more. This, in turn, helps reduce greenhouse emissions from your home
by using less power.
 Climatic conditions
influence the appropriate level and type of insulation you need. Insulation can
assist with weatherproofing and eliminate moisture problems such as
condensation. Some types of insulation also have soundproofing qualities. The
most economical time to install insulation is during construction but existing
homes can be easily retro-fitted.
There is little insulating value in most common construction
materials like wood, solid bricks and fibro. Building materials with a higher
Insulation rating include: aerated concrete blocks, hollow expanded
polystyrene blocks, straw bales and rendered extruded polystyrene sheets.
CHOOSING INSULATION - WHERE TO
START
1. Decide on the insulation material
Insulation products come in 2 main categories -
Bulk and Reflective
(Bulk and Reflective Insulation is sometimes combined into a composite
material). Bulk Insulation Safety Issues:
Fibre-based bulk insulation materials like Glasswool usually require care
during installation to help prevent skin contact with the material,
breathing in the fibres or getting them in your eyes. This can be done by
wearing long sleeved shorts, long trousers, a cap or hat and gloves during
installation. In dusty, confined or poorly ventilated
areas, it is recommended that the installer wears a dust mask.
Protective clothing is generally not required when installing
following types of insulation:
-
Aluminium Foil
Batts
-
Wool Batts
-
Paper Waste
-
Rockwool
(volcanic rock, heated until it melts and then spun into fibres)
-
Polyester Batts
-
Composite
Aluminium/Recycled Plastic
2. How much Insulation do you need? Measure
out the dimensions of the area you want to insulate - length, width, height of
roof cavity if you have one. Insulation suppliers will quote you a square
metre rate (e.g. height by width for each wall for wall insulation). You
need to let us know which state and town you live in and we can work out the
amount of Insulation you need (R Value needed).
3. Which brand do I choose?
There are many different brands of
insulation available. To compare the insulating ability of these products look at their R-value
- this measures resistance to heat flow. The
higher the R-value, the higher the level of insulation. Products with the same
R-value will provide the same insulating performance if installed as
specified.
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