Page 29 - The Homeowner's Handbook 2017
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Exteriors / Roofing / Structure / Insulation / IAQ / Windows & Doors / Heating & Cooling / Lighting / Appliances / Plumbing / Finishes / Cabinets & Tops / Alternative Energy
What makes Spray Foam Insulation
Cellulose
Insulation
Interior Control
Many new homes include interior wall
INSULATION green? insulation—in part because it makes walls
more soundproof. But it also has energy
advantages. It allows you to “zone” different
parts of the home, so that only the areas
of the home being used are fully heated or
cooled.
Virtues Virtues
Rim Armor ■ ■ Fills gaps and ■ ■ High percent of
recycled content
The point were the cavities completely ■ Little or no toxic offgassing
first floor of a home ■ ■ Provides its own air barrier ■ ■ Relatively easy to install
meets the second ■ ■ High R-value per inch ■
has historically been Caveats Caveats
tough to insulate. New ■ ■ More expensive than ■ ■ Must be installed carefully
to fill all gaps
products and systems competing products ■ Wet products can be
include this part of the ■ ■ Requires special ■ problematic if not allowed
house in the insulated equipment/skills to install to dry properly
envelope, greatly
reducing energy loss.
fill, is non-flammable, requiring no chemical flame retardants. As a
result, offgassing emissions tend to be low. Mineral wool includes
high levels of post-industrial recycled content waste (up to 90
percent), reducing the environmental impact of its production.
Rigid exterior insulation made from mineral wool is now becoming
IMAGE COURTESY OF OWENS CORNING available, as well.
(WWW.OWENSCORNING.COM). THE COLOR
PINK IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF OWENS
CORNING: TEXT BY GREEN BUILDER STAFF RIGID FOAM
Water Resistive
You may have seen contractors in your area putting green or blue
Rigid Foam Insulation insulation right over the wood siding of an old house. Chances
are, they’re applying extruded expanded polystyrene (XEPS) or
polyisocyanurate closed-cell foam. Both products are dense and durable.
Some building experts suggest that foam used this way can an act as
water-resistive barriers (WRBs), negating the need for housewrap, but
we recommend playing it safe and using housewrap as well. Rigid foam
also is a good choice for insulating basement walls. GB
DuPont Tyvek ThermaWrap R5.0
DuPont Tyvek ThermaWrap R5.0 offers
Virtues Caveats the air and water management benefits
of DuPont Tyvek HomeWrap and also adds
■ ■ High R-value per ■ ■ Some brands may R-5 to the wall assembly. Unlike other
inch shrink over time exterior insulation products, ThermaWrap is
■ ■ Seals against air ■ ■ Producing synthetic breathable, allowing any moisture that finds
infiltration foam is a resource- its way into the wall cavity to escape.
■ ■ Good solution for intensive process http://bit.ly/1XQDW7W
basement walls
www.greenbuildermedia.com The Homeowner’s Handbook 2017 GREEN BUILDER 27
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