EMS INSULATION
ENERGY MANAGEMENT SERVICES
FIBER GLASS INSULATION
When insulating a home, it is important to get the R-value specified by the local energy code or the Department of Energy recommendations. It's also important that the product provide long-lasting thermal performance. For more information on insulation recommendations for a specific area, contact the local building department or the local gas or electric utility for their recommendation.
While R-value "per inch" is promoted by some manufacturers, the overall R-value installed is what counts. Fiber glass insulation products come in R-values ranging from R-11 to R-38 for fiber glass batts and rolls. Fiber glass insulation can be blown in an attic to nearly any R-value. More R-value alternatives provide greater flexibility in meeting code energy requirements in your area.
In order to ensure the expected energy savings, it is important that the insulation does not deteriorate, or settle, over time. Fiber glass batts and rolls do not settle. Fiber glass loose-fill insulations may settle slightly (1-3%) resulting in virtually no impact on the thermal performance of the insulation.
Fiber glass insulation is naturally non-combustible because it is made from sand and recycled glass. The insulation requires no additional fire-retardant chemical treatments.
Most facings attached to fiber glass insulation are combustible and should never be left exposed. Other special flame-resistant facings may be left exposed where desired, such as on a basement or crawl space wall.
Thermal insulation, whether fiber glass or cellulose, when installed in side walls has very little to do with air infiltration. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that up to 40% of a home's heat loss can be from air infiltration. But only 14% of the total loss from air infiltration occurs through side wall cavities, and most of that is around electrical outlets, a problem easily solved with inexpensive, easy-to-install electrical insulated outlet gaskets.
Air infiltration generally occurs in the areas of a home that are not insulated, such as around windows, doors, fireplaces, HVAC ductwork and perimeter joints. It can, and should, be controlled with the use of housewrap, proper caulking, and sealing of band joists, sill plates, header plates, and insulation around doors, windows, electrical outlets and other openings.
Recently there have been claims that some insulation products are better because they reduce air infiltration. Numerous research studies have been conducted to investigate this issue, among them studies by the National Association of Home Builders Research Center, researchers at Penn State University, and by a St. Louis utility. The research consistently demonstrated that if a wall cavity has been properly constructed, using drywall, sheathing and caulking, very little air will flow through the wall cavity regardless of the type of insulation.
As the environmental consciousness of Americans has been heightened, the building industry has responded. This kind of rethinking has led to a strong push to use building materials with lower environmental impact.
Fiber glass insulation manufacturers have responded to this call for conservation by using increasing amounts of recycled materials in their products. As an industry, fiber glass insulation manufacturers recycle more material by weight (glass cullet - up to 40%) than any other type of insulation used in the building and construction sector.
The environmental benefits of fiber glass insulation, however, go far beyond its recycled content when analyzed from a life-cycle perspective. A life-cycle analysis is an appraisal of the environmental impacts connected with a product through an examination of the product's environmental traits during many stages including pre-manufacturing; manufacturing; distribution/packaging; use, reuse, maintenance; and waste management. In reviewing each of these stages, a life-cycle evaluation of fiber glass clearly shows its environmentally beneficial attributes. As an example, consider fiber glass versus cellulose insulation.
NAIMA has developed a brochure outlining the various life-cycle characteristics that specifiers should consider in determining the most relevant attributes of an environmentally preferable insulation product: "Using Recycled Material Is Just the First Step...(N016)" Also see Insulation and the Environment