Adding Building Insulation to Your Building
Building insulation refers to insulation of a building from anything you might want.it can be regarding thermal purposes, or sound or impact. These are the types which are prevalent in the insulation category.
Types of Building Insulation
In providing acoustic insulation, that is sound proofing, the sound pressure is reduced to the minimum at a particular place in comparison to the source it was emitted from. This can be done in various ways- by increasing the distance between the source and the place or putting noise barriers in between the source and the place. These barriers are generally sound absorbing and hence the wave intensity is reduced till the time it reaches the place. Hence we conclude that the two ways of sound proofing is by sound reduction and sound absorption. The sound absorption comprises suppressing echoes, reflection of sound waves, reverberation and resonance of sound waves. The composition of the materials is what makes them sound proof. For example the dampness of any material decides the absorption capacity, like if the wetness is more then the chances of the wave getting reflected, distorted and hence getting reduced in intensity is more.
In providing fire proofing the building is generally covered with fire proof materials. Hence in this case also, the material characteristic plays an important role in providing insulation. Generally the building is insulated because it is covered with fire proof coating or material at various places. The insulation provided in this case is not absolute as the fire proof materials do not promise the complete safety of the coated materials. They are passive to burning but not after a certain stage. Extreme high temperature is liable to bring damage to the fire proofed material as well.
Then we talk of the impact insulation. Though this has no relation to building insulation it still is a type of insulation provided. This is actually insulation form shocks and vibration. It can also be termed as cushioning. It is taken care in the packaging of goods. As we have noticed that it has no relevance to the building insulation, still it can be a concept for further opportunities.
Lastly we come to thermal insulation. This the most common type of insulation, actually this is what is talked about when they refer building insulation. Heat energy transfers from the source to the desired place through three methods of heat transfer- conduction (the heat energy is transferred from one molecule to another), convection (the energy is transferred to the molecule and the energised molecule reaches the place), and by radiation (the heat wave is reflected or emitted). When thermal insulation is provided the idea is to contain the heat inside or outside the insulated body. The idea is to reduce this heat transfer to the minimum. Hence in the process of insulation the heat again the way to provide thermal insulation is by taking advantage of the characteristic of the material used for the purpose.
Thermal Building Insulation
When we look forward to insulate a building we generally try to maintain a particular temperature inside the building. There are different ways adopted in cold regions and in hot regions of insulating a building. In cold regions the purpose of building insulation is to keep the inside warm, hence capture the heat inside and not let it be lost to the environment. The openings of the building like the windows, and the surface enveloping the building are the areas from which the heat can be lost. There are ways to reduce this loss, and they are by doing weather proofing, bulk insulation, or doing fibre glass insulation. While insulating is used to reduce the conductive heat flow weather proofing is basically to counter the convective heat flow. Also you can opt for window insulation which not only does away with the possibility of losing heat through it but use it as a source of insulation.
In hotter climate, insulation is done to keep the outside heat from entering the building. In these regions the heat is generally coming in the radiation form. Hence to avoid the temperature rise what you can do is obstruct the radiation and keep it from reaching the insides. This can be doc\ne by using reflectors on the windows which are known to reduce the amount of heat absorbed to only 5%. Other ways can be going for light coloured roofing, heat reflective paints, etc., to care of the rest of the enveloping area.
Some of the materials used for building insulation are as follows. The structural insulation panels are like the foam core insulated doors. The same principle is used for the whole building. The panels have plywood or a drywall glued on to a polystyrene core on both the sides. The core can also be of compressed wheat straw or epoxy or polyurethane. When the building is constructed these boards are glued and used, they also provide structural support along with the insulation. This method has its own set of advantages. It is easy to use and the building process can be over soon. It also provides acoustic insulation to the place. The SIP is impermeable to moisture. Hence the heat insulation is to the optimum, as moisture hinders in the work. It does not require much energy for manufacture and are easy to transport as well. Also there are no CFCs or HCFCs used in the process of their manufacture.
Another way to provide insulation is by using batts. Earlier fibre glass batts were very common and popular amongst the builders. But these days cotton has taken the stage. These batts are made from industrial scrap which are recycled and used for making the batts. It is a sustainable option as the manufacturing and extracting processes are minimised and hence the expense of energy is reduced to a great extent. The formaldehyde used for adhesive in the fibre glass is toxic which is done away with in these ones. But the amount of insulation is same as that of the fibre glass, and of course like any other batt the installation optimises the effect.
Areas to provide building insulation are the doors and windows, floors over the unheated areas, ceilings which do not have conditioned places, all exterior walls, knee walls and rafters, and such corners of the building.
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