The roof is the home’s protector, and you must care for it well to enjoy the protection through the life of the roof. But besides protecting homes from the elements of weather and making it a safe place to live, the roof plays a vital role in making homes energy efficient. The energy efficiency of homes is a measure of its ability to thermal resistance that helps to minimize heat exchange.
In other words, the most efficient homes are the ones that have excellent ability to contain the heat and temperature within the indoors. In such houses, the indoor remains naturally cool or warm depending on the season and lower electricity bills by reducing the use of equipment to keep the home artificially warm or cool.
Insulating homes is the only way to improve the thermal resistance of the interior. Roofing experts of Patriot Roofers Salt Lake City Utah advise people to pay special attention to roof insulation because almost a quarter of the heat that the home loses passes out through the roof. In some cases, the heat loss through the roof can be as high as 35% of the total heat loss in homes. Therefore, to make homes more energy efficient, you must ensure that your roof has the right kind of insulation that can not only arrest the trend of heat loss but eliminate it.
Whether you have pitched roof or flat roof and whatever may be its style, there are ways of insulating it so that living becomes more comfortable at a lesser cost. Improved insulation reduces the use of machines for cooling and heating and besides helping to conserve energy cuts down energy bills and saves money. Economical and eco-friendly living – these are the dual goals that you can achieve with the right kind of roof insulation
Create a radiant barrier
Just as roof insulation can prevent heat escape to the environment, it can also prevent outside heat from passing inside by creating a barrier to heat flow. During summer, roof insulation can reduce the penetration of solar heat through the roof by almost 97%, which helps to maintain the lower temperature inside homes without any artificial cooling.
Similarly, in winter, when the sun is mild or invisible for most of the time, the insulation provides thermal protection by retaining the heat inside homes to keep it warm. A spray foam roofing installation can be applied over an existing roof and it can help to keep the home warm or cool. Spray foam insulation contractor are experts in this roofing technique and available at affordable price. By choosing an effective insulation material, you can preserve the convective heat inside homes during winter that remains warm and cozy without requiring any additional support from machines. Lesser use of heating and cooling equipment prolongs the life of the equipment, and even smaller size of equipment would suffice.
Create healthy interiors
By creating a barrier for heat transfer, insulation also helps to eliminate the possibilities of moisture condensation inside homes that can create a damp environment and encourage the growth of mold and mildew besides corroding the building structure. Besides applying good insulation on the roof, you must ensure proper ventilation too to avoid condensation because it helps moisture to escape into the air and prevent ice build-up and its accompanying damages.
Types of roof insulation material
Roof insulation materials are many, but it comes under two broad categories – reflective insulation material and bulk insulation material. Reflective insulation materials are chemical coatings and foils while bulk insulation materials come in the form of a blanket, sprayed foam, blown in cellulose and rigid boards. Both types of insulation materials are suitable for both commercial and residential applications, and the choice depends on the existing site conditions and the extent of thermal efficiency that you want to build up. However, from the point of application, it is easier to use reflective insulation material that you can install easily that is quite effective in controlling temperature loss or gain and moisture penetration. But everything depends upon what you want to achieve and what suits the roofing system.
Reflective roof insulation
Plastic bubble sheet or fiberglass sandwiched between two aluminum foils forms the reflective insulation material. This sort of insulation material is perfect for use in pole barn roofs. The insulation can reflect 97% of solar heat from the roof surface and prevent heat from penetrating through the roof and going inside homes.
Bulk roof insulation
Bulk roof insulation material comes in the form of blanket, rigid foam, and sprayed foam. Except for the difference in the method of applying the insulation, all three are highly effective in cutting off heat transfer between the roof and the building.
- Blanket – Also known as Batts the insulation material consists of cotton, fiberglass and sheep’s wool or mineral wool that can effectively combat the flow of warm air by arresting the heat contained in it and helping to maintain thermal resistance of the space.
- Rigid foam – The rigid foam insulation material has an advantage over blanket insulation material because it neither absorbs nor compresses the moisture and has a higher insulating ability with longer life. This type of insulation works well in confined spaces.
- Sprayed Polyurethane foam – This insulation has specification application for building with metal walls and roof as it is ideal for sealing the joints to prevent air and moisture leaks. The insulation helps to control condensation. However, applying the insulation needs professional expertise, and it is expensive too.
Radiant barrier roof insulation
In summers, when the outside environment is burning under extreme heat, the best protection is available by reducing the solar heat effect for which reflective insulation is the best material. Since the sun’s heat is the biggest threat, the insulation effectively bounces it away almost completely, thereby not allowing any heat to penetrate inside. The thermal properties aluminum used in the insulation plays an important role in creating thermal resistance that acts as a radiant barrier. Primarily, it prevents solar heat from entering the building.
To make any roof insulation system work well, you must install it correctly. When applying reflective insulation, leave a 2″ air gap between the insulation layer and roof deck. Combining reflective insulation with rigid insulation works better than using a blanket, especially in conditions where space is a constraint.
