What You Need To Know About Improving Home Insulation

Insulation helps keep homes comfortable in times of hot or cold weather. Insulation also helps home heating and cooling systems run more efficiently. This can save a homeowner hundreds or thousands of dollars on heating and cooling bills. Additionally, more homes being built today are considered green and have more insulation and energy saving advantages than homes built years ago. For homeowners, it's important to know about insulation and how it can improve quality of life. This FAQ insulation guide may be helpful.

What Is Home Insulation & How Does It Work?

Home insulation is any product that acts as a barrier for heat. Most insulation is found inside the walls, floors and ceilings of the home. Insulation prevents hot air from escaping or entering the house, thus making it easier to control the internal temperature of the home. Insulation can take many forms.

• Batts. Batts are long blanket-like rolls of insulation that are unrolled at the time of installation.
• Loose fill. Loose fill insulation is simply blown or dropped into place to fill spaces in the walls, floor or ceiling of the home.
• Sprayed foam. Sprayed foam usually expands before sticking in place, so it's especially useful when installed inside a wall or in other hard to reach areas.
• Foam boards. Foam boards are rigid and can be used to fill parts of the home that need a stiff form of insulation.
• Reflective. Reflective insulation may lack the density of other forms of insulation, and works by reflecting light and heat away from the walls, floors and ceiling of the home.

Insulation can be made from fiberglass, cellulose, liquid foam, foil-faced craft paper, polystyrene or even recycled materials.

Is Your Home Under Insulated?

There are many ways that a homeowner can tell if their home is not sufficiently insulated. For example, a home that lacks sufficient insulation may experience problems like uncomfortable temperatures and uneven temperatures from one part of the home to the next. Rooms with exterior-facing walls may be more difficult to keep comfortable compared to parts of the home without exterior facing walls.

A properly insulated attic will have insulation that covers the joists. If the joists are visible, this is an indication that the attic needs more insulation.

In colder weather and climates, ice dams are also a problem that can occur in homes that are not properly insulated. An ice dam happens when hot spots in the attic cause snow to melt off the top of the roof and re-freeze near the eaves. Eventually, this ice can back up under the shingles and cause a leak in the house. Homeowners who struggle with ice dams in the winter should investigate their home's insulation levels to find out whether their home needs more.

What To Do if You Need More Insulation

Usually homeowners who want to increase their home's insulation will begin in the attic. Batt insulation is easy to install over the joists and can instantly make a difference in the way that the home's heating and cooling systems function.

Homeowners who want to go a step further can find out whether or not their outside walls have insulation. To do this, the homeowner can start by removing a baseboard from a wall that faces the home's exterior. There should be a gap between the drywall and the floor. If there is insulation in the walls, it will be visible in this gap. If there is no insulation visible in that gap, this means that there is probably not insulation in the walls.

Insulating an existing closed wall can be done. Homeowners can find out more about how to insulate their home by talking to a contractor who specializes in insulation installation.

Proper insulation in a Hernando, MS home is important. It can not only cut down on heating and cooling bills, but can possibly increase the value of a home. Homes that are well insulated and cared for often stand out from others and receive a premium when sold.