What is the best attic insulation to use from a green living viewpoint?
Good attic insulation is now understood by everybody to be essential for keeping both costs and carbon emissions down.
By installing the very best attic insulation you could drop your household heating bills by as much as £200 per year and save as much as a tonne of carbon per year. (Approximate figures for an average British 3 bedroom semi.) Up to 35% of household heat energy can be lost through the attic, so it is worth while to find the best attic insulation for your needs.
There are many different types of insulation available for insulating your attic or loft. You can buy insulation for your attic floor and you can insulate the under roof (rafter) spaces, too. The choice of good green insulating materials is growing.
Durability and price are important considerations, too for most people, in the quest for the very best attic insulation.
This article focuses on loft insulation materials with a view to finding the greenest and most effective products without hitting your pocket book too hard.
What is the best attic insulation:
Wool attic insulation - the new green alternative
"Thermafleece" wool insulation
Wool insulation is now becoming popular as people turn to more environmentally friendly options. It certainly has many impressive advantages as an insulating material. Sheep's wool is the main contender at the moment.
Actually, wool is not that new as an insulation material; yurts and other habitations favoured by nomadic peoples have long been lined with woollen rugs to enhance insulation against the cold.
Anti-toxic wool
First, it is completely non-toxic and can easily be sustainably sourced. Further it can even trap environmental toxins, such as formaldehyde, making it a useful ally in the battle to achieve a non-toxic home environment. Many modern fabrics and home furnishings can emit formaldehyde.
Thermafleece, a UK sheep's wool insulation, has been used in schools because of its protective qualities.
Borax and rubber - both naturally occurring products - are used in preparing sheep's wool for use in insulation. This does not affect the wool's hygroscopic qualities but improves its "memory" (shape-holding) and helps make it fire-retardant and deters insects.
Sheep's wool insulation can be used for insulating attic floors (sometimes called "ceiling level" insulation) and it can be used for insulating between rafters on the roof itself.
Not so wet!
Wool can also take in a certain amount of moisture without impairing its insulating properties. Up to 30% of its volume can be water before there is any appreciable change in its R value.
Used loose, as with EcoWool, shown below, there is a limit to how much humidity should be present in timber framed buildings. It should not be used if the...
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