How much ceiling insulation is protecting your home?
You might have a lot, a little or none at all – find out below.
Ceiling insulation is the most important insulation in your home, so it’s essential to know whether it’s doing the job it should be. Many people believe they have ceiling insulation, but in truth they haven’t been in their ceiling in years, or perhaps never!
Get to know what’s in your ceiling and you’ll enjoy a much more comfortable home with lower heating and cooling bills too.
WHAT CAN HAPPEN TO CEILING INSULATION OVER TIME?
Settling and Compression: Insulation’s loft, or thickness, is what makes it work so well. If your insulation has settled over time, this will reduce how well it’s working. Sometimes insulation is squashed while maintenance is being carried out in the ceiling, or it could be pushed aside and not put back in place. Depending on what type of insulation is used, the material may be permanently flattened.
Movement: Complete ceiling coverage is essential to the performance of ceiling insulation. Loose-fill insulation in particular has a tendency to move over time, causing it to accumulate at the sides and leave the middle areas less protected. Ironically the middle areas of a room is often where households spend most of their time!
Rodents and Moisture: Your roof space may be home to any number of critters. Rodents in particular like to carry some varieties of insulation away as nesting material, leaving areas uninsulated. If your roof space is susceptible to moisture, you want to be sure that your insulation can withstand becoming wet (holding its shape while it dries), as this may affect its thickness and therefore how well it works!
Different Levels in Different Ceilings: Homes are often made up of multiple ceilings, accessed from different man holes in separate rooms. Often these separate areas have not received the same level of ceiling insulation, or the different areas’ conditions have made it react in a different way over time. This is particularly true if there have been renovations made to the home.
HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?
Insulation’s effectiveness is measures in terms of R Value, which stands for ‘Resistance Value’. The Building Code of Australia specifies a minimum value for new home of R3.5 in the Melbourne area and R4.3 in colder areas of Victoria.
Measure the depth of your ceiling insulation and use this chart to see whether you have enough insulation in your ceiling.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT YOUR CEILING INSULATION?
You don’t have to remove what you already have. You can enhance the R Value of your ceiling insulation by evening out what’s already there and installing a high quality bulk-insulation over the top.
Remember, what was considered the best ceiling insulation 20 or 30 years ago may not be the best today. Look for a product that will withstand the test of time – something that will hold its loft, springing back into shape when compressed. Choose a type of ceiling insulation that will dry out after getting wet, and does not attract rodents.
We have been using and recommending polyester insulation for over a decade because it is extremely durable and highly effective.
ARE YOU GETTING THE WHOLE PICTURE OF YOUR HOME?
But remember, your ceiling isn’t the only thing influencing your home’s thermal comfort.
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Your home is a system with many factors that determine how energy is used, or potentially wasted, when trying to keep it at a comfortable temperature.
ecoMaster’s unique whole-of-home approach ensures that all aspects of your home’s thermal comfort are considered. Our retrofit expertise spans: professional draught proofing, ceiling, underfloor and wall insulation; and secondary glazing, which is double glazing for existing windows.
When you begin your journey with an ecoHome Assessment, you’ll enjoy the benefits of a prioritised home retrofit plan tailored specifically to your home and lifestyle.
Visit the ‘Assessments’ tab in the menu above to choose the right fit for your home.
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