| It’s exciting when a family has the opportunity to have a new home built for them. |
The choices are endless as far as design, size, and color are concerned, and are usually the
things people like to think about. Its one of the most enjoyable and rewarding parts of the
process. |
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| Some of the choices you need to make are things that people don’t usually think as |
much about, such as siding preferences, roofing material, HVAC options, and other functional
decisions. One decision that no one spends much time on at all is insulation and air loss.
After all, isn’t it required by code that the builder put in the correct insulation? |
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| Did you know that infiltration, or air leaking through a home can account for up to |
40% of the total cost of conditioning (heating and cooling) a home? Did you also know that
insulation doesn’t stop air infiltration? The thermal envelope, or the “shell,” that separates
outside air from the inside air that you are paying to keep conditioned consists of two
elements. The first element is the insulation, and the other is an air barrier that seals the
flow of air through the envelope to the outside. |
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| While no one can dispute the value of properly installed insulation in a home, it’s |
really only half the picture. With only insulation, the air will still migrate through the
fiberglass strands and to the outdoors. With insulation and air sealing, the air can’t migrate
through the insulation barrier, and the full R-value of the insulation is realized. |
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