Insulation
No house in is complete without some form of insulation in Wisconsin. Keeping a house or garage warm in the winter can pose a very big challenge. There was an answer when the first wood framing house became cold. The residents shoved newspapers between the studs, separating the interior and exterior wall. This house became warm because the warm air had more of a space to travel through. When wall framing became popular, there was no building code at the time that mandated certain types of insulation. There was a very wide range of insulations, including sawdust, newspaper, old rags and even fiberglass. With this, houses and other heated structures became warmer; however, despite the desired effect of heat, there needed to be a place for heat to escape. There must be a place for heat to escape. Due to heat rising, your roof would become very warm and snow would melt on top of the roof. This causes ice to form as well as dangerous icicles. With this combination, ice could be deadly. As a result, soffits were invented to let heat escape from the attic and overhang, and still keep the house warm because heat rises. The idea of insulation is to slow the transfer of heat from one object or space to another.
A big key to insulation is the R-value. This is also called the resistance value. This system rates insulation on a scale, the higher number slowing the transfer of heat better. Believe it or not, you want to have different insulation R-values in your home. According to Wisconsin Builder's code, different forms of insulation need to be present. Here are the following types of insulation and their uses in our homes. Each differs in the R-value and can be accommodated to meet a certain R-value.
Spray Foam
Fiberglass
This type of insulation has the ability to expand into any space, forming an excellent air barrier that reduces noise, keeps pollutants and allergens out and provides superior comfort and energy efficiency. This type of insulation uses Icynene, a closed cell spray foam consisting of two parts that are mixed on-site and applied by the insulation technician.
Ideal for walls, attics, and ceilings, fiberglass can be applied in loose fill/blown-in for dense pack in walls or in batt form laid in attics. Fiberglass is non-combustible, non-corrosive, formaldehyde-free and moisture and mold resistant. According to Wisconsin Builders Code, every house must have some grade of this insulation in their house, if the walls aren't logs.
Cellulose
This natural, plant-based product is a safe, dependable and cost-effective solution that offers noise reduction and moisture and mold resistance. Cellulose is usually blown into spaces and densely packed to create an effective barrier. This form of insulation is very uncommon; however, it is still used in some houses in the area.
Thermax Rigid Foam
Applied in basements and crawlspaces, these sheets of insulation are designed for both insulation and moisture protection. Thermax is applied in basements to the interior walls in combination with spray foam insulation in the box sills. Every new home is required to have htis form of insulation between the top of the basement wall to the bottom of the floor. (Also known as a box sill)
Some of the different types of fiberglass insulation. Each has a different R-value and comes in different shapes sizes.
See works cited for source of this image
In all houses, you want heat; however, you also need heat to escape from your house in the dead of winter. If there is too much heat in your attic, you will have snow melt on your roof; causing immense ice build up. This is not only dangerous to your safety due to the danger of falling ice, it is also dangerous to the structures in your house. Your roof and its supports can only hold so much weight, and if it is too much, it could ultimately destroy your house. Soffits come into play in this situation. Soffits are vents in the overhang of your house that let heat escape from your attic. These allow you to let heat escape without melting ice. Attics are designed to let warm air leave, not stay. Without soffits, our roofs and it's contents could potentially be deadly.
There is one final measure of insulation that is also required by building codes. This is house wrap. Have you ever seen a house without siding and seen an image similar to the one on the right? This is the final barrier for moisture to enter from siding and it is the final barrier to any heat loss from the inside. This barrier is the final defense on both sides of the house, insulating it from the outside as well as the inside.
Standard house wrap. (see works cited)
Sustainability
It is no question, insulation is needed, and you must know the sustainability of it because odds are, you're not going to tear apart your house to re-insulate it. Something you must know is that insulation is designed to last the lifetime of the house in the walls. For the attic as well as a crawl space, (if there is no basement) it will usually last 20 or so years because of the moisture problems that there are in those areas. This is all fiberglass insulation. Spray foam lasts the lifetime of the building and is the most expensive because you have to hire somebody to install it for a professional job. It would cost you more to buy the equipment and install it than it would for somebody to install it for you. Cellulose information lasts anywhere from 80-100 years. Finally, the rigid foam insulation lasts the lifetime of the house as well. This is the most sustainable type of insulation, and the most expensive. For the bargain for your buck, you want fiberglass insulation.