Top 5 Insulation Myths Debunked
In a world of rampant online information, articles and blog posts written by robots, and dozens upon dozens of ‘experts’ online, you can find a lot of contradicting and misleading information. This can lead to the generation of myths, or, commonly held beliefs that don’t necessarily represent reality or objective fact.
But don’t fear, Thermal Shop is here! To help you sort through what’s true and what’s myth when it comes to all things insulation and air-sealing. We’ve started by debunking our top 5 favorite insulation myths, just for you. Read on below.
Myth #1: DIY Insulation Yields the Same Result as Professional Installation
This myth is our favorite. While we applaud DIYers for taking on home improvement and new construction projects, we do also like to help them understand the potential risks of not getting insulation right the first time around. After all, what happens after you put insulation into a wall? It gets drywalled! And after that- repairs are not so easy (or cheap!). However, we still want to support DIYers and we wrote a separate blog article highlighting our top tips and tricks. Read that here.
For example, here is a picture of a DIY insulation project, sent to our team by a family member.
A non-insulator glancing at this photo might not find much to fault. After all, the pink insulation is neatly tucked into most of the cavities.
But I have to admit when I first saw this photo- I giggled. Here is everything my brain was laughing at:
The gaps in the insulation are all areas where heat will be able to transfer with absolutely no resistance. For example, when it’s colder outside than inside, your indoor heat will freely flow out, causing your furnace to ramp up more often. And when it’s warmer outside than inside, heat will freely flow in, causing your air conditioner to ramp up!
Not to mention- that areas without proper insulation (the gaps) are more prone to surface temperature shifts, which can be dangerous because of how the dew point shifts in response. If your home is warm during the winter, but you have a cold spot on the wall due to a gap in the insulation, and cold air is moving through that gap- then the interior side of your wall is likely to condensate and turn into a wet spot! If left unchecked, this could become a breeding ground for mold.
The compressed insulation in this photo is my favorite. Those little squiggly, curving lines are the cutest. BUT compressed insulation loses R-value! As this is an exterior wall in a house, I’d say that was an R-20 batt. However, compressed like that? There is no way that this wall would still meet current energy code. And the fix is annoyingly simple: cut a piece of insulation to size and fit it in nicely- don’t force it!
And the missing piece of insulation above the door 🤦🤦🤦 What can I even say about that?
What I didn’t highlight in this photo (it got a little too busy) is that air-sealing is also missing in this DIY project. The multi-stud and top plates don’t have any caulking on them at all (although, I do have to say kudos to this homeowner for foaming around their door).
Long story short: untrained eyes often can’t spot the mistakes in installations that look “pretty good.” If you want superior solutions, hire a professional. And if you’re working with insulation, hire Thermal Shop. 😎
Myth #2: More Insulation is Always Better
There comes a point when even we- a successful, growing insulation company- would tell you not to hire us, to stop insulating, and that you’re wasting your money and your time. As with most good things, there is a diminishing returns point- aka the point at which more and more effort/material/resources makes less and less of a difference.
Not to mention, as we just learned above- compressed insulation loses R-value. So in a case like this, more insulation could literally be worse for your project.
Depending on what you are insulating, your goals with this space, and the climate you live in- there is an optimal amount of insulation. A point at which we can balance money spent and efficiency gained. Thermal Shop can help determine the scope of work appropriate for your job.
Myth #3: More Air-Sealing is Always Better
Can someone explain to me this culture’s obsession with “more?” Maybe you’ve heard the cliche “Build tight, ventilate right.” Or… maybe you haven’t. You don’t necessarily spend all your time in Insulation-Land like we do.
Anyway…
The problem comes when homes are only “built tight” with no “ventilate right” considered. You can build extremely tight, but this requires spending a lot more money, energy, and resources on proper ventilation. Homes with too much air-sealing and not enough ventilation are prone to mold growth because they can’t “breathe” properly. Think about it- you only need a completely air-sealed space if you are strapping humans into a metal tube and sending them to the moon or the deep sea.
At Thermal Shop, we are big fans of building super air-tight homes- this is where efficiency really comes from. However, if you know you’re not going to spend the money to install or maintain a robust ventilation system, then consider how you can find the balance between retaining the conditioned air temperature and exchanging air with the outside to create circulation, dry out moisture, and maintain a healthy humidity level.
Myth #4: Spray Foam R-value is better than other insulation R-value
This is factually incorrect. R-value is R-value is R-value, period. That being said, if insulation is not paired with properly installed air barriers and moisture retarders, then spray foam might perform better, all R-values being equal. Spray foam is not a silver bullet, but it often makes things easier. For example, have you ever tried to install drywall or a vapor retarder in a rim joist? The cavities are tiny and set back- it’s really difficult to do well. In this case, spray foam- being insulation and air barrier in one- makes more sense because it is simply easier to apply well, and will therefore perform better than another insulation/vapor barrier combo installed not so well.
So, like many things in Insulation-Land and construction in general, it depends. It depends on what part of the structure is being insulated, what it was built with, what climate it’s in, what the goals are for the space, etc. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to insulation. Sometimes we recommend spray foam, sometimes we don’t! But we always achieve the necessary or desired R-value, and all vapor barrier and moisture retarder requirements.
Myth #5: It’s okay to skimp on insulation during the build of your new house.
Can you hear our *sigh* from across time and space?
We understand why insulation is overlooked, completely forgotten, or often ignored. You can’t see it! Insulation performs an invisible service, and in fact, you only tend to notice it when it isn’t working (unless of course, you’re… us). But consider this- how many other building parts tie together the climate, air movement, moisture movement, sound mitigation, and thermal transfer? Insulation & air sealing are core components of a house that determine not only how comfortable it will be, but also how it will stand up to the test of time.
Truth be told- you only get one real shot at doing insulation correctly. This is before drywall goes up, before a house or building gets finished. And despite the fact that there are ways to insulate behind finished surfaces (Drill & Fill, for example) these methods still involve drilling holes into finished walls that will need to be repaired. This can quickly become a (totally avoidable) costly hassle!
Our best advice? If you are building a new home or business, adding an addition, or doing a renovation, have a serious chat with your builder or general contractor about insulation. Tell them about your goals (comfort, efficiency, qualifying for an energy program, etc) and set aside a part of your budget to make it happen. If you don’t know where to start, read our blog post about insulation considerations for new homes (which also applies to renovations and additions).
Conclusion
And there you have it, folks. Our top 5 insulation myths debunked. We could go at this all day, but fortunately, we have some actual insulating to attend to. But no worries, if you have an insulation project coming up and you’d like Thermal Shop to take a look, reach out for a free insulation quote today.
