SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Blog

Where Does My Southwest Florida Building Need Insulation?

For many homeowners, understanding of insulation is typically surface-level: what they see when they poke their head into the attic is what they should be worried about, right? While insulation often falls victim to the “out of sight, out of mind” mentality, it plays a significant role in your home’s comfort and safety. While industry experts may be familiar with the Department of Energy’s breakdown of where a home should be insulated, it can look a bit complicated to the untrained eye.

Instead of having to navigate through the industry lingo, our team at Koala Insulation of Southwest Florida is here to help educate you and your household. In order to understand the importance of proper insulation installation and coverage, we’ve developed a simple walk-through. By breaking down the basics of insulation and knowing where your home could be lacking is the first step in becoming the household insulation expert to save you in bills, maintenance fees, and possible future complications.

Insulation Basics

In order to understand where insulation should be placed in your home, you need to first know the basic function and use of the material. The primary use of insulation is to reduce the rate of heat transfer. This is the rate at which heat enters or escapes a building’s structure and is measured based on the material’s R-value.

An insulation’s R-value, also known as resistance value, is the numerical measurement of the material’s ability to resist heat. With higher R-values, the insulation is better able to aid in temperature regulation, keeping your house evenly heated or cooled. If you notice your AC is working harder, one side of the house isn’t as cold as the rest, or there’s a sudden increase in monthly utility bills, old or improperly installed insulation could be the culprit.

5 Areas in a House That Should Be Insulated

1.Attic

You're probably already familiar with the insulation in your attic. Most houses have some type of blown-in or loose-fill insulation lining the floor with fiberglass, mineral wool, or cellulose as the material. You most likely had this type in your childhood home if you recall your parents ever telling you not to eat the fluffy material upstairs. However, just because you can see the insulation lining your floor doesn't mean the home is necessarily well-insulated.

In order to ensure your home is properly covered, it’s important to have your attic insulation regularly checked and updated. Because heat rises, the topmost part of your house can turn into a furnace in the summer and an escape for warmth in the winter. While you may be concerned with giving the house room to “breath”, air sealing and covering all walls, ceilings, and floors help keep the building temperature regulated. To learn more about airflow throughout the house and attic, read our article here.

2.Walls

Having the walls throughout the building well-insulated is crucial to temperature regulation. But this isn't the only benefit the packed-in material provides you and other residents. It's a major contributing factor to things like noise repression, mold and moisture resistance, and even pest control depending on the material type. With the use of thermal imaging testing, your local technicians at Koala Insulation of Southwest Florida will be able to tell you whether or not your walls are in need of retrofitted insulation.

The walls and foundation of your home are built with the intention of protecting you from the outside elements, pollutants, and unwanted guests, and pests. Without the support of insulation and air sealing, your supports aren't able to get the job done nearly as efficiently. Insulation works as a cushion for both heat and sound waves, reducing the ability of these forces to enter and exit your house.

3.Floors

For many homeowners, it may come as a surprise that insulating your floors can be just as important as covering your attic and walls. Regardless of whether you live in a multi-story home, have a basement or crawlspace, or you’ve transformed your attic space into an additional living area or bedroom, your floors could be the prime suspect of escaped air.

Underinsulated homes see an increase in uncomfortable drafts, moisture problems, and mold growth. These health hazards, along with the potential for invasive pollutants, bacteria, and other outdoor pests, are why air sealing and insulation play a crucial role in keeping your household safe. With a free evaluation, you can determine where your home is lacking under those old floorboards.

4.Ceilings

When thinking about temperature regulation, it’s important to not only consider from room to room but from floor to ceiling as well. As mentioned earlier, heat rises and most often escapes and enters through the top of your building. Therefore, your ceilings in the upper floors and attic should be properly insulated with strong, durable material. Homeowners most commonly use batt insulation made from fiberglass or mineral wool, but spray foam is just as helpful of an option.

Underinsulated ceilings are a main contributing factor to heat loss in the winter and heat gain in the summer. With help from your local insulation experts, you can greatly reduce unwanted heat transfer throughout your home with a simple thermal imaging test. Every technician on the Koala Insulation team is trained and ready to help educate homeowners on the importance of a well-insulated building.

5.Basement & Crawl Spaces

Whether you have a basement or crawl spaces under your home, insulating these areas can significantly reduce your heating and cooling costs. The Department of Energy states that sufficiently covering these areas “saves you money on heating and provides a dry, comfortable living space.” Like your attic space, these lower levels most likely cover a significant area under your house, if not the entire foundation. Therefore, maintaining their insulation is crucial.

Similar to the importance of insulating your floors, the underground levels of your home greatly contribute to air leakage, moisture build-up, mold, and even pest nesting. Regardless of whether you choose to have fiberglass, cellulose, spray foam, or another type of material installed in the lower levels of your home, local experts will be able to get you the most savings without sacrificing comfort and safety.

Consult An Insulation Expert

Ensuring your home is properly insulated can help you get on the path to a safer, more comfortable, and energy-efficient structure. However, especially if you’re a first-time homeowner or you’ve just moved into a new area, you should first make sure that the insulation in the house is working properly. Having the best local insulation contractors can help you identify the various factors that can affect your home’s energy efficiency.

Your local insulation experts at Koala Insulation of Southwest Florida are here to help bring you and your household closer to a cost-effective and energy-saving home. Contact our team today for a free evaluation and estimate to solve your insulation needs.