Typical materials used in domestic retrofit for insulation Flashcards
how does insulation material work
Most insulation materials work by trapping air and gas within the material.
What are fossil fuel based insulation materials blown by?
blown by gases to create foam and their performance may be affected by this gas leakage over time.
how do you decide what insulation material to use
you decide based on the thickness needed to achieve the thermal performance standard required.
what does U - Value measure
It measures how effective a particular building element is as an insulator.
the lower the U- value, the better it is as a heat insulator
What’s the U value for existing buildings that are to be refurbished?
what is building envelope
the exterior shell of the building: including the external, windows, floor and roof
what is building fabric?
any structure, surface, fixture or fitting associated internally or externally with a building.
what should you consider when selecting insulation material?
Thermal transmittance (U value) -is the amount of heat energy that moves through a floor, wall or roof, from the warm (heated) side to the cold side.
The lower the thermal U-value the better, because this means less heat energy is used to flow through it.
Thermal conductivity (K Value or Lambda)- Is the basic measure of how much heat energy is conducted by any building material, including thermal insulation.
For insulation, the lower the lambda value, the better the thermal performance.
Lambda values are important for completing U-value calculations, which in turn help to meet building regulations.
Thermal resistance (R value) -
Thermal resistance measures the resistance of a product to the passage of heat through it. As a rule of thumb, the higher the thermal resistance the better, because there is a greater resistance to heat transfer.
what should you consider when selecting insulation material?
Thermal transmittance or U value = the amount of heat energy that moves through a floor, wall or roof, from the wamer (heated) side to the cold.
U value are useful for calculating the building elements’ overall insulating effectiveness.
the lower the thermal U-value the better, this means the floor, wall or roof allows less heat energy to flow through it.
Thermal conductivity (also known has lambda value or K value) - How much heat energy is conducted by any building material, including thermal insulation.
The lower the Lambda value the better the thermal performance.
Thermal resistance (R-Value)- measures the resistance of a product to the passage of heat through it. The higher the thermal resistance the better, which means theirs greater resistance to heat transfer.
What is vapour resistance or permeability insulation?
vapour resistance - the resistance of a material to the passage of water vapour through it.
Vapour- permeable - allows moisture (not air) to pass through it)
what is energy intensity?
Energy used in the manufacture of the insulation material. Materials that require low energy in their production are more environmentally friendly.
Vulnerability or durability
the insulation’s ability to withstand wear and tear during its useful life.
Avoiding further damage to the insulation.
Name the different insulation types
Natural - produced mostly from natural vegetation.popular choice due to its low energy use in manufacture. EXAMPLE - sheeps wool, cellulose, cork, wood fibre and hemp.
Fossil fuel- based - products are mostly plastics produced from oil.give the best insulation performance for thickness.
Mineral based - spun or ecfoliated/expanded from mineral.are energy intensive to manufucture. they include — spun fibres (glass wool and mineral wool), exfoliated (Vermiculite and Perlite), foamed (glass, concrete and clay)
Radiant - These are metal based and inhibit radiant heat transfer only and include
Multi foil insulation
foil fave on some insulation boards
Coatings on modern double glazed windows.
