insulation - The Fun Times Guide to Home Building/Remodeling

7 Reasons To Install Radiant Barrier Roof Sheathing

Radiant barrier roof sheathing is a great product that is installed just like regular roof sheathing. photo by Randy @ The Fun Times Guide to Homebuilding

Radiant barrier roof sheathing is a great product that will reduce your power bill. There are just a few manufacturers that make this unusual type of roof sheathing that has a shiny, perforated aluminum foil/craft paper laminated to one side of it. For simplicity's sake, I'm focusing my attention on Georgia-Pacific's Thermostat® radiant barrier product, not to mention that all Georgia-Pacific wood product samples are available to me. I happen to manage the facility that sends out all of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Green Homebuilding, Home & Garden Tagged With: Energy Star, green building materials, green products, insulation, LEED, roofing

Are Radiant Barriers Right For Your Home?

Radiant barriers have been around for decades but they are starting to gain momentum. This is in large part due to advances in design and the sales potential to existing homeowners that are upside-down on their mortgages. I touched on the subject of radiant barriers in a recent post regarding home energy audits, but I wanted to dig a little deeper. Radiant barriers inhibit heat transfer by thermal radiation. The concept works and is widely used throughout the homebuilding industry among … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Home & Garden, Maintenance & Decor Tagged With: attics, DIY, green building materials, green products, insulation, money saving tips

What Is A Home Energy Audit?

What is a home energy audit? A home energy audit, also known as a home energy assessment, is a series of specific tests and inspections performed by a certified professional to determine where your house could be more energy efficient. We recently had a free home energy review, not the same thing as a home energy audit, performed on our home by a representative of Home Energy Solutions. He came to our home and performed a complimentary 15-point inspection. It wasn't a full scale home … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Home & Garden, Homebuilding Basics Tagged With: Energy Star, home maintenance, insulation, money saving tips

Choosing the Best Types of Insulation For Your Home

Are you trying to decide on the best types of insulation that you might want to add to your house to save energy and money? The market is full of all types from simple to uniquely engineered, and it pays to know the difference between all of them. According to the U.S. Dept of Energy (DOE), most types of home insulation fall into 1 of 9 forms. That makes for some difficult decision-making, unless you are up to speed. Those 9 forms are: Blanket: batts and rolls Concrete block … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Home & Garden, Homebuilding Basics Tagged With: insulation

How To Increase Home Energy Savings

Everyone wants to know different ways in which to save money. Homeowners have a particular advantage over renters as far as what you can do to improve home energy savings because you have a vested interest in your property. That doesn't mean that renters can't do some of these things, but they will have to live with the fact that whatever improvements are made (assuming the landlord approves your improvements prior to implementation) will stay with the condo, house or apartment. There are … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Home & Garden, Homebuilding Basics Tagged With: home maintenance, insulation, money saving tips

Atlanta Home Show Cool Homebuilding Products

One of my biggest reasons for attending home shows is to see interesting, cool homebuilding products and services, with the occasional celebrity to meet to keep things interesting. The 2011 Fall Atlanta Home Show didn't disappoint, although, I had hoped that there would be more products to wow me. A product garners a "wow" and/or a "cool" rating by meeting one, or more, of the following criteria: A better-built "mouse trap" for an old problem A new invention/patent that truly … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Green Homebuilding, Home & Garden Tagged With: cool products, doors, green building materials, green products, home and garden shows, insulation

Pros and Cons of Ceramic Coatings (Paint) For Your Home

The Go Green Expo - Atlanta 2009 was chock full of interesting green products, services and solutions for home, lifestyle and then some. My interest was focused on homebuilding products and services (of course) and anything that would improve my lifestyle while at the same time lessen my impact on the environment. Basically, like many of you out there I'm trying to live greener as time goes on. This means putting into practice all of the green homebuilding products and services at my … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Green Homebuilding, Home & Garden Tagged With: green building materials, insulation, paint

Cellulose vs. Fiberglass Insulation

While fiberglass insulation remains popular, homeowners should consider cellulose insulation for their next home improvement project. Not only is cellulose insulation a sustainable material, but it can save up to one fifth of the energy costs when compared to fiberglass. And although it may be more difficult to install, cellulose insulation offers several advantages that make it worth a look.Image Courtesy Cellulose.orgR-value is KingAlthough cellulose … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Home & Garden, Homebuilding Basics Tagged With: insulation

How to Install Foam Gaskets to Insulate Your Electrical Outlets

One of the least expensive and easiest ways to reduce heating and cooling costs is to insulate your electrical outlets. While most people don't consider this to be a major source of energy loss, keep in mind that behind every faceplate that covers a light switch or electrical outlet is a hole in your wall. Adding a foam insulating gasket allows you to create a tight seal between the wall and the faceplate without altering the appearance of the socket. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Home & Garden, Maintenance & Decor Tagged With: DIY, insulation, money saving tips

Advantages of Using Cotton Insulation in Residential Construction

Cotton insulation is a green building material that requires less energy to produce and is far more renewable than its largest competitor: fiberglass. Even those homeowners without environmental concerns are often won over by this product that has better acoustical properties and is easier to work with than its competitors. Cotton insulation may be made of cotton grown for the purpose of insulation or from scraps of cotton cloth or scraps of recycled cotton. Cotton insulation made from the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Green Homebuilding, Home & Garden Tagged With: eco-friendly, insulation

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