Is Improve It Stabilized Insulation a sound investment?
Absolutely! For existing homes, an installer of Improve It Stabilized will determine your existing insulation levels in order to ensure that adding Improve It Stabilized makes sense for you. Many older homes can benefit from adding Improve It Stabilized in attics and walls since traditional insulation settles over time. The energy savings from adding Improve It Stabilized may cover the cost of installation in less than a year, making retro-fitting your home with Improve It Stabilized Insulation one of the best investments you can make!
For new homes, Improve It Stabilized Insulation almost always makes sense from an investment perspective. In just about every case, using Improve It Stabilized in your home will pay for itself in less than two years by reduced energy costs alone. When factoring in the potential for downsizing HVAC equipment, the payback can sometimes be immediate! In other words, using Improve It Stabilized may not cost you anything!
What is the best insulation for a "Green Home" environment?
Improve It Stabilized Insulation stands head and shoulders over our competitor's products. Our insulation is made of 80-85% recycled paper, utilizing discarded papers that would otherwise be sent to landfills. Improve It Stabilized Insulation also has the lowest embodied energy score of any major insulation. This means that it requires less energy to produce and transport Improve It Stabilized than other insulation types, which means fewer emissions are released into the environment. Traditional fiberglass insulation requires approximately 10 times more energy than Improve It Stabilized Insulation to produce and transport, while foam products that are derived from petroleum use even more. Additionally, neither of these products are recyclable. When you combine Improve It Stabilized Insulation's environmentally sound features with its outstanding ability to conserve energy in hundreds of thousands of homes across the globe, you would think the color of our insulation would be green!
Can Improve It Stabilized be installed over existing insulation?
Provided that the existing insulation is properly installed and free from damage such as moisture or mold, Improve It Stabilized Installation may be installed over top of existing insulation. A little Improve It Stabilized Insulation can go a long way; as little as four inches applied over fiberglass in your attic can restore the effective R-Value of the fiberglass in heating and cooling seasons!
Do different installation methods make a difference?
Installation is critical in determining how insulation performs in your home. The walls, ceilings and floors of your home are full of odd shaped cavities and obstacles such as plumbing, air ducts, and wiring. For insulation to work effectively, it must completely fill the gaps around these obstructions. Improve It Stabilized Insulation is sprayed or blown into walls, conforming to your home and surrounding you and your family with a seamless insulation system. Fiberglass rolls, on the other hand, are cut and pieced together by hand, leaving gaps, voids, & areas of compression. With Improve It Stabilized, walls are fully and tightly insulated forming a complete thermal barrier. No more gaps, voids, or drafts; just years of comfort and energy efficiency.
Are there incentives available from my local utility company?
Utility companies are encouraged through various federal and state initiatives to support consumers and businesses seeking to implement energy conservation programs. Check your utility company’s website or call their local office to find out what incentives may be available in your area.
What is R-Value?
R-Value is the industry standard for measuring the insulating power of any material; the higher the R-Value, the higher the insulating power.
What are the thermal benefits of Improve It Stabilized?
Improve It Stabilized Insulation has a higher density than many other insulation types available, providing excellent resistance to air-infiltration, radiation of heat energy and convective currents. Additionally, it has a higher R-Value per inch (as much as 3.8-3.9 R/inch depending on product depth and density of application), which means more insulating power with less product.
What are the sound control benefits?
Sound waves move through the air and space. The same density and custom fit provided by Improve It Stabilized for the purpose of fire safety and thermal control, also increases its ability to control sound. In fact, Improve It Stabilized Insulation has a better STC rating than either fiberglass or foam insulation. That means a building insulated with Improve It Stabilized Insulation will be much quieter than if it was insulated with fiberglass or foam.
What are the fire resistance characteristics?
Improve It Stabilized Insulation is manufactured and tested by R&D Services (third-party) in accordance with ASTM C739. It meets and exceeds the fire-resistance testing under that standard. In fire tests, Improve It Stabilized Insulation out-performs traditional insulation by 55 percent!
Do I still need a housewrap or building paper when using Improve It Stabilized?
Our insulator combines air seal (caulk or foam) with stabilized wall-spray, and as such housewrap or building paper is not needed to control air movement through the wall. However, this does not affect the second purpose that housewrap or building paper provides, which acts as a drainage plane. Consideration should still be given to a drainage plane based on the local climate. Some areas of the country receive so much rain that the sheathing beneath the exterior finish will almost certainly become wet. The climate in some of these regions may offer only limited drying potential. In these areas, a drainage plane (which may be considered a "housewrap") is certainly recommended.
