Many homes have a crawl space that goes ignored or unfinished. It is crucial that this space be insulated to ensure that a home's energy efficiency is maximized. Untreated, a crawl space can negatively impact a home's durability, energy efficiency, and air quality.
Before diving into why insulating a crawl space is necessary, it’s crucial to understand what insulation is and the different types available. Insulation is the barrier between internal and external walls that allow a house to use power efficiently by retaining heat or cold and expelling moisture. The materials used for insulation create barriers to reduce the flow of heat, electricity, moisture, shocks, or sounds.
The two main types of home insulation available are fiberglass and foam insulation. Both are effective, efficient insulation solutions, though there are a few significant differences between the two.
Fiberglass Insulation
Batted fiberglass is a blanket-like variety of insulation that is cut to fit. This insulation is made up of fine strands of glass layered and pressed together until its layers are thick enough to be rolled, cut, and installed in homes.
Loose-fill fiberglass comprises fiberglass particles, wool, cellulose, vermiculite, and rock wool fibers. This loose fiberglass gets blown into a cavity once the space has been lined with mesh.
Foam Insulation
Foam insulation is a mixed chemical foam sprayed into a space or cavity that then expands to fill the space, eventually hardening to form an air-and-watertight barrier. Professionals should mix and apply foam insulation to ensure protection and proper ventilation from dangerous fumes.
Missourians know that our winters are cold and our summers are hot. You may know that the quality of your in-home insulation is crucial to keeping your air conditioning or heating bills under control, but are you aware of how much energy you are losing through the floors and into the crawl space? By simply insulating the crawl space, you complete the last piece of the cost-saving puzzle; insulate the crawl space, and keep the warm air in and the heating bills low.
How is Crawl Space Insulation Installed
Depending on the construction of your crawl space, your options for insulation will change. A crawl space is either vented or not vented, which will determine your course of action.
Vented Crawl Space
A vented crawl space means air vents along the perimeter of your crawl space passively exchange air with the outside. In a vented crawl space, insulation is applied between the floor joists under the house's subfloor. It’s important to ensure that a vapor barrier is used in vented crawl spaces to ensure that condensation and mold don't begin to form and affect air quality.
Un-Vented Crawl Space
The best way to treat your unvented crawl space is to finish it like a mini-basement. Install moisture barriers on the ground, and cover it with inexpensive flooring. Then, insulate the walls of the crawl space, but not the subfloor of the house. This method simply includes the crawl space as a part of the home and incorporates it in the temperate-controlled environment of the house.
Stop losing money on a crawl space that leaks heat or cool air day and night. Contact St. Louis Insulation today and transform your crawl space into an air-tight, energy-efficient part of your home.