Common Misconceptions About Weatherization:

Replacing windows will solve all your heat-loss problems

• Unless your windows are extremely old and drafty, window replacements are not the best use of your insulation dollars. Since walls make up the majority of the exterior of your home, the insulation in those walls and in your roof will be where you lose the most heat. Since heat rises, attics are a major source of heat loss. Crawlspaces are another way that cold can infiltrate your home.

New homes are always built well and are well-insulated

• Obviously this depends on your builder and the quality of products that are put into your home. Many times corners are cut to lower building costs. If you are building a home, find out what products are being used in your home. Don't just assume that the builder always knows best. Do your homework, or have GreenSeal sit with you and discuss the options you have before your home is built.

All insulation is created equal

• Find out about the products going into your home.
• Fiberglass is actually a filter so air will go through it.
• Foam is the only insulation that is an air barrier.
• Cellulose properly installed with air sealing can be a great alternative to foam in an attic. Cellulose in exterior walls that have no insulation is the most cost effective way to insulate your home once the inside walls are up.

Icicles or ice dams on your roof in the winter is a sign of a gutter problem

• This is actually an attic air sealing and insulation problem in your attic. Adding more ventilation will not solve this problem. You should have a weatherization specialist such as GreenSeal come in and take a look at your current attic insulation and advise you on ways to correct this problem.

Insulation is used primarily to keep your home warm in winter

• Insulation also keeps your house cooler in the summer. Just as the hot air cannot get out of the house in winter, your cooling costs are reduced because the cool air does not escape outside in the summer. Insulation also makes the air in your home healthier by not letting environmental contaminates like mold and pollen get into your home as easily.

Your heating and cooling equipment placed in an attic will not affect the system's performance.

• If your attic is insulated only on the floor, your equipment needs to work harder. If the attic is a controlled space, you may actually need a smaller heating/cooling system to take care of your house. The idea of the building envelope of the house is one that you should keep in mind.

Spray Foam Facts

• Spray foams cut monthly air conditioning/heating costs up to 60%
• Foams improve indoor air quality (reducing allergy & asthma attacks)
• Spray foams help homes & businesses become much quieter
• Foam insulation will not support or spread flame
• Spray foam kills mold on contact and reduces future mold growth
• Foam insulation is not a food source for mold, roaches, or termites
• Foam insulation is not damaged by water or floods
• Spray foam does not settle or pack down over time
• Foam insulation will not sag or split as it ages
• Spray foam does not allow air loss or air infiltration into your home

General Insulation Facts

• In retro fitting an existing home you must look first at where your money will be most well spent. The roof area of a house consumes as much as 35% of the energy needed to heat and cool a home. The crawl space of a home can consume up to 30% and the walls, windows and doors the balance. By spraying open cell foam against the roof deck of the building you will stop all the radiant energy from entering the structure. In climates like those in the south, the high humidity from outside is prevented from entering the house. If there is no radiant energy there is no expanding air mass. If there is no expanding air mass you do not need vents. By eliminating the vents, you have now stopped your heat rise loss in the winter months and have kept your HVAC system from working overtime in the summer.
• The roof area of a house should be the first area sprayed as it is the largest energy consumer of the envelope. The floor or crawl space should be next.
• You cannot really reinsulated exterior walls once they have insulation in them. However, if your home has no insulation, densepack cellulose is the most practical and cost effective way to insulate your walls. To properly insulate exterior walls with spray foam, you could have to remove the walls which is cost prohibitive.
• When we heat and cool the air in our houses we are doing so because we don't like what is going on outside. When we do this it puts the building envelope in direct opposition to the most powerful force on earth, the atmosphere.