Insulation
FEATURES
Understanding insulation
Insulation is often a neglected part of the building process , but it plays a significant role in regulating temperature of a home and offers significant savings to energy costs .
By Ntsako Khosa
“ has played a vital part in the evolution of buildings and is increasingly important , especially as we see a rise in global energy prices ,” says Mark
Gillott , development director at Knauf Insulation .
There ’ s an increased interest in sustainability in the construction sector , with various organisations , such as Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies ( EDGE ) and the Green Building Council of South Africa ( GBCSA ), highlighting the impact a green building has on the planet and its residents . Over the years , we have seen regulations that standardise adding green aspects to a project .
“ The building code pertaining to energy efficiencies and sustainability came into effect in 2011 , this standard is the SANS 10400XA . The purpose of this standard is to drive sustainability and energy efficiencies ,” says Lyle Jeffery , national sales manager , Lambdaboard . He adds that the code came into effect during the peak of the Eskom load shedding crisis .
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DEFINING INSULATION
“ There ’ s so much more to insulation than simply managing the internal environment by controlling factors such as penetrating heat , or cold gain and loss ,” says Gillott . This is unfortunately , a little-known fact in industry . This was seen and is recalled by Jeffery during the construction of RDP housing .
“ The standard RDP house was badly built with no ceiling or insulation at all .” Problems that this created included condensation developing on the galvanised steel roof .
“ And in turn started dripping continuously on the inhabitants or home owners in the early hours of the morning once the condensation had built up . Energy costs per household is also an issue due to heat loss / gain – brought about by a poorly insulated building ,” he explains .
Inefficiencies surrounding poor workmanship and inferior materials were addressed . “ The grant from government is increased , and workmanship issues have been largely resolved . With SANS 10400XA finally in play , it means that that insulation is now a legal requirement in the building code . Each building therefore needs to comply with a certain R-Value as stipulated in the ‘ Deemed to Satisfy ’ part of the SANS 10400XA code . This therefore allows a ceiling and insulation product ,” Jeffery says .
According to Gillott , insulation is the most cost-effective way to target energy savings and therefore offers users the quickest payback .
INSULATION AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY
The energy saving properties of insulation mean buildings are kept warm in the winter and cool in the summer . The
Quality insulation helps reduce usage of appliances to regular room temperature .
bigger the temperature difference between the inside and outside of a building , the faster the building will lose cold or heat .
“ Mineral wool insulation helps to maintain the inside managed temperature ( from heating or air conditioning ) by slowing heat / chilled transfer by convection , conduction and radiation ,” says Gillott .
Living conditions in properties without outside energy source for heating or cooling can be improved using insulation . “ By insulating a property properly , you can slow down the rate at which the sun heats your living environment during the day and reduce the rate at which the day ’ s residual heat dissipates from your property in the evening ,” he says .
Gillott advises a whole-house approach to energy efficiency . This of course refers to new build projects . Retrofits , buildings being converted , refurbished or renovated can also fit insulation . “ There are many methods to retrospectively fit insulation to existing or older buildings ,” Gillott shares .
Having an insulation expert is valuable to advise on how to use insulation to reduce the reliance on appliances such as geyser timers or blankets , gas heaters , underfloor heating , air conditioning , heat pumps and solar systems .
SELECTING INSULATION
“ It ’ s critical to make your first-choice count . If you do , your insulation should not only offer excellent thermal
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MAY - JUNE 2018
AFFORDABLE
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