SA Affordable Housing September / October 2020 | Page 16

FEATURE
Additives such as boric acid and magnesium
sulphate are added to the recycled shredded
newsprint to make the product fire retardant and
insect and rodent resistant.
CEILING INSULATION: THE EASY ROUTE TO
FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE
Jolene Blundell, Product Manager for Saint-
Gobain Isover, manufacturers of ThinkPink
Aerolite also tested to SABS standards, says:
“ThinkPink Aerolite Insulation performs to the
same extent as Thermguard Insulation, which has
shown to reduce 91% of the heat transfer lost
through ceilings and walls. That is, of the 35% of
heat escaping through the roof in winter, 31.5%
of the heat can be retained and only 3.5% heat
is ultimately lost in winter or gained in summer
through the roof. There is a payback period of
two years for a typical household ceiling area of
150m 2 . The same would apply for walls where one could expect a
heat loss or gain of 25%; with insulation in the walls, there would
only be 2.5% heat loss or gain through walls.”
Wall cavity insulation for both internal walls and drywall
partitions also provides the added benefit of acoustic insulation
between rooms. Thanks to its exceptional acoustic insulation
properties, insulation reduces the levels of noise from outside
and absorbs and insulates noise from the inside. “When we are
acoustically comfortable, we are happier, more productive, and
experience fewer health issues. However, this is not common
practice in South Africa. Due to cavity insulation being legislated
abroad, it is also more widely accepted to use blown in glasswool
in both ceilings and walls, installed in a similar way cellulose
insulation is applied. Blown in glasswool involves using both
newly-produced and scrap insulation to minimise waste to
landfill. The product is suited to both internal and external
cavities in steel, wood and traditional brick frame homes.
““When it comes to appearances versus
living comfort, and during retrofitting projects,
architects are notoriously blind to the needs of
insulation.”
Blundell also reminds us that “Geysers make up about 35% of
the electricity use of a household – with potential savings that
can be attained depending on the surface area of exposed pipe
that can be insulated the geyser thermostat settings and the hot
water usage. Just by insulating the pipes, you save up to 37% of
the heat used by the geyser system with a payback period of six
months. By Insulating both the geyser and the pipes, homeowners
can save up to 58% of the energy used by their geyser. This offers
a payback within four to six months,” says Blundell.
The Department of Social Housing has ambitions to ensure
all 40-45 m 2 homes are equipped with ceilings and insulation
in order to comply with the energy efficiency regulations.
Saint-Gobain Gyproc and Isover has a ‘combi-pack solution’
specifically tailored to government and contractors as it is an allin-one
product offering, combining systems and products. The
system comprises of Gypframe N concealed ceiling grid, Gyproc
Rhinoboard 6.4mm and Aerolite ThinkPink 135mm or 100mm
Small-scale testing facility at Thermguard.
insulation. As a result, only one supplier is involved and material
sourcing and logistics are simplified. The project kicked off at the
start of 2015 and by 2016, this system was used in 7 000 housing
units in Gauteng alone. The rollout to other provinces began
towards the end of 2016.
Blundell describes that what differentiates an insulation
product is its ability to perform over the lifetime of the building
once installed correctly. High Performance insulation like
ThinkPink Aerolite is non-combustible, which means the glass
wool does not fuel fire or propagate flames. It has the ability
to return to its manufactured thickness once unpacked and
installed, and maintains its thickness over the product’s lifespan.
ThinkPink Aerolite has exceptional thermal resistance due to the
inherent material properties and the fiberising technology used
in manufacturing the product, where liquid glass is propelled
through tiny holes by a centrifugal spinner – creating high
quality fibres.
“Over the years we have invested in our manufacturing
technology, to ensure we use less raw material but still achieve
the same thermal performance for the product. Our automated
rollup machine compresses the product up to eight times so that
contractors can load more material in the transport vehicles,
resulting in fewer transportation trips and reduced carbon
emissions,” she says.
Across the EU, the use of insulation in ceilings, internal
and external walls, floors and foundations is legislated and
environmental performance of building products is continuously
becoming more stringent. Blundell explains that in Europe,
researchers are working to identify a plant-based binder that will
not compromise the performance of the product and could then
be adapted for warmer climates. “The binder we currently use
is a by-product from petrochemical companies and is therefore
already minimising waste in other supply chains. The product
has exceptional sustainability credentials – once installed, the
occupants require less energy to cool and heat spaces, therefore
ensuring a saving of more than 100 times the energy consumed
and CO 2
emitted from manufacturing and transporting the
insulation. The factories in which it is manufactured are CFC and
HCFC-free, and it is made from 80% recycled glass, one roll of glass
wool contains the equivalent of at least 10 recycled glass bottles –
and our intent in future is to recycle more off-cut material from our
production line back into the finished product.
EAMONN RYAN
14 SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2020 SAAffordHousing saaffordablehousingmag SA Affordable Housing www.saaffordablehousing.co.za