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Why Insulate Your House?
Heating and cooling account for 50 to 70% of the average American home’s energy use.
Inadequate insulation and air leakage are leading causes of energy waste in most homes.
Insulation (combined with sealing air gaps in your home):
- helps maintain uniform temperature throughout your home
- keeps heat in during the winter and cool in during the summer
- saves you money
- lowers your carbon footprint
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How does hot and cold air get into my house?
Heat flows naturally from a warmer to a cooler space. In the winter, the heat moves directly from all heated living spaces to the outdoors and to adjacent unheated attics, garages, and basements - wherever there is a difference in temperature. Conversely, during the summer, heat moves from outdoors to the house interior.
How can insulation help?
To maintain comfort, the heat your home loses in the winter must be replaced by your heating system. And, the heat gained in the summer must be removed by your air conditioner. Insulating ceilings, walls, and floors decreases the heating or cooling needed by providing an effective resistance to the flow of heat.
Insulation Basics
There are several common types of insulation — fiberglass (in both batt and blown forms), cellulose, rigid foam board, and spray foam. Reflective insulation (or radiant barrier) is another insulating product which can help save energy in hot, sunny climates.
Insulation performance is measured by R-value — its ability to resist heat flow. Higher R-values mean more insulating power. Different R-values are recommended for walls, attics, basements and crawlspaces, depending on your area of the country. Insulation works best when air is not moving through or around it. So it is very important to seal air leaks before installing insulation to ensure that you get the best performance from the insulation.
Does my home need more insulation?
To get the biggest savings, the easiest place to add insulation is usually in the attic.
A quick way to see if you need more insulation is to look across your uncovered attic floor. If your insulation is level with or below the attic floor joists, you will need to add more insulation. The recommended insulation level for most attics in Maryland is R-49 (or about 15-20 inches, depending on the insulation type).
Source: Department of Energy – Insulation Fact Sheet
 Types of Insulation
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