Added Benefits of Insulating – Air Seal
Homeowners usually think of air sealing as caulking windows and weather stripping doors. With closed cell spray foam insulation you get the added benefit of air seal in tiny cracks and crevices that we can not see.
Like many homeowners in southern Louisiana, Manny Bautista of Slidell was confronted most months with outrageous utility bills. Our humidity means that our heat feels hotter and our cold feels bone-chillingly cold compared to other, drier climates. Bautista chose to invest in an attic encapsulation using open cell spray foam insulation. This cutting edge solution to temperature control problems not only helps homeowners maintain comfortable temperatures year round, it also reduces the cost of heating and cooling.
How does open cell spray foam reduce heating costs?
As homes are heated during the winter by a furnace or heat pump, the hot air rises. Once it has made its way to the highest point in a home – usually the attic – it pushes outward through cracks and crevices. In its wake, the hot air pulls cold air from beneath the home behind it, forcing your heating system to perpetually run in order to keep your home’s temperatures cozy during the cold months.
This process is called the stack effect, and it’s the main culprit behind high utility bills in the winter. When open cell spray foam is applied to the roof deck of the attic, it expands, filling in the cracks that allow conditioned air to escape (or exterior air to infiltrate). This air sealing effect means that your conditioned air stays where you want it – in your home.
How does open cell spray foam reduce cooling costs?
During the summer when temperatures become intolerably hot, the attic once again plays a role in high utility bills, but this time its cooling the home that has become expensive.
Most HVAC ductwork runs through attics. As air is conditioned and circulated throughout the house, it passes through this attic ductwork. If that space is not properly air sealed and insulated, the extreme temperatures re-heat air that has been previously conditioned! That means that your air conditioner has to work non-stop to maintain cool indoor temperatures.
How else does open cell save money?
The harder your HVAC has to work, the shorter its lifespan. In areas of southern Louisiana like Slidell, New Orleans, and Metairie where temperature year round can be humid and uncomfortable, it’s a given that your HVAC unit is going to have to work. However, an attic encapsulation like the one that Bautista invested in, is an investment in your heating and cooling system as well!
An encapsulated attic means that the space in your home with the wildest temperature fluctuations will now be thirty to forty degrees closer to normal temperatures. That gives your heating and cooling unit a much more reasonable job to perform, eliminating unnecessary strain on the system, and extending its life!
If you’re interested in making the same wise investment that Manny Bautista of Slidell made, get in touch with the energy experts at Sunlight Contractors. Our SPFA-certified spray foam contractors will have your home sealed and insulated in no time! Or just Google Spray Foam Project Manager Louisiana or Master Spray Foam Installers wherever you live to find a certified spray foam contractor near you!
Locations:
Main Office: Sunlight Contractors, LLC 2323 Bainbridge St #110, Kenner, LA 70062 (504) 919-9993
New Orleans location: Sunlight Contractors, LLC 650 Poydras St, Suite 1400, Rm 33, New Orleans, LA 70130 (504) 302-0058
Proudly Serving the following areas:
[wpgmza id=”2″]