Wide selection of insulation materials for wooden houses, they can be used to insulate a house outside, and some even inside the house. What types are suitable for frame house? Which is the best, let's look at their characteristics in this article! If carried out correctly, it will not be superfluous in any climatic conditions.
When it is done correctly, then under its “protection” the house will not only be warmer in winter, but also noticeably cooler in summer.
Installation of insulation will create a comfortable microclimate in a room for any purpose - in a residential building, office or production workshop.
In addition, saving heat means obvious financial savings. It is completely unreasonable to heat the street, despite the fact that the technologies used today provide an opportunity to start saving energy resources already at the initial stage construction work. Most of all, those parts of the building that are most adjacent to the building require the use of insulation. external environment- , And .
The material produced in this way has excellent properties; moreover, it is not flammable and therefore does not pose a fire hazard. But a huge part of the wonderful qualities of insulation can be irretrievably lost when it gets wet. This should be taken into account.
Stone wool
Stone wool This fibrous material, which goes on sale in the form of rolls and portioned slabs, and has an extremely low thermal conductivity.
The highest quality product is made from rocks, called gabbro-basalt. This non-flammable material is used with equal success in the construction of private facilities and the construction of various industrial facilities. Wide range its use is also explained by the possibility of its use at extremely high temperatures, reaching one thousand degrees.
The insulation's complete immunity to fire is complemented by its excellent resistance to moisture. This is a hydrophobic material, the peculiarity of which is that it does not absorb water, but repels it.
This ensures that the insulation remains dry even after a long period time. This, in turn, will allow her to maintain her high performance qualities. Unique properties basalt wool allow it to be used even in boiler rooms, baths and saunas, where they combine and high humidity, and high temperature. Strength in this case is not directly dependent on the density of the material.
It's pretty soft material, having at the same time a sufficient margin of safety. Its structural stability is determined by the special arrangement of the individual component fibers - chaotic and vertical. The material has high anti-corrosion properties.
It can coexist quite peacefully with concrete and metal, without causing various kinds chemical reactions. High biological stability provides it with immunity to various biological pests: damage by insects and rodents, occurrence fungal diseases,
The basalt insulation passed the combustion test, but the organic insulation burned out Basalt rock is the main raw material for production of this type cotton wool. Treatment with formaldehyde resins gives the material a sufficient level of strength, and the materials used modern technologies guarantee the complete elimination of harmful phenols at the production stage of the material.
The final product reaching the consumer is a harmless and environmentally friendly material with high insulating qualities.
It is actively used for insulating floors of residential and production premises, for thermal insulation of roofs and facades, including as external insulation.
He found wide application and in rooms with extreme humidity and temperature. The best basalt insulation, stone wool made from rocks, is the key to quality for a long time.
Glass wool
The missing 7% comes from specially added flame retardants. Insulation fibers contain lignin, which becomes sticky when humidity increases. All elements included in the insulation are non-toxic, absolutely non-volatile and harmless to health. Cellulose insulation is resistant to combustion and rotting, and has excellent sound and heat insulation properties.
Can hold approximately 20% humidity while maintaining its performance. The material releases moisture to the outside and dries quickly, retaining all its performance. The disadvantage of ecowool is the difficulty of manually applying it to the surface, as well as the impossibility of arranging a “floating floor” due to its inherent softness.
Penoizol
Another name for the material is urea foam. This modern material with high sound and heat insulating characteristics, which is a cheap insulation material. This is a cellular organic foam with particularly low density and low thermal conductivity. The material has high fire resistance, resistance to microorganisms, and a low price. It is easy to process, its air content reaches 90%.
Insulating the attic with foam insulation The tests carried out demonstrated the capabilities of the material. It turned out that the time of its operation as the middle layer of the structure frame structure, actual is not limited by anything. Tests of its fire resistance showed that the material can be safely classified as low-flammable.
This is the only thermal insulation material of a polymer nature that is not at all suitable for self-combustion. Its fire resistance index places it in the G2 flammability subgroup.
Even when highest temperature in the event of a fire, when the metal begins to melt, the carbide foam will simply evaporate, without releasing toxic or harmful substances.
Izokom
This is a special foil material (on both sides or only one). It is made of polyethylene foam fabric, covered on the outside with highly polished aluminum foil.
This is a multilayer vapor-sound- and heat-insulating material that combines completely different qualities. With a minimum thickness of the insulating layer, it provides wonderful properties reflections of heat flow, successfully combined with the highest (almost maximum) thermal resistance indicators. For right installed material
characterized by exceptionally effective thermal insulation of the building along its entire contour. It's harmless environmentally friendly material , Not threatening
ozone layer. It does not contain glass or other fibers that are unsafe for the health of people and animals.
Without changing its exceptional properties, it serves for about 50 years, without deforming or being damaged during all this time.
In order for the house to retain heat, it is necessary to create good thermal insulation using various insulation materials. It is recommended to insulate the house inside only in cases where there is no access to the external walls or the owner does not want to spoil it external view. In some cases, it is simply impossible to carry out external thermal insulation when outer wall borders the elevator shaft.
All materials used to insulate walls must have a number of properties:
- high resistance to temperature changes;
- high heat resistance and non-flammability;
- durability;
- low heat transfer and thermal conductivity (this will make it possible not to use a large number of insulation);
- moisture resistance;
- vapor tightness, etc.
There are a large number of insulation materials on the market, but due to their quality, the following insulation materials are most often used: mineral wool, polystyrene foam and polyurethane foam.
Mineral wool
Mineral wool has a low cost and has a number of positive qualities. The only disadvantage of insulation can be considered that the walls that will be insulated with its help will have to be covered with plasterboard or other material (to create a false wall) to give it an aesthetic appearance. You can buy mineral wool in slabs or in rolls. The slabs are well suited for small rooms, and rolls are for large ones.
How to insulate walls with mineral wool?
The entire insulation process can be divided into several stages: preparing the components, attaching them to the wall, insulating and hiding the layer.
On initial stage A basement cornice is mounted on the wall, and its lower part is secured with dowels or self-tapping screws. You need to lay the cotton wool in several layers (three, and if possible four). If you use slabs, then secure them with glue; if you use rolls, use self-tapping screws or press washers.
The next step is to create a vapor barrier. This will prevent mineral dust from getting on people and prevent moisture from negatively affecting the insulation. The best material for vapor barrier is a vapor barrier. It is designed in such a way that it can only allow air to pass outside, and if moisture does get on the mineral wool, it will erode or evaporate over time.
At the last stage, the insulation can be hidden using drywall or other materials used for finishing.
Insulation of walls using polystyrene foam
The next type of insulation is polystyrene foam, big advantage which is light weight, and when compared with mineral wool - greater moisture resistance. Expanded polystyrene is divided into two types: foamed and extruded. They differ only in the method of manufacture, but have identical properties. Another advantage of this material is that when attaching it to the wall, there is no need to use a frame or other fastening structures. You can attach it using glue or dowels. A small minus is the need to insulate the joints between the insulation sheets. Typically this is done using foam.
At the first stage, you need to level the walls to the maximum, and also process the wall special coating, which will protect against the formation of fungus and mold. After applying the coating, you need to wait at least a day. Next you need to prepare the fastening materials. If it is glue, then it should be quite thick. Using a ruler, measure and cut off the required portion of polystyrene foam.
At the next stage, we move on to the fastening process. Using a roller (or other object), you need to carefully apply it to the walls. Apply glue from bottom to top. Next, we attach the polystyrene foam plates to the walls so that a T-shaped joint is formed between them. After the insulation is attached, you need to close the room and let the structure settle for at least 2 days.
If you want to secure the insulation with dowels, you need to make 6 holes in one plate: two in the center, and the rest in the corners. Dowels are driven into the holes, and plastic nails into the latter. If the resulting joints between the plates are more than 4 centimeters, they need to be sealed with strips of polystyrene foam. Smaller joints are filled polyurethane foam, which does not contain toluene, so as not to damage the material. The remaining foam needs to be cut off, and the remains should be soaked with glue to protect against mold and mildew.
At the next stage, a reinforcing mesh must be glued along the entire height of the room. A thick layer of glue is applied to the insulation, after which the mesh is placed on it. It is important that the mesh joints do not coincide with the polystyrene foam joints. The top of the mesh also needs to be treated with glue, and after drying, leveled with sandpaper.
At the final stage, putty is applied to the wall, and if you plan to glue wallpaper, a primer is applied. You can also install a frame for wall cladding with various wall panels.
Polyurethane foam
Polyurethane foam is considered the most reliable material for insulating the inside of walls. It is applied using a special apparatus in which polyol and polyisocyanate are mixed. During mixing, foam is formed, which is then applied to the walls using a sprayer and hardens. To apply it, as in the case of mineral wool, you also need to install a frame on the walls.
The big advantage of this type of insulation is that there is no need to fix it, and also that in a short period of time you can cover large area and the layer thickness can be adjusted. Polyurethane foam does not leave cracks after application and also retains moisture well.
Before carrying out Finishing work, the insulation layer must be plastered using a nylon mesh.
After hardening, polyurethane foam has a number of positive characteristics: it will last for decades without additional service, increases fire safety V wooden houses, and also withstands thermal and mechanical loads, temperature changes.
What to choose?
In order for the insulation to be of high quality, this procedure must be carried out in warm time of the year. It is necessary that the wall is as dry as possible. To reduce humidity, the walls are dried with heaters or heat guns.
When using a frame, you can insulate uneven walls or walls with coverings. You can hide communication pipes or electrical wiring behind the frame. To fill the frame, it is better to use mineral wool, since due to its elasticity, it adheres more tightly. Gluing foam is cheaper than installing a frame.
Mineral wool does not burn. In case of exposure to fire, it does not emit dangerous gases. Polystyrene foam can withstand flooding; it almost does not absorb water.
To prevent the outer wall from freezing, the wallpaper peeling off, condensation from falling out and mold from appearing, liquid thermal insulation is used from the inside of the room.
You can use foam glass - it does not get wet, is vapor-tight and easy to saw. Polystyrene foam is inferior in quality. Foam glass does not burn and is durable compared to foam plastic. And sealing and surface finishing are performed in the same way as for foam plastic.
An important element of construction is the insulation of the house. In Russia, most of the year is winter. You've probably heard this expression - drown or swamp, but it's still cold!
Insulation of houses is carried out using such building materials as insulation. Do you know what types of insulation exist and which one is better to choose. Today you will learn about several of the most popular insulation materials today.
After all, it’s easy to make a mistake when choosing insulation, but replacing it will be quite expensive and difficult. If during the cold season the heat in your home does not last long, and gas or firewood bills are rising, you should think about insulating your home.
The first thing that comes to mind is to insulate the windows, walls, floors, doors and roof. As for the walls, it’s quite simple; large heat loss can be corrected by insulating it from the outside and from the inside.
So, let's move on to the types of insulation. The simplest and cheapest insulation material is straw. It is used in the form of straw blocks or in the construction of adobe (clay + straw) houses.
Of course, rarely anyone builds adobe these days. This means we move on to more modern insulation materials. Of the modern ones, three main and popular types can be distinguished - glass wool, stone wool and polystyrene foam.
Glass wool
IN Soviet time This was the most common, and probably the only type. Glass wool has a very huge disadvantage that prevents the use of glass wool as the main material.
It absorbs moisture too well, which leads to shrinkage. If there is a small gap, at least 1 centimeter, heat will quickly escape from the room and heating costs will increase.
It is rational to use glass wool for sound insulation in partitions. And as an auxiliary layer, insulating the attic or floor.
Basalt wool
The second type is stone slabs based on basalt or wool. Basalt slab is made from several types of mineral stones. It does not burn and has good thermal insulation properties.
For insulation it is better to choose basalt slabs 50 mm thick, 100 mm thick are laid faster, but in this case it is more difficult to cover all the joints (and these are cold bridges) and it is not much more difficult to cut a thick slab.
Basalt insulation has several degrees of hardness. In terms of thermal insulation properties, they are the same, but more rigid ones can be used as facade slabs under plaster.
Rigid slabs are more expensive, so it is better to use a slab with low rigidity inside the frame. Basalt insulation Can be easily cut with a regular sharp knife.
Insulation materials made from basalt and glass wool are produced both in the form of rolls and slabs. and roofs are much easier to produce with slabs. And the rolls are easier to roll out at lofts.
Styrofoam
The next type is polystyrene foam or simply polystyrene foam. The thermal insulation properties of polystyrene foam are much higher than, for example, basalt wool; accordingly, the layer thickness can be smaller.
Expanded polystyrene has 3 significant disadvantages:
- This is a flammable material. When burning and melting, harmful substances are released.
- For some reason, mice are not indifferent to polystyrene foam (they really love to chew it).
- If there is one small hole, heat will escape from the room.
It breaks and crumbles easily, so installation should be done as carefully as possible, and it is a little difficult to use for floor insulation. Extruded polystyrene foam suffers the least from such disadvantages.
Of course, such insulation costs somewhat more than ordinary polystyrene foam and much more than basalt wool. But the extruded one is denser than the ordinary one, so it’s easier to install, and you don’t have to worry about breaking or crumbling it.
He is probably the most the best material when insulating floors, especially under screed for heated floors. The list of types of insulation is constantly updated, but it takes time to test new insulation.
Ecowool
Not very long ago, such a variety as ecowool appeared.
Ecowool is split paper (cellulose) with the addition of fire-fighting and antiseptic substances. Ecowool is poured in bulk or sprayed onto vertical surfaces with a hose. Absorbs moisture too well; if the vapor barrier is damaged, this insulation will be wet like after rain.
There are several types of insulation from the inside:
- wallpaper or cork insulation plates;
- wallpaper made of polystyrene foam with heat-insulating properties;
- heat-insulating polystyrene foam plaster;
- polyethylene foam (polyfom) - a special wallpaper insulation.
Polyethylene foam is located under the wallpaper and has a paper covering with a special backing or a foil covering.
Watch the video - choosing insulation:
Discussion: 9 comments
I watched the video... and didn’t understand how to get around the problem... he said that vapor-permeable materials cannot be installed in the floor, but the joists in the floors are wooden... and what to do?
Hello Andrei.
Of course, I don’t know your problem, but the video means that vapor-permeable insulation should be used for wooden structures.
That is, if you have a wooden floor, it is advisable to insulate it with mineral wool, and if the floor - concrete screed then polystyrene foam is used. Polystyrene foam is vapor-proof.
“...doesn’t last long, but the bills...”
“...all the joints (and these are cold bridges) and not much more difficult...”
“...mice are not indifferent to polystyrene foam...”
Please check your spelling - it's impossible to read...
Hello, Alexander.
I'm sorry, but what's wrong with the spelling? Of course, I didn’t graduate from college, but it seems to me that everything is written correctly. Perhaps you mean punctuation? Here I agree with you, I have a problem with commas. I apologize for this.
Very useful video, thank you! At one time I was looking for environmentally friendly insulation and I was also not satisfied that the insulation was made from natural fibers They treat it with all sorts of rubbish, organic insulation also contains poison, but I still found Arctic insulation for myself - it wasn’t treated with any rubbish, which means it’s definitely environmentally friendly. I insulated both the walls and the roof, everything is fine.
That's right! Warmth is only warm when you know that you are not breathing phenol vapors or other chemicals. Therefore, the choice fell on an eco-shelter and I am very pleased, because it is warm and without chemicals
An unheated hangar for storing vegetables was insulated with mats made using FORA technology. Aesthetic appearance and practicality in everything
And for the walls reinforced concrete grade m300 verified, can you use insulation whose vapor permeability of reinforced concrete is 0.03 is very low? PIR-board insulation, produced on the basis of polyisocyanurate foam, is a heat-insulating material with a very low thermal conductivity coefficient λ25=0.023 W/m °C. PIR-boards PIRRO have a very low coefficient of vapor permeability µ=0.0015 mg/m h Pa.
Thermal insulation materials perform one of the essential functions, which are necessary to ensure a comfortable existence of a person in his home.
They allow you to protect your home from freezing, heat loss, etc. Without insulation, we would have had a very hard time. No wonder now everything construction organizations They have taken this topic so seriously and are trying to popularize such materials wherever possible. By the way, we recommend it.
1 General information
Insulation materials, if you look at the special GOST, are materials for fencing load-bearing and non-load-bearing structures of a house.
Their main task is to cut off cold air flows and protect the external structures of the house.
That is, thermal insulation materials are used to prevent hypothermia in the house. This applies to almost all of its parts. So, most often GOST recommends insulating external walls. The walls are in contact with outside temperature constantly? and their point of contact extends across the entire area.
If the temperature outside is too low, then no brick can withstand it. The wall will gradually begin to freeze and cool. At one point, its temperature will drop so low that the structure will already radiate cold into the room.
As a result, you will have to spend fabulous sums on heating, although all this could have been avoided if you used GOST and insulated the walls as it should be.
Similarly, thermal insulation materials also need to be arranged roofing structures, and here it is best to put . Here the use of insulation is even more necessary. Indeed, unlike walls, the roof could never boast of high density.
It's just stuffed on boardwalk slopes and finishing coating. Cold penetrates through such structures much faster. It is not surprising that GOST recommends the use of thermal insulation materials for roof insulation, which are almost twice as thick as those that need to be installed for wall finishing.
Foundations, ceilings, balconies, and other similar structures are also insulated. That is, all elements of buildings that are in contact with the street, and therefore can freeze if the temperature drops.
If everything is done correctly and all the points pointed out by GOST have been taken into account, then the house will be protected by a kind of thermal cocoon.
The thermal characteristics and properties of the premises inside it will increase sharply. It has been proven that proper insulation increases the walls alone average temperature in the house by 2-3 degrees.
1.1 How does insulation work?
After all of the above, it may seem to you that insulation is some kind of super-expensive material with unknown thermal insulation properties, but in fact this is not the case.
The characteristics of insulation are quite trivial. These are just special materials that are almost half air. Not all thermal insulation representatives that are presented on this page have such a structure. modern market, but there are enough of them.
First of all, such high thermal insulation characteristics are possible due to thermal conductivity. Thermal conductivity of insulation is a parameter that is responsible for the ability of the material to interact with the environment, or rather, its temperature.
High thermal conductivity, as GOST specifies, is present in almost all building materials. This means that a material with this characteristic quickly equalizes the temperature with the environment. It quickly gains heat, but also quickly releases it.
Insulation materials have extremely low thermal conductivity. Average characteristics of all known species they say that their thermal conductivity is at the level of 0.04-0.045 W/m, like that of. This indicator indicates that the material does not respond to external temperature at all.
That is why it will be very unpleasant to sit on concrete or brick in winter, but you can sit on foam plastic without any problems.
It is these properties that allow insulation materials to have such characteristics. Due to their low heat transfer, thermal insulation materials protect structures from external temperatures, forming a protective barrier against the cold.
2 Types of insulation and their properties
Now we should consider the types of insulation. There is a whole table of thermal insulation materials. You can find it by looking at the current GOST, which is focused on insulation materials. Just remember that GOST may have its own separate number, and therefore is guided by different parameters.
One GOST will standardize the dimensions of thermal insulation materials and will also help to calculate the thickness of the insulation, while another document may focus on individual brands of insulation that are used in specialized areas.
Pick up regulatory documentation should be done very carefully so as not to make mistakes later when making calculations.
Types of thermal insulation can be divided into several subgroups. We will not indicate here all types of thermal insulation materials, but only the most popular ones. Each material has a whole list of its properties, which we will also consider, but only briefly.
So, most often insulation materials are divided into:
- Organic like;
- Inorganic.
2.1 Organic insulation materials
This group includes types of thermal insulation materials whose properties classify them as organic. Here there are both wood insulation and polymer insulation or other similar compositions based on recently invented chemical formulas.
Organic makes a difference thermal insulation properties, but it can burn in fire, and this is a serious nuance.
The following types are distinguished:
- Arbolite;
- Expanded polystyrene;
- From chipboards;
- Polyurethane foam;
- Penoizolny;
- Polyethylene foam;
- Made from ecowool like .
Arbolite materials are created from wood shavings, straw, lightweight fillers and other similar materials.
All these components are mixed in a mold and poured cement mortar with special additives. The output is a finished thermal insulation board, which has excellent thermal insulation properties.
Expanded polystyrene needs no introduction - it is a slab insulation made from polystyrene balls. Very cheap, with surprisingly low thermal conductivity, it is extremely popular in modern construction.
Insulation is rarely made from chipboard, as they are quite expensive, but such solutions do exist. For insulation, chipboards from waste chips are used, which slightly lightens the weight of the boards and improves their properties.
Polyurethane foam is a newly invented chemical formula. This material is applied to walls in liquid form, where it hardens, forming an elastic, soft form.
Penoizol is in many ways similar to polyurethane foam. Especially when it comes to application. It is first kneaded in the same way and then applied with sprinklers.
Only penoizol initially has foaming agents in its structure. And its properties bring this material closer to modern polyurethane foam.
Foamed polyethylene has unique properties. With extremely low weight and excellent thermal conductivity, the density of the insulation is too low to be used as capital materials.
But foamed polyethylene serves as reflective thermal insulation, in conjunction with foil, and is also an excellent vapor barrier.
Ecowool is produced from waste from paper and pulp production, as well as. The properties of ecowool cannot be called outstanding, but it is very cheap, completely safe for humans and weighs almost nothing. The dimensions of ecowool insulation materials allow them to be used almost everywhere.
2.2 Inorganic insulation materials
GOST classifies as inorganic materials all insulation materials that were created from glass, stone, rocks, etc. Inorganic materials are more expensive because their production requires more resources.
However, its characteristics are very high. Plus, inorganic materials practically do not burn in fire. It is also important to take into account that it does not matter what size of inorganic insulation boards will be used, it will in any case be vapor permeable, which is also extremely convenient.
The following samples are distinguished:
- Mineral wool;
- Glass wool.
Mineral wool is so popular in modern times that almost every second house is insulated with its help. This is possible due to unique combination favorable characteristics.
Low thermal conductivity, convenient sizes final material, hydrophobicity, lightness, non-flammability - these are just some of the useful properties mineral wool.
The only drawback of thermal insulation materials made from stone wool is their cost. To create insulation from basalt, and even high-quality one, you need to go through the complete process of melting and separating stone fibers, and this is not cheap at all.
Glass wool is in many ways similar to the previous sample, only it is produced from glass waste. It is also easy to manipulate; glass wool has good properties, and is not much inferior to other insulation materials, if you look solely at the characteristics table.
Moreover, the fiber sizes of glass wool are usually larger than the fiber sizes of the same mineral wool, which means that glass wool will better withstand tensile loads.
She just has one extremely unpleasant drawback. Glass wool, being a derivative of glass, can only be mounted in protective equipment.
During installation, fibers tend to break, which at the microscopic level leads to the formation of small glass particles. These particles can enter the skin, mucous membranes and even the lungs of a person, causing irritation and even illness.
2.3 Selecting stone wool insulation (video)
Proper insulation of the walls of private houses and apartments ensures comfortable environment in the home, and also allows you to reduce heating costs.
The building materials market currently offers different kinds new and traditional insulation for a private home. Finding the optimal heat insulator can be quite difficult. It is necessary to take into account a lot of nuances, deal with technical characteristics one or another insulation, understand which products are suitable for the walls of living rooms, and which ones are more reasonable to use to protect balconies and loggias.
Right choice thermal insulation material guarantees the inhabitants of the home pleasant coolness in summer and beneficial warmth in winter.
This idyll is achieved due to the fact that insulating products eliminate drafts and reduce heat loss. They also ensure a healthy microclimate in the house and eliminate the risk of mold and dampness.
At making the right choice material for thermal insulation in the house will be cool in the summer and warm in the winter
The qualities of a good heat-shielding material are as follows:
- 1. Density from 30 kg/sq. m. If this figure is less, cold bridges will very quickly begin to appear on the walls due to the insulation sliding off vertical surface and its deformation.
- 2. High moisture resistance. The optimal water absorption coefficient of an insulator is 0. In practice, it is quite difficult to find such a material. Choose those products in which the specified coefficient tends to zero. Then they will long time perform their duties by protecting wall surfaces from cold and moisture.
- 3. Thermal insulation index up to 0.032–0.039 W/m*K. The higher this value, the greater the thickness of the protective material. This means that you will have to spend extra money on buying expensive products, and also suffer (in literally) with the installation of thick and uncomfortable insulation. Moreover, the quality of thermal protection will not increase significantly when using them.
- 4. Operational safety. Choose types of modern insulation that are non-flammable and non-toxic, increased level environmental friendliness The safety of thermal insulation for walls is evidenced by a special certificate issued by sanitary and epidemiological services. This document indicates harmful compounds and elements (ammonia, xylene, phenol, toluene, formaldehyde, etc.) released during use and combustion of the material.
An important property of insulating products is durability. Many irresponsible manufacturers of thermal insulation materials claim that their products last 50–60 years. Believe me, there are very few such products on the construction market. The actual effective service life of insulation is 10–20 years. And even then, subject to strict adherence to the rules of their installation.
Types of insulation products - what do consumers need to know?
Modern thermal insulators for walls are available for interior work and for external insulation. Materials different groups differ from each other. There are universal products. They can be used for both external and internal work. External insulation wall surfaces are usually made of polystyrene foam (expanded polystyrene), bulk mixtures, basalt heat insulator, and special heat-protective plaster. For interior work, mineral wool, polyethylene foam, urea foam or penoizol are used.
Insulating materials are also divided into organic and inorganic. The first of these are not very durable and functional. At the same time, they are characterized high level environmental friendliness Organic heat insulators include tow, moss, cork, fiber, jute, and rubber. Inorganic products - polyurethane foam, glass wool, polystyrene foam and others are more toxic. But their service life is significantly longer. Next, we will take a closer look at the types of the most popular insulation materials and describe their main characteristics.
Mineral wool is used for internal insulation a long time ago. Such material is produced by heat treatment of basalt or various metallurgical slags and their subsequent pressing on special units. For sale finished goods in the form of slabs and rolls up to 20 cm thick. Note: mineral wool can be used as external insulation. But in this case it is necessary to additionally protect it from getting wet. vapor barrier film or with a membrane, as well as veneer plasterboard sheets(other finishing products).
Mineral wool is one of the oldest insulation materials
Mineral wool is described by the following operational advantages:
- excellent sound insulation;
- environmental friendliness;
- low thermal conductivity;
- resistance to chemical compounds and high temperatures.
The disadvantage of mineral wool is that it eats up space inside the room, since its thickness is quite large. In addition, the installation process of this heat insulator is objectively labor-intensive (the need to carry out waterproofing work, use finishing materials, complexity of fastening).
A cheaper analogue of mineral wool is glass wool. It is obtained by melting waste glass, dolomites, sand, borax, limestone, and soda. Glass wool is an environmentally friendly material for walls. It is suitable for insulating external surfaces and internal partitions. Such a fibrous insulator does not burn and has high sound and heat protection potential. But working with him is difficult and unsafe. The sharp and thin fibers of cotton wool can injure a person. And small particles of brittle material easily penetrate the respiratory system, causing harm to health. For these reasons, glass wool installation is always carried out wearing gloves, thick overalls, a respirator and safety glasses.
The classic insulation is technical polystyrene foam (PSB). It is made from plastic foam mass, pressed, and in finished form it is a monolithic dense (15–50 kg/cubic meter) slab. PSB can be used for external and internal insulation measures. It does not lose its properties at temperatures from +80 to –40 °C, is easy to install, is light in weight, and has an acceptable cost. – no more than 0.039 W/m*K.
Polystyrene foam can be installed both indoors and outdoors
Disadvantages of the material:
- fragility;
- tendency to thermal destruction;
- low vapor permeability.
Installation of polystyrene foam is carried out using anchor dowels and mushrooms (outside), adhesive composition (indoors). Sometimes PSB is installed on a wooden sheathing prepared on the wall in advance.
Extruded polystyrene foam (penoplex, EPP) is also popular. In a number of characteristics it is similar to the foam plastic discussed above. It has higher strength, resistance to moisture, and thermal conductivity. Compared to mineral wool, its thickness is smaller (maximum 8–10 cm). Due to this, it takes up little space when installed inside the house. – a simple operation. EPP can be easily attached to any wall surfaces (brick, concrete, plastered bases). Expanded polystyrene boards are fixed with hardware (if external walls are insulated) and with glue (internal partitions).
Penoplex easily attaches to any surface
A relatively new heat protectant for the walls of residential buildings - polyethylene foam - deserves special attention. It is compatible with most construction products, is described by excellent vibration, heat, water and sound insulation, low thermal conductivity, and absolute safety for human health. Polyethylene foam is sold under the brands Energoflex, Szopenol, Izolon. Such heat insulators are usually used to insulate internal surfaces. They can protect walls in brick, concrete, frame, and wooden houses from the cold.
Important point! All polymer insulation materials belong to the category of combustible products. When there is a fire, they release toxic compounds into the air. This should also be taken into account in mandatory protect the insulation layer hanging systems, plaster, which eliminate the risk of accidental ignition of heat-insulating polymer boards.
Rare types of heat insulators - meet innovation!
Now owners of residential properties are beginning to actively develop new types of insulating products for walls. For example, lovers of environmentally friendly pure materials They use cork heat insulators, the raw material for which is Mediterranean oak wood. Such insulation materials are produced in the form of slabs, loose mass and plastic coating. Advantages of cork heat-shielding materials:
- do not become moldy or rot;
- very durable (no shifts or kinks when the house shrinks);
- not spoiled by rodents;
- do not emit harmful substances, carcinogens, toxic compounds;
- completely natural.
Ceramic liquid heat insulators are characterized by an excellent level of environmental friendliness. These innovative compositions are applied to various wall substrates (wood, brick, concrete) without the slightest difficulty using conventional paint brush. Liquid insulation under the brands Tezolat and Corundum do not catch fire when direct influence fire, have 100% antibacterial protection and uniquely high heat-shielding properties. Such compositions have only one drawback - high cost.
Choose the right insulation and enjoy the comfort of your home!