In northern Utah, attic insulation is one of the most important energy efficiency improvements you can make to your home.
Having your attic sufficiently insulated will improve the comfort and livability of your home. But, more important, it can drastically reduce your energy usage, lowering your power bills accordingly.
Unfortunately, most Utah homes do not have sufficient?insulating material above the ceiling line. The good news is that, as long as your existing material is in good shape, you can likely?add additional insulation in your attic.
Why Is?Insulating Your Attic So Important?
In Utah, as much as 70 percent of our energy costs go to heating and air conditioning.
Having adequate insulation is the single most important way to reduce energy waste but, despite its importance, up to 90 percent of homes in the United States do not have enough.
Insulation not only helps you cut back on energy use (and cost), but it also makes your home more comfortable ? and more uniformly comfortable. Having adequate insulation reduces extreme temperature fluctuations throughout the day and gets rid of hot rooms and cold rooms.
Identifying What Type of Attic Insulation Your Have
Before you can choose the type and amount of insulation to add to your attic, it?s necessary to identify what type and amount you already have in place, and what kind of condition it?s in.
Most homes have traditional fiberglass batts, which have an?R-value equal to 3.2 x the thickness of the batts. If you have blown-in cellulose, the R-value is 3.7 x the depth of the material.
If you have some other type that you can?t identify, you can see a full?chart of insulation types and their associated R-value courtesy of the Insulation Institute.
If you don?t have 16 to 18 inches of insulation in your Utah attic, you likely need more.
Determining How Much Attic Insulation Your Need
The amount of?insulating material you need depends on several factors.
The size, orientation and construction of your house heavily influence the amount of insulation you need. Your family?s lifestyle also matters, as does the size, age and condition of your HVAC system.
Finally, the climate also greatly influences how much attic insulation you need. Energy.gov recommends that?homes in northern Utah should add attic insulation rated from R38 to R60 in a new home. If you already have?insulating material in place,?adding R38 over the existing material.
The only way to know for sure how much attic insulation you need is to have a?home energy audit.?GreenHome Specialties helps customers in Layton and Provo with energy efficient home improvements. Contact us today to learn more about improving your Utah home?s energy efficiency and comfort by adding more attic insulation.
