How Does Insulation Affect My Home’s Cooling System?

The house gets hot, the AC kicks on. We all know that much, but digging deeper can reveal certain truths to help you master your home’s cooling system. We’ll give you a hint: your insulation directly affects your HVAC-related energy usage. Find out how to set up your home’s insulation to support your air conditioner in this helpful guide. When you’re ready for an upgrade, trust Foam Bear Orlando for old insulation removal and new spray foam insulation near you!

The Concept of Air Exchange

Whenever you’re feeling hot at home during peak months, the heat is coming from the temperature of the air inside. That may sound obvious, but here’s why this is important: the reason you have warm air indoors is because of the concept of air exchange. It doesn’t matter how often your AC turns on throughout the day, escalated heat flow from gaps and poor insulation can counteract the work that your air conditioner puts out, rendering it obsolete in extreme situations. Hot air comes in, cold conditioned air goes out, and repeat.

Tired of this repetitive cycle that’s costing you money? Keep going to learn about the two most crucial steps for noticeable results:

The First Step: Cutting Off Drafts and Sunlight

When there are exposed parts along your walls and ceiling, regardless of how big or small, hot air can come inside uncontested. Heat can also travel inside the home when the sun is angled just right and the light is directly shining through the cracks. Creating a barrier to cut off these access points can lead to a significant difference in your home’s indoor temperature. With proper air-sealing using the right materials, you’ll be stopping hot air and sunlight in its tracks!

What material is best for air-sealing properties? Spray foam is the best choice because it expands on installation and creates a dense layer of protection. Fiberglass is a poor choice because it’s porous and is unable to seal gaps, both of which are needed to mitigate heat transfer.

The Second Step: Slowing Down Heat Flow

Mitigating, and even halting, the process of heat flow is the best thing you can do to maintain your ideal indoor temperatures. When your home doesn’t welcome heat, your air conditioner will be able to keep up with meeting your thermostat setting without any persistent obstacles. The way to achieve this is by choosing an insulation material with a high R-value rating like spray foam.

What Is R-Value?

An insulation’s R-value is essentially its thermal rating. You want to go with the material with the highest possible score to prevent heat transfer into your home. Traditional fiberglass insulation barely makes R3, while dense spray foam like closed-cell spray foam ranks as high as R7.

Tips for Mastering Both Steps:

Both of these steps are crucial to promoting a cool home and improving your AC’s energy efficiency. Only considering one or the other isn’t enough as you need to focus your efforts on both R-value and air-sealing for peak performance. Luckily, checking both boxes is as simple as going with spray foam insulation.

To ensure the best results with your spray foam insulation, consider these tips:

Make sure the spray foam is installed with expert care
Detect air leaks first for efficient air sealing
Give your attic insulation extra reinforcement
Choose the best brand for R-value

Bring Energy Efficient to Your Home with Foam Bear!

Tired of your air conditioner not doing the trick? Your insulation needs an upgrade. Call Foam Bear Orlando today at (727) 580-1090 for a free estimate on your spray foam installation! Feel free to ask about our old insulation vacuum and removal services for guaranteed results with your new insulation.

Double up on energy efficiency by adding solar panels to go with your new spray foam insulation. Learn more about Solar Bear for solar services near you!

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