Living in an old house? Staying warm in such houses can be difficult, especially because most of the old houses are not insulated. Even if they were, the insulation material might have damaged thus allowing heat to escape. If you are planning to add or replace insulation to your house, here is all that you need to know.

Does your house need insulation? The first thing you need to do is to check whether or not your house has insulation. Examine your house for areas where you might be losing heat. Check the exterior walls of your house, cracks around windows, ducts and recessed lighting. Heat from your house can also be escaping through improperly insulated roofs.

What happens with the existing insulation? Old houses used shredded papers, wood shavings and seaweed as insulation material. If your house is using any of these then just leave them wherever they are. In case your house is using insulation material like asbestos, that was a popular insulation material around 1910, get it tested. Trying to remove it completely can prove to be invasive.

What insulation material to use? Building insulation can be categorised into four types- loose fills, batts, rigid boards and expanding sprays. The most popular type of insulation used in houses is loose fill insulation. This is because of its ability to reach areas where other insulation material can hardly reach.

How much insulation is needed for your home? The resistance to heat flow of the insulation material depends on the location of your house as well as the part of house you want to insulate. The greater the resistance the more the material will be able to insulate. The value can range from 0 to 40. Insulation material with smaller value is good for areas with relatively higher temperature and higher value materials are used in places with colder climate.

Which parts of your house need insulation? Most of the heat is lost through the roof. Therefore, the first place to start should be the attic. In case the house has an unfinished attic you can most probably start with insulating the floor. While installing insulation keep in mind that there is plenty of ventilation between the insulation and the exterior of the building.

Environment friendly insulation products are also available in the market these days. The best time to consider updating your home insulation will be during a house remodel project. However, if you are not planning to remodel the house sooner, then think carefully before deciding to add or replace insulation in your home.

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Martino Home Improvements offers premier home insulation services in Canton and surrounding areas. Apart from home insulation services in Chesterfield and Canton, the company also specializes in concrete services, roofing, sidings, gutter installation and windows replacement.