South Africa is a land of extremes regarding climate and the temperature fluctuations that go with it. This article looks at The Top 6 Advantages of Aerolite Insulation.

Depending on where you live, you could experience anything from cool and dry desert weather to Johannesburg’s sunny, dry plateau climate or the subtropical, Mediterranean characteristics of a city like Cape Town.

These seasonal fluctuations can wreak havoc on a home, corporate office, or shop. Heat and humidity breed harmful mould and mildew, whereas dry conditions can make your building feel even colder in winter than it is.

Thankfully, the solution is simple: install Aerolite insulation! This top-quality insulation regulates the temperature inside your building, keeping it steady all year round.

Read on to learn more about the benefits of this construction product.

How Thermal Insulation Works

Before we dive into the advantages of Aerolite as insulation, you need to understand more about how insulation—any insulation—keeps a building at an even temperature. With this knowledge, you’ll be able to understand the Aerolite advantage.

The Process

At its most basic, insulation is any barrier that reduces the amount of heat flowing into and out of a room or area. Heat flow is a specific term that defines the action of warm and cold air moving in space. This action is influenced by three mechanisms: conduction, convection, and radiation.

Conduction describes the way heat moves through an object—for example, the way a spoon heats up if you leave it too long in your mug of hot chocolate.

Convection explains the movement heat makes through gases and liquids. It explains why warm air rises and cool air sinks (since it’s denser).

Conduction and convection cause heat and cold to move around your home. Heat will flow from warm areas of the house to colder regions, like your garage or basement. During the cold season, it will also try to “escape” outside. And vice versa, when the weather is warm outside your home, the heat will try to enter the inside of your home, where it’s cooler.

Radiation (at least in terms of heat flow) describes radiant heat, which moves through space in a straight line and heats the objects it touches—like, for example, the sun’s rays.

Insulation is added to a building to reduce the adverse effects of heat flow, especially those negative effects caused by conduction and convection. (The insulating materials used to deflect radiation are usually reflective and quite different from those used to counter the actions of the other two heat flow mechanisms.)

Are you still unsure how thermal insulation works? Then, we recommend you give this easy, at-home science experiment a try for a visual representation of the process.

Insulation Materials

Typically, materials with less mass make for better insulators. This is because the atoms are spread farther apart, making it more difficult to transfer energy.

Gases insulate the best, then liquids, and finally, solids. Of course, in almost every area of your home (except window panes), it’s not possible to insulate with gases or liquids, so we’re left with using solid materials.

Some common insulation materials include:

• Glass wool
• Natural wool
• Mineral rock wool
• Other natural fibers like hemp
• Cellulose
• Polystyrene or spray foam
• Loose-fill and blown-in cavity walls
• Structural insulated panels

Property owners may do other simple things to insulate a building, including double or triple-glazing windows, adding black-out curtains or reflective material to their windows, and blocking gaps where air can escape.

R-Value Is One Of The Most Important Advantages Of Aerolite Insulation

If you’re shopping for insulation material, you’ve probably heard or read the term “R-value.” The R-value tells us how insulating any given material is. If a material has a high R-value, that’s a good sign—it means it insulates well.

The metric system formula for R-value is:

(m2 x °C)/watts

This describes how much heat energy there is in a volume of insulating material related to the temperature difference (in degrees) between outdoors and in.

Because of the variables inherent in the calculation, the insulation R-value your building needs will depend on the following:

• Local climate and seasonal averages
• Your heating and cooling systems
• Where you need to insulate
• Insulation material thickness

6 Advantages Of Aerolite Insulation

Various insulation materials are on the market to tempt South African home and business owners. Few, however, match up to the durability, eco-friendliness, and other Advantages of Aerolite.

 

1. Soundproofing Benefits

If you live in any South African city, you’re likely exposed to high levels of noise pollution. For example, one study of Johannesburg taxi ranks recorded “extremely dangerous” noise levels over 83% of the time.

Thankfully, Soft Touch Aerolite insulation has proven soundproofing and acoustic benefits. It’s proven to reduce outside noise and create a quieter home.

The material’s high NRC rating of 1 means that, in most cases, you won’t need to install any other noise-reduction products. The NRC rating of Aerolite exceeds that of many other insulation materials.

Are you looking to reduce noise between rooms in your home, corporate building, or shop? Aerolite has you covered there, too.

We recommend installing the product inside the walls to get the most benefit. You can also install it under the floors of a multi-floored apartment building to reduce floor-ceiling noise between individual apartments.

2. Indoor Temperature Regulation

While any insulation will improve indoor temperatures to some degree, Aerolite insulation is proven to improve indoor temperatures by an astonishing 20% to 30%!

This has benefits in the summer and the winter:

• Blocking roof heat from entering the building
• Cooling and heating systems work more effectively
• Reductions in energy costs (due to more efficient cooling and heating)

This insulation material blocks most heat from escaping from or entering your building if installed in the ceiling. Because installation by an experienced insulation company only improves Aerolite, indoor temperature regulation is achieved quickly and cost-effectively.

3. Saves Energy, Money, and the Planet

First, by insulating your home, you reduce the heating and cooling you need to keep your home at a comfortable temperature. These energy savings have the potential to offset the cost of Aerolite considerably.

What’s more, if you choose to install Aerolite insulation, save more energy (yes, even more!) by combining it with other cost-effective DIY tricks like sealing your windows, filling cracks, closing doors to disused rooms, and laying down some rugs.

This product is also great for the planet. It’s made from 80% recycled glass and other natural, sustainable materials (and can be recycled again at the end of its life) and exceeds the manufacturing emissions standards outlined by the Green Building Council South Africa.

4. Low Maintenance

Once a professional installer has filled your walls, ceiling, and floors with Aerolite insulation, you never need to think about it again. Well, at least for another fifty years or so.

That’s because fibreglass wool—made from sand, recycled glass, and a binding agent—doesn’t deteriorate as other insulation materials.

5. Naturally Pest and Mold Resistant

All types of Aerolite, from Aerolite ceiling insulation to roof insulation, are made from fibreglass. Insects, rodents, and other typical household and commercial building pests don’t like to nest in this material.

It’s also naturally moisture resistant, meaning it never allows the warm, humid conditions preferred by mould and bacteria, so they can’t grow in it.

6. Safe

Insulation typically looks fluffy and highly flammable; some insulating materials are combustible. On the other hand, Aerolite is crafted from non-combustible fibreglass, making it a favourite of property owners, fire departments, and insurance companies.

Aerolite also contains no nasty chemicals or additives, ensuring it poses no human health risks in a home or commercial setting. In fact, with a WHO Class 111 rating, it’s safer than home-brewed coffee or that jar of pickles you just opened!

You Can’t Go Wrong With These 6 Advantages of Aerolite Insulation

Insulation—ceiling, floor, or wall insulation—is essential in homes, offices, or shops. It protects your building against temperature fluctuations that can lead to everything from mould-causing humidity to air that’s inefficient to heat in winter.

And these are just a few examples!

If you’re looking for the best insulation on the market, you don’t need to look any further than Aerolite. This revolutionary building material is eco-friendly, soundproof, energy-saving, and cost-effective.

If you’re considering installing insulation in your home or business, reach out to the team at Roof Insulation SA today. With three decades of experience in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria, and Mossel Bay, we’re confident we can solve your problem or recommend the best solution for your property.