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The Water Cooler
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Best home insulation?
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<blockquote data-quote="-Pjackso" data-source="post: 3230441" data-attributes="member: 8119"><p>Here's my 2 cents:</p><p></p><p>INSULATION:</p><p>Insulation is not magic, nor complicated. You want the most R-value in your house.</p><p>Here's the rub - You can get the SAME R-VALUE using two difference methods: high-tech or low-tech.</p><p></p><p>High-tech approach: foam x less of it = R, with a typically higher install-costs (but you don't need as much of it, so good for 2x4 walls)</p><p>Or the low-tech approach: Fiberglass x more of it = R, with a lower install-costs. (need more of it though - so use 2x6 / 2x8 walls)</p><p>What's your main concern: Total budget? install costs? Wall thickness? Future maintenance concerns? DIY options?</p><p></p><p>Foam is the more expensive way to insulate in respects of costs of R-value per inch.</p><p>Also, once foam is sprayed, it'd be a pain to do any re-work maintenance to the house. (wiring/electrical/etc)</p><p></p><p>Note: There's different types of foam insulation.</p><p>Open-cell insulation is cheaper (as foam goes) but it'll hold water in the event of a leak. (for slow leaks that take a looong time to find - you'll utterly destroy your structure due to retained moisture.)</p><p>Closed-cell insulation is more expensive - but it won't hold water. Sealed, water proof, vapor barrier, etc...</p><p>Choose carefully.</p><p></p><p></p><p>HVAC:</p><p>I have a geo-thermal heat pump.</p><p>The heat-pumps are only about 10 years old (I had them installed new)</p><p>I WOULD NOT EVER RECOMMEND THEM AGAIN TO ANYONE.</p><p></p><p>Let me explain.</p><p>1) They work. And they do their job very well and do it quite cheap. (i.e. monthly bills are less.)</p><p>BUT</p><p>2) They are VERY SPECIALIZED units. So there's only a small handful of HVAC companies that service them. These companies typically charge more for their services. (in my experience).</p><p>3) The geo-thermal units are significantly more complicated. Read: more stuff to go wrong. See #2 above.</p><p>4) The geo-thermal units require a ground loop to be buried in the yard. MUCH MUCH MUCH higher costs to install.</p><p>AND THEN PRAY THE GROUND LOOP NEVER DEVELOPS A LEAK. The fix? It's hard as heck to find the leak (6 ft down) - so replace the ground loop.</p><p>A neighbor in our HOA had this happen to him. I think they eventually scrapped the geo-thermal, abandoned the ground loop, and installed a conventional HVAC system.</p><p></p><p></p><p>My next dream house will have super thick walls with fiberglass insulation, and a conventional HVAC unit.</p><p>There is a ton of qualified HVAC techs that can work on conventional units.</p><p></p><p>Holy smokes. Sorry about that.</p><p>I ranted a bit too much.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Best of luck!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="-Pjackso, post: 3230441, member: 8119"] Here's my 2 cents: INSULATION: Insulation is not magic, nor complicated. You want the most R-value in your house. Here's the rub - You can get the SAME R-VALUE using two difference methods: high-tech or low-tech. High-tech approach: foam x less of it = R, with a typically higher install-costs (but you don't need as much of it, so good for 2x4 walls) Or the low-tech approach: Fiberglass x more of it = R, with a lower install-costs. (need more of it though - so use 2x6 / 2x8 walls) What's your main concern: Total budget? install costs? Wall thickness? Future maintenance concerns? DIY options? Foam is the more expensive way to insulate in respects of costs of R-value per inch. Also, once foam is sprayed, it'd be a pain to do any re-work maintenance to the house. (wiring/electrical/etc) Note: There's different types of foam insulation. Open-cell insulation is cheaper (as foam goes) but it'll hold water in the event of a leak. (for slow leaks that take a looong time to find - you'll utterly destroy your structure due to retained moisture.) Closed-cell insulation is more expensive - but it won't hold water. Sealed, water proof, vapor barrier, etc... Choose carefully. HVAC: I have a geo-thermal heat pump. The heat-pumps are only about 10 years old (I had them installed new) I WOULD NOT EVER RECOMMEND THEM AGAIN TO ANYONE. Let me explain. 1) They work. And they do their job very well and do it quite cheap. (i.e. monthly bills are less.) BUT 2) They are VERY SPECIALIZED units. So there's only a small handful of HVAC companies that service them. These companies typically charge more for their services. (in my experience). 3) The geo-thermal units are significantly more complicated. Read: more stuff to go wrong. See #2 above. 4) The geo-thermal units require a ground loop to be buried in the yard. MUCH MUCH MUCH higher costs to install. AND THEN PRAY THE GROUND LOOP NEVER DEVELOPS A LEAK. The fix? It's hard as heck to find the leak (6 ft down) - so replace the ground loop. A neighbor in our HOA had this happen to him. I think they eventually scrapped the geo-thermal, abandoned the ground loop, and installed a conventional HVAC system. My next dream house will have super thick walls with fiberglass insulation, and a conventional HVAC unit. There is a ton of qualified HVAC techs that can work on conventional units. Holy smokes. Sorry about that. I ranted a bit too much. Best of luck! [/QUOTE]
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