Thinking of building a new home and using green building methods or considering remodeling an existing home in a green fashion?
You might want to consider an eco friendly form of spray foam insulation. This kind of insulation is sprayed into the space between your two by fours.
Soy Based Spray Foam Insulation
Spray in foam insulation that is eco friendly basically comes in two types. The first and most common is an organic polyurethane compound made from soybeans. Soy based spray in foam insulation is eco friendly in that it is made from a renewable resource, does not give off VOC’s or volatile organic compounds, and reduces a home’s energy consumption. This type of insulation has far superior thermal and acoustic insulating properties than traditional fiberglass batts. A tighter building envelope is achieved meaning fewer drafts, less outside noise and fewer insects.
Soy based spray foam insulation companies are located in most major U.S. cities. Google the term "soy foam insulation" plus the name of your city for a local installer.
Cementitious Foam or Concrete Foam
Another type of eco friendly spray in foam insulation is cementitious foam. This is a form of cement, made from natural materials that are abundant such as calcium and magnesium oxide or alumina. These materials are abundant in the earth’s crust and when the product becomes waste it it no more harmful to the environment as any rock. It can be crushed, reused and recycled.
Concrete foam insulation is an excellent green choice since it will reduce your home’s energy use like soy based insulation but has the added benefit of being almost 100% bug and rodent proof as well as fireproof. Adding cementitious foam insulation or concrete foam as it is often called, is an excellent way to make a structure more fire resistant. This type of insulation has been used at the Audubon Society and even Al Gore’s home.
Why You Should Choose Eco Friendly Insulation
Your home won’t last forever. One day it will be torn down. When that happens you don’t have to worry about fiberglass fibers being released into the air or being buried in a landfill. There may one day even be an active recycling industry to reclaim and reuse soy based and cementitious foam insulation. Spray foam insulation results in a higher R value than fiberglass bats, meaning less energy use over the life of your home.
Finally, you don’t have to worry about off-gassing. Many kinds of fiberglass insulation contain formaldehyde and will release this gas over many months. Soy foam and cementitious foam don’t contain any volatile organic compounds or VOC’s meaning you don’t have harmful gases seeping from your walls.
Because concrete foam insulation is bug proof and soy based spray foam is not a source of food to insects or rodents you also don’t have to worry as much about insects, meaning less spraying of pesticides in the home.
For more on concrete foam insulation see: What Is Concrete Foam Insulation?
