Why insulation is important
These days we hear a lot about insulation as winter is setting in – the topic is being discussed everywhere – on TV, radio, newspaper advertisements and also through government, power companies and council newsletters.
Obviously it is an important topic and affects us all in several ways. It is therefore important to understand what insulation is and why it has been promoted as energy saver.
Heat energy always flows in the direction – from high temperature to lower temperature area. Imagine you have a heater on in your lounge and you want to have maximum advantage of the heat energy produced by that heater.
The heat energy will travel in all directions, to the ceiling, windows, and doors and propagate wherever there is a temperature difference – ie flow from high temperature to lower temperature areas.
In order to stop escaping the energy, you must put up barriers so that the energy is contained within the room.
These barriers to the heat energy flow are “insulation” as referred commonly. The duty of the insulation material is to stop flow or slow down the rate of energy flow past it.
It does not have to be only the “heat” energy. Suppose you are using an air conditioner to cool the room and the temperature outside your room is very high- as in summer months. The insulation material will stop or slow down the heat energy transmitting to the inside of the room-means keeping the cooler temperature inside the room, as produced by the air conditioner. In other words, the insulation helps maintain the cool energy within the room.
The energy can escape through various surfaces such as windows, walls, ceilings, and floors. If these surfaces have good insulation material within them-for example, fibreglass batts in the ceiling, thermal lined curtains or double glazing on windows and insulation materials in the floor and walls, the rate of energy escape will slow down. And if you have a heating source in a well insulated room, the energy stays in the room for a much longer period than if the room did not have insulated surfaces.
So now you can understand why there is so much publicity about insulating your home. If your house surfaces such as walls, ceilings, floors and walls are not insulated, all the heating energy will escape through them and you will be cold. And also your power bill will be very high. But if the house is well insulated, you will feel warm and will not have to spend as much on energy bills.
By keeping warm, you will also feel better rather than miserable and shivering. You will not catch cold, flue and other dampness related illnesses and your overall health will be better. You or your family will not end up going to doctors or hospital and your productivity will improve. This is all result of your house being insulated, warm and energy efficient.
And this explains the government drive to insulate the homes and the campaign “Warm up New Zealand”.
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Balu MistryB.E.(Mech) MIPENZ is a mechanical Engineer specialising in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration. He has in depth knowledge and expertise in these fields with related experience of over 30 years in New Zealand. Currently he operates his own consulting and design build company. www.comfortsystems.co.nz
These days we hear a lot about insulation as winter is setting in – the topic is being discussed everywhere – on TV, radio, newspaper advertisements and also through government, power companies and council newsletters.
Obviously it is an important topic and affects us all in several ways. It is...
These days we hear a lot about insulation as winter is setting in – the topic is being discussed everywhere – on TV, radio, newspaper advertisements and also through government, power companies and council newsletters.
Obviously it is an important topic and affects us all in several ways. It is therefore important to understand what insulation is and why it has been promoted as energy saver.
Heat energy always flows in the direction – from high temperature to lower temperature area. Imagine you have a heater on in your lounge and you want to have maximum advantage of the heat energy produced by that heater.
The heat energy will travel in all directions, to the ceiling, windows, and doors and propagate wherever there is a temperature difference – ie flow from high temperature to lower temperature areas.
In order to stop escaping the energy, you must put up barriers so that the energy is contained within the room.
These barriers to the heat energy flow are “insulation” as referred commonly. The duty of the insulation material is to stop flow or slow down the rate of energy flow past it.
It does not have to be only the “heat” energy. Suppose you are using an air conditioner to cool the room and the temperature outside your room is very high- as in summer months. The insulation material will stop or slow down the heat energy transmitting to the inside of the room-means keeping the cooler temperature inside the room, as produced by the air conditioner. In other words, the insulation helps maintain the cool energy within the room.
The energy can escape through various surfaces such as windows, walls, ceilings, and floors. If these surfaces have good insulation material within them-for example, fibreglass batts in the ceiling, thermal lined curtains or double glazing on windows and insulation materials in the floor and walls, the rate of energy escape will slow down. And if you have a heating source in a well insulated room, the energy stays in the room for a much longer period than if the room did not have insulated surfaces.
So now you can understand why there is so much publicity about insulating your home. If your house surfaces such as walls, ceilings, floors and walls are not insulated, all the heating energy will escape through them and you will be cold. And also your power bill will be very high. But if the house is well insulated, you will feel warm and will not have to spend as much on energy bills.
By keeping warm, you will also feel better rather than miserable and shivering. You will not catch cold, flue and other dampness related illnesses and your overall health will be better. You or your family will not end up going to doctors or hospital and your productivity will improve. This is all result of your house being insulated, warm and energy efficient.
And this explains the government drive to insulate the homes and the campaign “Warm up New Zealand”.
--
Balu MistryB.E.(Mech) MIPENZ is a mechanical Engineer specialising in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration. He has in depth knowledge and expertise in these fields with related experience of over 30 years in New Zealand. Currently he operates his own consulting and design build company. www.comfortsystems.co.nz
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