An Eco Attic Insulation For a Greener Home

The hottest trend in homebuilding and renovating is green building, where products such as eco-attic insulation contribute to sustainable building design and increase energy efficiency. But having a personal impact on the big picture problems like climate change and the environment can feel too big to tackle - how can the average homeowner make a difference? One of the quickest ways to do your part and make a positive change for your home and family is by installing eco-attic insulation.

The Importance of a Green Home

There’s a growing body of information out there about green building and sustainable design’s impact on our homes and environment. For example, in the United States buildings are cited as the cause of:

• 38% of total energy use
• 38% of CO2 emissions
• 68% of total electricity use
• 30% of landfill waste

That’s a lot of energy and materials going to the landfill - materials that may have an adverse effect on the environment or be made from non-renewable resources. Green building practices can help reduce these figures and have positive impacts on:

• Watersheds and biodiversity
• Air and water quality
• Natural resources
• Garbage and waste creation

Using Eco-Friendly Insulations

If you’re curious about making your home more environmentally friendly, the benefits are not all altruistic - there are economic and social benefits to choosing environmental products like eco attic insulation:

• Lower energy bills
• Enhanced value in your investment
• Greater longevity or improved product performance
• Improved indoor comfort and air quality

Starting at the Top

The easiest place to make a long-term impact in your home is by replacing old or underperforming insulation in your attic. Much like a hat in winter, your attic helps keep the heat in during the cold months; in the summer, that same insulation keeps the heat out and your conditioned air in. Your attic spans the whole length and width of your home and can have a huge effect on your overall comfort and energy consumption.

Choosing an Eco-Friendly Insulation

When it comes to making an environmentally friendly choice, there are a number of affordable eco-attic insulation options in Toronto. Three popular types are:

• Cellulose loose-fill insulation tops the charts as one of the quickest and safest eco attic insulation out there. Not only is it made from post-consumer recycled paper products, but diverting those materials helps prevent them from releasing harmful gasses as they rot in a landfill. Ground up and treated with natural borates, cellulose has great R-Values and can be installed without a lot of mess.
• Fiberglass insulation is also popular - it can come in loose fill or batt-style formulations and is made of glass spun like cotton candy. Though it has a high embodied energy (the amount of energy used to make it), fiberglass insulation lasts decades and performs very well.
• The last may surprise you, but sheep’s wool is growing in popularity as a mould, fire, and water-resistant insulation material for your home. Sheep must be shorn to stay healthy, so there’s a great source of renewable, green eco-friendly insulation being produced locally all year round.

Choose Green!

In the past, choosing environmentally friendly options for eco attic insulation used to be expensive and time-consuming. Today, improved products and a greater awareness of the impacts of climate change have made making environmentally sound choices easy and affordable for the average homeowner. At EcoComfort, we are serious about providing quality products and services that benefit both you and the earth we share. Give us a call about our eco attic insulation options and we’d be happy to help you find a product that’s right for you.