Steam pipe insulation

leaking

I see alot of 2” thick steam pipe insulation, no 3” or thicker . Is 2” normally what is used not 3–4” ? Where is the best place to get insulation? Thicker holds heat better 2” is about R 13. My house ceiling has R 60!

Jamie Hall

On low temperature steam, such as we use for residences, in my humble opinion 1 inch is ample. Two inches is more than enough, and anything else is overkill.

bburd

People forget that adding insulation is greatly subject to the law of diminishing returns. The first inch achieves most of the savings.

leaking

R 6.5 is less than your 10$ beer cooler . It equals 2” fiberglass batts . The temp difference of steam to a cold room takes a lot of extra BTU to overcome .. Pipes get hot faster, at less cost. Warm pipes reheat quicker and at less cost . That’s where you save $ . It’s long term . Maintenance free savings. It raises property values by using less energy heat. 3” is better

Larry Weingarten

Just to help muddy waters, I like to consider the cost of energy towards the end of the life expected from the insulation. Say you expect to replace the insulation in fifty years. How much will energy cost then? To me insulation is an inexpensive hedge against future energy price increases. Also, when the property is sold, the heavy insulation will be a plus rather than a minus. 🤔

Yours, Larry