bubble foil

hvacfreak

used as duct wrap. People tell me how great it is and that its as good as 1 1/2 inch fiberglass wrap. My jobs remain itchy.

joel_21

bubble foil

I have long been dubious of the claims of bubble foil in under slab application as you don't have an air space to reflect back from. consequently i haven't recomended it to clients. Well this months issue of Home Energy has an article on that very subject. This is a great mag on biulding performance with good stuff everymonth .There was a test done up in Ontario on 4 homes with various types of slab insulation and guess what they concluded. "Two inches of extruded polystyrene makes a big differrence in the comfort of the floor and the amount of energy passed through the slab. The foil bubble pack tested was NEXT TO USELESS AS SUBSLAB INSULATION" Test was conducted by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. www.homeenergy.org and www.cmhc.ca .

Constantin

Foil has it's place.... in space.

Back here on earth, there are additional means of losing heat besides radiation. Until that reality is changed, I'm afraid that Bubble-wrap with or without foil is simply a thin layer of insulation, and not a particularly good one at that, if used below ground.

Perhaps they are intersting for use in attic spaces and other areas where radiative heat transfer could play a big role...

Unknown

High five man, I'm glad the research is finally debunking the B.S. the RFA has been claiming for years. I too have been extremely skeptical of this... stuff... under floors and under slabs.

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joel_19

attics

Yes I can see it working to reflect heat gain when stapled to roof rafters. that makes sense and i'm probably going to try it in my attic which is smokin hot most of the summer

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kevin coppinger_4

is there...

a specific article? kpc

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Unknown

http://www.ornl.gov/sci/roofs+walls/radiant/rb_02.html

50% loss of effectiveness in anywhere from 1-10 years from dust accumulation. Doesn't exactly inspire confidence, does it?

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rb_6

Here's another report...

"Conclusion

The bubble-pack insulation had a low insulating value
compared to the polyurethane panels and the XPS
board.The cost-benefit was the poorest of all insulating
materials tested."

Glen

try this

Glen

bubbles

sorry if the scanned image is large - worth the read.

JR_3

Bubble / Foil / Bubble

There are quite a few mfg's that are making these products. There is one manf. TVM who makes a bubble / foil /bubble product where the foil is inbetween both layers of bubbles giving it an air space. They have testing data showing their product had the same heat transfer as 2" of styrofoam board. Try installing a snowmelt system with foam board and having to rip it out 3yrs later (engineers fault) I saw my 2" of blue board compressed down to 3/4". There goes the r-value. That was the last time is used styrofoam

Unknown

read up. http://www.tvmi.com/markets/basewall.gif

Their product has an R of 1. The rest of their R value comes from factors that exist whether or not you use their product, and mostly that exist if you use foam board too; the foam board manufacturers just aren't shady enough to claim the "indoor air film" as part of the R value of their product.

Again, R value "equivalence" is not R value and does not work in all applications, and while these products do have air bubbles on them, according to the testing recently done in canada and done FOR the reflective foil association, that R value equivalence does NOT hold up under slabs, so their "air space" is apparently not adequate to give you real reflective benefit in slab situations. According to ORNL, it doesn't last long (effectively) under floor heating in joists.

According to everyone, it's fine for ceilings or in warm climates to reflect heat out of a house, it does prevent leakage as well.

Make sure your engineer specs an appropriate product next time. Just because foam board installations can be screwed up does not make them inferior to an R1 product.



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Ron Schroeder_2

There are very few places where Bubble Pack is worth using

There are very few places where Bubble Pack is worth using.

1. Limited space applications where there is still room for an air gap on both sides but no inflow of air to bring in dust. This is of course for the foil bubble foil product.

2. Between layers of glass where you still need light entry but not a view like in a bathroom. This would use packing material Bubble Pack and would only last a few years due to UV degradation.

Ron

Art Pittaway

Foam Insulation loading

There are different kinds and weights of Extruded Polystyrene, it has a number printed on it, i.e. "250" or "500", this is the load rating of the material (lbs./sq.ft..in..??). Color doesn't matter, you have to install board that will support more than the weight of the cement. Think about a garage with a car on the slab, or a shop floor with four loaded work trucks, all plus the weight of the concrete. The stuff at the Box store is for a H/O and may not handle your job. Floor loading becomes a serious subject when it starts to crack.