When it comes to weatherproofing your home, you tend to focus on things like your windows, your doors and your siding—but more often than not, homeowners forget to think about their actual insulation in Little Rock, AR. Insulation is the foundation on which your home’s temperature controls hinge on and can make a huge difference when it comes to the comfort of your home.
If you’re in the market to either replace your insulation or install new insulation, you will want to make sure that you do you research, and part of that research is understanding your homes R-Value. R-value is not a term that most people are familiar with so the question that everything boils down to is, “what does R-value really mean and why does it matter when it comes to insulation your home?”
What R-value means
What is R-value? R-value is a term for measurement when it comes to thermal resistance, or the ability to prevent the transfer of heat in or out of a home. The main element that the R-value measures is the conduction of heat, and this is calculated by multiplying the temperature difference by the size of the home and how much time has passed. This is then divided by the amount of heat that is lost. The larger the number, the harder that insulation is working at preventing heat conduction. The less heat loss, the lower your energy bills.
In layman’s terms, the R-value is how warm an area can stay and hold the heat over a length of time. This is a great tool when it comes to choosing the right insulation in Little Rock, AR.
Why R-value matters
If it’s a chilly winter night and you want to lie under a blanket and keep warm—would you choose the loosely knit crocheted blanket or would you choose the thick, fuzzy comforter? If you’re looking to keep warm, more often than not you’re going to choose the thicker comforter, and just like choosing a blanket to keep you warm, your home needs good insulation in order to keep warm.
A denser, less porous insulation is ultimately what’s going to keep your home warmer and while the amount of insulation can definitely play a role, it’s more important to make sure that you choose an insulation that has a higher R-value per inch.
The higher the R-value, the less insulation you have to purchase and the more comfortable your home temperature will be. This will also show its value when you receive your energy bills each month. The better the R-value per inch of insulation, the less you will be losing heat out of your home and the less you will be paying each month in bills.
Ultimately, choosing insulation can be a difficult process, but understanding certain aspects such as R-values can certainly help make the decision process a little bit easier. You want to make sure that you and your family are living comfortable lives year-round, and a lot of that comfort falls into the lap of your insulation.