Which Insulation is Best for your Home?

Here at Panhandle Insulation, we are experts when it comes to the insulation industry. Spend as much time around insulation and eventually, you start to pick up pieces of knowledge that can later be used to make better decisions while working on a project. One of the most common questions that we receive relates to what type of insulation is best for their home, spray foam or traditional? Since this is a question that pops up so often, we wanted to take some time in today’s blog post to discuss some of the difference between spray foam insulation and regular insulation. We hope that by the end of this blog  you, the reader, has a better understanding of the advantages and disadvantages that these different insulation materials have.

Insulation Comes in Many Different Shapes and Sizes

Comparing fiberglass insulation to spray foam insulation can be a little difficult. While they are both insulation materials, that’s about where the similarities end. Traditionally, fiberglass insulation has been the most common type of insulation across America, however, spray foam insulation is starting to make some gains due to the advantages that it has over fiberglass insulation. Below, we have listed a few of the differences that exist between fiberglass and spray foam insulation.

• Cost: One of the biggest factors that influence people’s decision in relation to insulation is price. While no one wants the cheapest insulation available, people are always on the lookout for the best deal that they can find. Typically, fiberglass insulation costs around $0.40 per square foot and spray foam insulation can cost anywhere from $0.90 to $1.50 per board foot or closed cell (a board foot is a 1 foot by 1 foot square at 1 inch of thickness). While it is easily seen that spray foam insulation costs more to install than fiberglass insulation, there are some additional benefits that may make spray foam insulation worth the cost.

• Insulation Ability: One of the factors that may cause people to choose spray foam insulation over traditional fiberglass insulation is how well each of these materials insulates when compared to each other. Fiberglass insulation, while effective, does not do nearly as good a job at insulating a structure as spray foam insulation does. Fiberglass insulation allows air to leak into and out of a home, is less energy efficient, and loses heat quickly in extreme cold. Spray foam insulation, due to its unique structure, does not experience any of these shortcomings.

• Longevity: When installing something in the home, many people like to consider how long the item is going to last. No one wants to pay thousands of dollars for a service such as a roofer or insulation installer only to find out that they are going to have to repeat the process a decade later. Fiberglass insulation has an expected lifespan of 10-25 year depending on how dry the insulation is kept during that time. Spray foam insulation, on the other hand, can last for up to 80+ years and is much more resistant to water damage.

If you would like to learn more about spray foam insulation, visit our website or call us today. At Panhandle Insulation, we are dedicated to providing all of our Panama City clients with the best insulation services possible and we are certain that if you give us a chance you will not be disappointed. Contact us today and let’s get started on your next insulation project.