Insulating Foundations

							Title:
Insulating Foundations

Word Count:
635

Summary:
Many homeowners forget an important
 part of heat efficiency – insulati
ng their foundation. If you have in
vested in a radiant heat system, yo
u will want to make sure that you c
over all the angles that create a t
ightly sealed and well-insulated ho
me.


Keywords:
radiant heat, radiant heating, radi
ant heat insulation


Article Body:
Even if your home seems to be tight
ly sealed and well-insulated, if yo
u have a foundation that’s not insu
lated properly, you will experience
 a large loss of heat.

Foundation insulation can result in
 lower heating costs and may help a
void water vapor condensation probl
ems.

Poor foundation installation can ma
ke below grade rooms very uncomfort
able and can result in many problem
s, to much moisture, radon infiltra
tion, and an influx of insects.

Foundation insulation is especially
 important if you have radiant heat
 system. This article will outline
the various types of insulation ava
ilable.

When insulating your basement you n
eed to make sure you avoid moisture
 problems. Moisture can cause mold
and can result in physical damage t
o you interior finished walls, as w
ell as your carpeting. And mold can
 seriously affect your health.

For a newly constructed home, prope
r placed footing drainage and water
proofing should avoid most moisture
 problems. For an existing home, if
 your basement shows signs of moist
ure problems, these problems should
 be addressed immediately.
When insulation is installed on the
 dirt side of a basement wall it ha
s a lot of advantages and some disa
dvantages also. On a positive note,
 it decreases what is called therma
l bridging which cuts down on heat
loss through the foundation. It als
o protects the foundation water pro
of coating from damage when backfil
ling, and acts as a vessel to prote
ct against moisture.

In extreme climates, during freeze-
thaw cycles it can also protect you
r home from unwanted water and redu
ces the possibility of condensation
 on basement surfaces.

Some disadvantages would be that it
’s expensive when installed in an e
xisting building and it may still b
e vulnerable to an insect infestati
on.

Many experts believe that the best
way to keep your basement dry is to
 insulate the exterior of the found
ation walls with a rigid insulation
 board and a water-proof coating un
der that board that covers the enti
re foundation, from the footing all
 the way up to just below where fin
ished grade will be.

A perimeter drainage system needs t
o be carefully designed and consist
 of perforated plastic pipe, per wa
shed gravel, along with a good qual
ity filter fabric especially in are
as with poor soil drainage. This wi
ll help in keeping the rock free fr
om dirt allowing the water to filte
r down into the perforated pipe.

For an existing home, adding insula
tion to the interior of the foundat
ion is probably a more cost effecti
ve alternative. Plus, there's a wid
e selection of materials available
for almost every type of insulation.

If your foundation wall is masonry
blocks, you can fill the cores of y
our blocks with high-pressured foam
. This works far better than most o
f the other methods.

When insulating a Slab-on-grade the
 following ways should be done. You
 should insulate under the slab alo
ng with the edges of the slab, and
between the footings and slab. This
 will reduce heat loss from both th
e foundation and the slab.

Remember that all exposed insulatio
n needs to be protected from the el
ements in some way, whether using c
ement, metal, or some other kind of
 membrane.

For new construction insulation fol
low these guidelines: first comes a
bout four inches of gravel and unde
r-slab drainage and plumbing pipes,
 a layer of radiant barrier that is
 approved for concrete use, then on
e to two inches or rigid insulation
, followed by two to three inches o
r sand, and lastly is the floor sla
b.

A floating floor is another alterna
tive, which consists of – a finishe
d wooden flooring (top), rosin pape
r and two layers of ½ inch plywood
or OSB. Followed by a stiff foam bo
ard insulation. This will be quite
easy to install and isolate the flo
or from the earth below.

Regardless of the method you choose
, by properly insulating your found
ation you will make sure your radia
nt heat system runs efficiently and
 effectively for years to come.