Environment and Insulation Materials

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Environment & Insulation Materials

Avoid insulation materials with CFCs and HCFCs

You should avoid insulating materials involving chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). They are ozone-depleting compounds, and a source of pollution. Most insulation foam manufacturers have already switched their production to hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), which are much more benign to environment (they have only a 1/20 of the negative effect of CFCs).

In the past, foam insulation contained CFC's, before manufacturers adopted HCFC's. Today, most foams are made with pentane gas and other chemicals with no CFC's or HCF's.

It's not always easy to know weather insulation foams contain CFC's or HCF's. Most of them doesn't contain, but many manufacturers do not list the eventual content of CFC's or HCF's on their product package labels.

Recycled Materials

Whenever possible consider insulating materials made from recycled materials. Cellulose insulation is a major green product, in this particular: cellulose insulation is 80% recycled newspaper.

Mineral wool is also a traditional material with an high percentage of recycled content (it may attain more then 70%, according with North American Insulation Manufacturers Association).

Fiberglass Insulation

In some cases, things depend on the manufacturers, and the big three North-American fiberglass manufacturers - Schuller International, CertainTeed and Owens Corning - all are complying the EPA recycled-content guidelines (they all are using a minimum of 20% recycled glass in their insulation products).

Also in America, some companies use recycled plastic resin in Extruded and Expanded Polystyrene Production.

Sprayed foams

Today, many sprayed foams are environmentally friendly. Most of them do not contain CFC's or HCFCs or potentiall harmful organic compounds. Most polyurethane foams insulation are in this condition and have twice the R-value per inch of traditional batt insulation, making them magnificent products in termos of energy efficient.

Though dependent on fuel fossils on their production, synthetic sprayed foams present enormous advantages as energy efficiency products. See: Spray-on foam insulation