Minimum code in alberta is 20 R/inch or 2.1 Rsi/metre (R is the resistance a material offers to heat loss; rsi is the metric equivalent. The higher the R-value, the more effective the insulation) for exterior walls of the house and garage, walls between a house and garage, and the perimeter of floor assemblies. Basements and crawl spaces have slightly lower requirements – 12 Rsi or 1.4 R – while exposed cantilever floors call for 28 R/3.5 Rsi insulation and roof assemblies for 34 R/6 Rsi.

Some signs that you have insulation problems: walls and floors are cold to the touch in the winter, your heating and cooling costs are exceptionally high, certain rooms are colder than others in the winter or there is mould growing on the walls or in the basement.

There are a great number of types of insulation out there, and each one has its advantages and disadvantages. They range in r-value, cost and material, and some are more advantageous in certain situations than in others.

“A big part of (shopping for insulation) is getting correct information,” says Mark Geres, area sales manager for Owens Corning. “Do your homework – read as much you can, visit websites, make sure to get as much information as you can and make sure the product has got third party validation.”

Some types of third-party validation to look for include Nrcan, Energuide, Enervision and Greenguard certification.

“If you’re buying a new house or remodelling, the energy efficiency of your home should be at the top of your mind, right up there with the quality of your floors and everything else. With energy efficient goods, you get your money back.”

The first step is to learn what’s out there. The most common types of insulation are fibres (fibreglass, mineral fibre and cellulose fibre, available in batting or blow-in), solid polystyrene foam, and spray-applied cellulose, polyicynene and polyurethane. There are also some more exotic options out there, such as wool, cotton and even straw bales. However, you probably won’t be seeing any of these as options in new home construction any time soon.

Fibreglass insulation is the “pink” insulation that most people are familiar with, though it is not always pink. It offers an R-value of 21 to 26 R/inch. And comes loose (blown-in) or in batts. Fibreglass is well-known because it is so common.

Mineral fibre and cellulose fibre offer 19-26 and 21-26 R/inch, respectively, and are blown-in. Cellulose fibre is more resistant to air movement than the other loose-fill products, and therefore can be a good choice for attics.

Polystyrene offers R5 per inch of thickness – the thicker it is, the higher the R value – and comes as a rigid board. Polystyrene can be used to replace wood sheathing on the exterior of a home for superior insulating qualities – more on this later.

Wet spray cellulose and spray polyicynene provide R-values of 21-26 and 25, respectively, while spray polyurethane boasts an r-value of 40-47.

“Because the thermal performance is so much better than fibreglass, there are certain areas that we do in every (new) house,” says Kevin Cooper, president of Ener-spray Systems Inc., which specializes in spray polyurethane. These areas are the room above the garage (or bonus room) and any cantilevers. On custom and higher end homes, he says, they often do the complete home.

Cooper tells of one 2700 square foot house that wracked up only a $70 heating bill in November, when temperatures were exceptionally chilly.

If you’re already shaking your head at all the options, remember this: good insulation is more than just the filling, it’s an entire system. This system consists of an air barrier, to prevent the movement of interior and exterior air; the insulation itself; and a moisture barrier.

Since new homes generally consist of wood-frame construction, the potential exists for both batted fibre or spray insulation between the studs and rigid insulation on the exterior of the studs.

Geres points out that some builders in Calgary are on the leading edge of this, using a combination of fibreglass with polystyrene foam on the exterior for superior insulation. A more standard procedure is to use wood sheathing, but polystyrene foam can replace this or add to it in order to provide a higher R-value.

Another idea with potential for the future is the use of insulated concrete forms, says Don Fugler, senior researcher, housing technology for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). With this method, the builder puts up foam forms and pours concrete inside, then adds two to three inches of polystyrene on either side. “This looks promising in terms of thermal value,” he says.

If you’re wondering how your current home measures up on the energy efficiency scale, and what you can do to improve your score, you may want to consider contacting enervision (a not-for-profit organization owned by the Canadian Homebuilders Association – Alberta) to have an energuide for new houses evaluation carried out on your home. If your home already bears the energuide label, it means that the house was built to energuide specifications and tested after construction by a licensed third party to ensure all standards were met.  NL