It is becoming common sense that using reflective insulation is generally an effective way to reduce the heat gain of your house in the summer. Yet, homes are built without reflective insulation simply because there are no mandatory requirements in a building code to use it. Is reflective insulation just another fashionable topic we all talk about, but never bother to implement, same as healthy eating and greenhouse gas reduction? Perhaps, although reflective insulation is not so much a question or a concept, it is an answer. Answer to the overheating of houses during the summer, to your overspending on air conditioners and fans, and to the Legionnaires' disease.Installing reflective under-roof insulation in your house (shiny surface facing up) will significantly reduce the heat gain of your roof. If you choose to fight the BTUs coming from under your roof using air conditioning, for example, you will need to spend money not only on the air conditioning unit itself, but you will also pay extra for your monthly electric bill. It is very unfortunate that such a simple measure as using reflective insulation is not yet wildly implemented. In the days when everybody from kids to worldwide corporations claim that they are concerned with being green and saving the planet, such a simple measure to reduce heat gain is overlooked.
It is a paradox, really, how much it takes to get the system to accept simple inventions. Fiberglass insulation, for example, was first invented, according to some sources, in the 1840s. It took us more than 100 years to recognize its benefits. In 1960s, National Mineral Wool Association published the first standard that explained to the homeowners the benefits of using fiberglass insulation in their houses. The concept of reflective insulation was first introduced in 1954. This concept has been employed by NASA on virtually all missions, one of the most memorable early displays being the shiny insulation coating on the base of the Apollo lunar landing vehicles. It is the same concept that we see in the "Space Blanket" used by marathons' organizers to keep runners from getting hypothermia, and which becomes synonymous with finishing a race. The same idea is employed by rescue blanket creators, who use the strong infrared-reflective insulating material as emergency blankets for victims of disasters, so they can wrap up and share body heat.
So, why is it taking us so long to realize the potential of this simple solution?
There are many ways to save energy in home constructions, but we should stop turning a blind eye on one of the simplest, yet one of the most efficient and inexpensive one.
For more information about reflective insulation materials, go to http://www.calemtech.com or http://www.coolattix.com.
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Reflective-Insulation---From-NASA-to-Rescue-Missions-Bypassing-the-Homes&id=3976235] Reflective Insulation - From NASA to Rescue Missions Bypassing the Homes
