Insulation
Insulation Basics – Brick Veneer Walls
This post will help you understand how much heat you lose through walls. A previous post has explained ‘R’ and ‘U’ values When considering insulation a typical Australian brick veneer wall would be: Element R value Outside surface air layer…
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Double Glazing or Smaller Windows?
I’ve posted on Double Glazing but that not the only way to save heat loss through windows so I thought I would do a numerical comparison of the various options for glazing treatment of windows. In a bedroom of our last…
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Insulation Basics – Ventilation
A significant factor in the comfort of you house is the ‘Ventilation Rate’. No one likes cold draughts in winter.. . . and hot air creeping in during summer can be equally unwelcoming. So how do you calculate heat losses…
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Insulation Basics – Reflective Finishes
There are a number of insulation products with reflective surfaces now available but how do they work? Why do the instructions tell you to put the more reflective surface on the underside rather that the top? Here is some information…
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Buffer Zones
Planning a house layout? or considering builders standard layouts? Thinking about buffer zones when you are will save you on heating and cooling costs. So what are buffer zones? Buffer Zones are basically rooms and spaces that may be heated…
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Insulation Basics – Weather Effects
When you are considering how much heat you will gain in summer, or lose in winter its not just the outside temperature you need to think about. It’s actually the surface temperature of the outside wall, or window as it…
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Insulation Basics – Double Glazing
Large single glazed windows are one of the biggest reasons for heat loss in a modern house. It is also a major source of heat coming into the house in summer. So what can you do?……………here is a comparison between…
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Insulation Basics – Vapor Barriers
When you are thinking about installing insulation you also need to think about Vapour Barriers. Although I frequently saw mention of vapor barriers in books and articles it was a long time before I understood why there were needed……………. Here…
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Rooms over Garage
Will your new house have a bedroom above the garage? If so you should check what the builder specifies in the way of Insulation between the garage and the room floor. Although regulations quite often specify insulation on external walls…
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Microclimate, And Why It’s Important To Your New House
A microclimate is a local atmospheric zone where the climate differs from the surrounding area. The term can refer to areas as small as a few square feet (for example a garden bed) or as large as many square miles….
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