Healthy, Green Insulation Choices

(Photo: Yucel Tellici)

With materials like soy and mushrooms, today’s green insulation choices can sound more like ingredients for stir fry rather than the components of an energy-efficient home. Homeowners who are quick to disregard these innovative products will find they’ve missed out on an opportunity to use healthy, eco-friendly building materials that perform.

Insulation is one of those important investments that pose the question would you spend money to make money? A well insulated home can shave hundreds of dollars off your annual heating and cooling costs. The other question raised by insulation is since it should be everywhere in your home why not make a healthy, environmentally sound choice in the material you use?

Blow-in Cellulose

I’ve been on many a remodeling job where the work has been interrupted with the discovery of a decades old newspaper stuffed between walls. The yellowed paper always draws a curious crowd asking questions like what’s the date on there? or what’s the headline? While paper in the walls tends to make most people think “firestarter”, some of today’s best green insulation is made from recycled newspaper.

Take yesterday’s news, shred it, give it a non-toxic anti-pest and fire retardant treatment and you’ve got an earth friendly product that, believe it or not, performs. This type of insulation is blown into spaces, which although dusty work is much preferable than working with fiberglass.

Blow-in cellulose is great because of its high recycled content, non-toxic ingredients and insulating capacities. Still not sure? Well cellulose is mainstream so ask around and you’ll likely find someone who has used it, even purchased it right of the shelves of a big box hardware store of all places.

You can rent a blower and do the installation yourself to save money. Just keep in mind that although this stuff is non-toxic, it is messy. Don’t skimp on protective gear, especially a particle mask, and do expect to finish the day looking like a fuzzy Sesame Street character.

Cotton fiber Batt

Deck the walls with designer denim? You bet. From last year’s trend down the catwalk to green rebuild efforts down the Bayou, recycled denim is gaining speed as a very green insulation choice. In 2006, the From Blue to Green™ campaign collected over 14,000 pairs of jeans into 40,000 square feet of Ultra Touch™ natural fiber insulation to keep the heat out of a dozen Habitat for Humanity homes in Baton Rouge.

Cotton fiber insulation was a great choice there as it is in any home. It comes in batts similar to conventional fiberglass products but is so soft you can take your installation day lunch break on it without the itchy, scratchy slivers. It can settle and is treated with boracic acid, so have it installed properly and don’t let your kids eat it. Another consideration is that cotton farming can use a lot of pesticides so research your product’s material source before making a final decision.

Soy-based Spray Foams

Spray foam insulations expand to fill cracks, creating an air barrier that reduces infiltration. What’s great about soy-based spray foams is that they replace petroleum based polyol (polyurethane component) with a soy-based polyol. Using an annually renewable resource means less demand for petroleum, which is a good thing.

Although based on a food product, soy-based spray foams aren’t considered food by rodents or insects and it’s not attractive as a nest material. The foam also stays put better than batt form insulation and some manufacturers offer a lifetime warranty, the lifetime of the structure that is.

Recycled Glass fiber

That’s right, I said glass fiber. But this lightweight insulation is made with recycled glass and acrylic binder, not formaldehyde. This type of insulation is installed as traditional fiberglass is installed and the fibers can be an irritant so protective gear is still necessary. However, you won’t miss the formaldehyde and newer versions made with a kraft paper backing are less likely to trap moisture inside walls.

What’s this about mushrooms?

Gavin McIntyre and Eben Bayer, a couple of eco-conscious techies at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., recently presented their patented “Greensulate” organic insulation that includes oyster mushrooms spores as a main ingredient. Get the scoop at “Mushrooms Become Source for Eco-Building” by Jessica M. Pasko, AP Writer, June 25, 2007.

*Note: The information in this article is general advice and not meant as a substitute for personal guidance from a financial advisor, real estate professional, general contractor or legal counsel. Although the author is a licensed realtor, the advice given in this article does not constitute any client contract or agreement between the author and the user. The author is not responsible for any losses, damages or claims that may result from your decisions.