If you’re constructing a new roof, you may ask yourself if premium insulation is worth the cost. After all, it’s a pricey material, it’s expensive to install, and building costs are high. If you look past the up-front cost, however, you’ll see that paying more attention to your insulation (and perhaps paying a little bit more money) is an investment that will result in improvements that pay for themselves. Here are six reasons why you should care about commercial roofing insulation:
Maintaining a Consistent Temperature in the Building
Let’s say that you have a building – such as a warehouse – that houses just a small number of human beings. Is it okay to skimp on insulation if you don’t have to worry about human comfort?
Unfortunately, it’s not. Insulation does more than make a building warmer or cooler – it helps to maintain a consistent temperature throughout a building. This prevents the building’s structural elements from expanding and contracting due to temperature swings. If left unchecked, this constant expansion and contraction will work to damage and degrade the building over time.
Mold Resistance
Large temperature swings within a building will also encourage mold growth. Water condenses on interior surfaces when warm air from the outside meets cool air inside of a building. This provides a medium for mold, which can cause asthma and other health problems for building occupants. Insulation stabilizes temperatures and prevents air transfer, which inhibits mold growth in turn.
Reduced Energy Consumption
Increased insulation is recommended as part of an overall strategy that can reduce energy consumption by up to 30%. Simply put, insulation prevents warmed or cooled air from escaping the building into the atmosphere. That means it takes less overall energy to heat or cool the building, resulting in greatly reduced energy costs.
Reduced CO2 Footprint
Heating or cooling your building usually requires fossil fuels, unless you purchase renewable energy or have a solar installation on top of your building. Since insulation reduces energy costs, it reduces your building’s carbon footprint as well. Not only is this good for the environment overall, it can also be good for your checkbook, as several state and federal tax credits exist for buildings that can reduce their carbon footprint in this manner.
Increased Fire Protection
In the event of a fire, you want materials that aren’t just non-combustible. Rather, you want insulation materials that can actively retard the progress of a fire throughout your building. Non-combustible fiberglass insulation helps in that respect. When installed over a wood deck, for example, it helps prevent fire from spreading to combustible material. Other types of insulation are even more heat-resistant, will remain stable at high temperatures, and can inhibit the emission of toxic smoke.
Protect Building Superstructure
How can the insulation in your roof protect every part of your building that’s above ground level? Roofing insulation helps protect your roof from damage that occurs via wind-driven rain, snow, hail, and so on. It’s much easier to replace a section of damaged insulation than it is to replace an entire roof. Therefore, using a high grade of insulation can help prevent your building from having to close due to repairs.
Inspect and Protect Commercial Roof Insulation with PHP Systems/Design
Regularly inspecting your insulation helps preserve its operational lifespan, but sending people to inspect your roof can crush insulation panels – reducing its effectiveness. PHP Systems/Design offers a solution. Our custom roof walkways are designed to let people inspect your roof without contacting it directly – and our designs sit on your roof without fasteners while dispersing their weight enough to prevent crushing the insulation underneath.
