We select the thickness of the insulation

Everyone associates home with comfort, warmth and coziness. Heat in a house is created with the help of a high-quality heating system, but the insulation of a house or apartment remains an important factor, because often, especially in old houses, the state of wall insulation is poor or absent altogether.

For insulation, there is a specialized material - insulation, which is mounted on external walls, ceilings or floors.

Indoors (on the inside of the walls) this is usually not done. This is due to many factors, including the unprofitability of this activity.

An important indicator is the thickness of the insulating material itself, which is specially calculated for the required volumes of heating, area and temperature outside the window.

In the modern world, thermal insulation is necessary not only for greater comfort, but also for savings. The cost of heating is growing relentlessly, which hits the pocket more and more, and the task of the insulation is also to save money by retaining heat.

In winter, heat is retained inside the building much longer, and in summer, on the contrary, it retains excess heat from the street.

It seems to many that the greater the thickness of the plate of thermal insulation material, the greater the savings. But this is far from the case: it will be cooler in summer, and much hotter in winter, but the structure of the wall may undergo deformation and destruction. A smaller thickness can lead to an additional increase in energy consumption.

Thermal insulation of the structure of a house (ceiling, walls, floor) is a necessary part during repair or construction (both in a residential building and in buildings intended for human work). The selection of high-quality materials for thermal insulation is an important point in this matter, but much more important is the competent selection of the thickness of the material. Factors such as the durability of the structure and technical characteristics during the direct operation of the building depend on this.

If we compare the thermal conductivity of different raw materials, then we can see that the mineral wool slab conducts it better than the structure of expanded clay concrete blocks.

Many people do not fully understand how the thickness of the insulation affects the durability and technical characteristics of the structure. In simple terms, thermal insulation allows you to save on utility bills, because heat loss is reduced by almost a third, and in some cases by half.

Another important side effect of thermal insulation is sound insulation. This is especially important for apartment buildings in urban areas, where sounds from the street can be uncomfortable. Panel houses also have extremely low sound insulation.

If we are talking about personal construction with your own hands, for example, your own mansion or a country house, then thermal insulation materials make it possible to reduce construction costs by replacing materials for building walls.

So, using thick polystyrene or mineral wool slabs (within 10 cm wide), it is possible to replace the brick walls with them. The load on these walls must be small, as a result of which this method is suitable for one-story buildings, building verandas or houses for guests.

There are a large number of requirements for thermal insulation materials, which are allocated depending on the operational load for a new building, weather criteria, material capabilities, etc.

One of the main and important characteristics of thermal insulation is the technical ability to conduct and retain heat. It depends on various factors, such as: the structure and porosity of the material, its density, as well as the level of moisture and moisture absorption.

According to thermal conductivity, three classes of thermal conductivity are distinguished:

• A - low thermal conductivity and heat saving (0.06 W / sq. M);
• B - average thermal conductivity and heat saving (0.06 - 0.115 W / sq. M);
• V - high thermal conductivity and heat saving (0.115 - 0.175 W / sq. M).

To guarantee high-quality thermal insulation of the facade (end), be it a high-rise building or a personal small mansion, the thermal insulation must be quite durable and strong in order to be able to withstand the weight of the final finish.

As a result, it is necessary to carefully choose the material based on what the wall will be covered with at the stage of exterior decoration. A tile, for example, weighs a lot, therefore a solid foundation is needed, but wallpaper (as well as cork covering) will be perfectly attached in almost all cases, but it is highly discouraged to apply such a coating on the street.

Apart from the fact that the thermal insulation must be as vapor-tight as possible, it must not absorb moisture. This material should not ignite or burn, as well as support combustion (should extinguish after ignition), emit harmful and toxic substances, and should not undergo deformation during temperature changes.

Reducing heat loss depends on the correct selection of material, as well as on its location on the building. There are several ways to insulate walls, which differ in their properties, having both advantages and disadvantages.

There are the following methods for wall insulation:

• Wall. It is an ordinary brick partition with SniPovskaya from 40 cm thick.
• Multi-layer insulation. It is a wall cladding on both sides. This is done only at the moment of the structure's structure, otherwise, part of the wall will have to be dismantled.
• External insulation. The most common method is carried out by insulating the outer side of the wall, after which a layer of finishing is applied. Among the disadvantages of this method is the need for additional hydro and vapor barrier.

If the insulating material is very thin, cold and dampness seeps through the wall, but excessive thickness is also useless.

The following are considered the standard dimensions of the material:

• 75 mm;
• 150 mm;
• 60 mm;
• 200 mm;
• 70 mm;
• 80 mm;
• 50 mm;
• 15 mm.

For example, the dew point that is located outside the structure will shift slightly towards the inside of the wall, due to the fact that the thermal insulation material cannot hold it. As a result, condensation will appear on the plane of the wall, it will slowly damp, crumble, mold and fungus will appear.

A very thick layer of thermal insulation will lead to unnecessary costs. Any good owner wants to build not just a high-quality and reliable house, but also to save as much as possible, and a thick layer of insulation costs good money.Also, with a large thickness of thermal insulation, natural ventilation from the inside of the walls is not observed, as a result of which it becomes very stuffy and uncomfortable inside the building. In addition, if the insulation is performed on the inside of the wall, a thick layer of material will take up a very large amount of free space, reducing the squaring of the room both visually and physically.

That is why it is important to be able to calculate the thickness of thermal insulation.

Another very significant point is that determining the thickness of the heat insulator depends directly on the raw materials from which the wall is made. Based on this information, we can conclude about the thermal conductivity and thermal properties of this part of the structure. Such data make it possible to qualify heat transfer on any square meter of area. The absolute list of these materials is indicated in SNiP No. 2-3-79. The density of the insulation is different, but usually it is used from 0.6 - 1000 kg / m3.

In modern construction, foam blocks are often used, which are subject to certain requirements for thermal insulation:

• GSOP - 6000;
• resistance in heat transfer and thermal transfer of walls - over 3.5 C / sq. m / W;
• resistance in heat transfer and thermal transfer of ceilings - over 6C / sq. m / W.

If you intend to put a certain number of layers of heat insulator, the heat transfer resistance characteristics are calculated as the sum of all layers. In this case, it is necessary to take into account the thermal conductivity and properties of the material from which the walls are prepared.

In order to perform the thermal engineering calculation of a heat insulator, it is necessary to take into account several points that are not easy enough for an inexperienced builder to understand. The most necessary indicator is considered the characteristics of the wall and the climatic features of the territory where the construction is taking place, as well as their ratio. Once you have decided on the technology for performing the work and selected the required material, you should start calculating.

It is imperative to insulate pipelines and other highways from the side of the street that lead to the inside of the house. These are one of the most potentially dangerous places where a huge local heat loss occurs and cold penetrates through them (up to 30% of the heat is removed).

When you have decided on the technology for performing the work and have chosen the appropriate material, you can proceed to the calculations.

The thermal conductivity of walls and ceilings has certain minimum values. To calculate, you must use the formulas:

• wall: R = 3.6-R;
• ceiling: R = 6-R.

After obtaining the numerical value of the difference, calculate the thickness of the insulation using the following formula: p = R * k, where p is the desired thickness of the insulation.

When using thermal insulation made of foam or mineral wool, the recommended value is 10 cm (in brick houses, as well as in houses with panel walls, loggias, on the balcony).

The heat transfer coefficient of all wall materials or other sections in a residential building is determined separately, depends on different climatic conditions and is individual:

GSOP = (tv-tav) x * z, where:

• tv - average indoor temperature;
• from - average ambient temperature;
• zfrom - the duration of the heating season in days (if you have autonomous heating, then take the value based on personal experience)

For those who do not want to learn these formulas by heart or do not have the opportunity to calculate everything on their own, memorizing various refinements, there are a huge number of online calculators.

They are specially designed to select the optimal thickness and take into account a variety of factors and characteristics of both insulation and walls.Some of them have a built-in assortment of goods, in which you do not need to enter additional values ​​- it will be enough to select the type of insulation, its brand and model, as well as the type of material from which the wall is made.

ROCKWOOL is very popular among such calculators.which is designed by experienced construction professionals. This calculator also calculates the energy efficiency of the insulation, giving all the necessary values ​​in the report. Also, for those who do not want to understand the functionality, the website of this calculator provides a simple step-by-step instruction that is easy to understand: just click on the "Start calculation" button and follow the prompts.

It should be remembered that if you ignore the calculations of the thickness of the thermal insulation material, a number of problems may arise, including damage to the structure of the structure itself, which is almost impossible to fix, and if possible, it will require additional, much greater costs (you will have to wait for an urgent or overhaul from the management company).

How to calculate the thickness of the insulation, see the next video.